Hiring managers now use temp agencies to pick applicants who keep themselves current with temporary work rather than having an employment gap. No matter your reasons for considering it, knowing how to list temp work on your CV is crucial to landing a job.
There are so many ways to list temp jobs on your CV. Some of them include: appropriately listing your experience, utilizing your temporary background, including relevant responsibilities, etc. This article covers these points in detail to guide you. So, consider these six tips to expand your job search and increase your hiring chances.
#1 Add Similar Experiences in a group
If a staffing agency employs you to handle three temp or contract jobs, these jobs must be in the same group. The first things to list in your employment history are the name of the staffing agency, the location, and employment duration. Below the heading, give a brief description of the type of work task you completed. It all depends on how many temporary jobs you have done. You can list each company separately.
#2 Include your achievements and success
After outlining your responsibilities, include a bullet point or two describing the success of each work position you listed. This is to show that you were valuable in all your previous jobs. Use this to explain how you can use your temp experience to create a greater value for a full-time job. If these details include your temp work, you can explain how you learned a new skill within a short period of time. People have used short-term jobs to secure a path for outstanding achievement and long-term employment, so present your successes.
#3 Include relevant responsibilities
Always include bullet points describing the responsibilities of the job when listing a temporary position separately. The essence of your bullet point is to let the hiring manager know that you have the relevant skills for the job. Review the job post to find out the responsibilities and roles of the new position. Then, compare it to yours to be sure it matches.
#4 Appropriately List Experience
Engaging in different jobs will cause you to always upgrade your CV as your experiences will keep varying. It is appropriate to list all the temporary jobs you have done, whether in multiple positions or a single position. Decide whether to group experiences that match each other or list them separately. You can also make your resume more professional and structured with Affinda.
When listing the job experience, include the company’s name, city and start and end dates on your CV. Also, include your job title, your achievements, and responsibilities. Label the type of experience besides the job title, whether a temporary or contract job. Ensure the experience the company is looking for is outlined as the first job experience on your CV.
You can also use Draftable to compare and edit your previous and latest CV with temp jobs.
#5 Utilize your temporary background
Always include your temporary background on your CV. If it will make you feel like a job hopper, know that there is so much freelance and contract work available today. Be proud of your past jobs, and don’t fail to mention the values you gained from them. When listing them, be as concise and clear as possible. Your temporary work history will not be an obstacle but an advantage.
#6 Avoid Career Gaps
A career gap is taking a break from work for some time. There may be many reasons behind this, but it’s quite challenging to correlate this on your CV. An employer may disqualify you due to the empty spaces on your CV. This is where temp work comes in. Temp work can fill in the time of your career gap on the CV and boost your chances of getting a job.
There are many ways to deal with career gaps on your CV, such as:
- When writing your CV, be very honest about your career gap
- Look for a good temp job during the career gap
- Expand your network search for a new job
Summary
With the availability of temp and contract jobs, people with job experience moving from one job to the other are no longer considered job hoppers. Temp jobs often require skills, knowledge, and essential expertise, which should be perfectly written on your CV. So use the above tips to prepare a winning CV to impress a potential employer and get that next job placement.
