Nine Years Away from Engineering
Penang engineer Mei Ling Tan went back to a structural firm after nine years at home. She describes relearning software, working under a younger manager, and her first site visit.
Six Years on the CV
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Show notes
Six Years on the CV
Nurul begins with the document everyone dreads: the CV with a six-year gap. She shares the three versions she wrote, the one that worked, and how she answered interview questions about her family without apologising or oversharing.
- Naming the gap plainly in one line and moving on
- Skills from six years at home that are real and how to phrase them
- The interviewer who asked about childcare and what Nurul said
- Why the third application round went better than the first
This week's action: write the one sentence that describes your gap, say it out loud, and keep it under 20 words.
Transcript
Hello, I am Nurul Hashim and this is The Return Desk, a show for women going back to work after time away. In 2022 I went back to full-time work after six years at home with three children, and the first thing that nearly stopped me was a single blank space on a piece of paper. Six years on a CV. Today I will tell you about the three versions I wrote, the one that finally got me shortlisted, and how I answered the interviewer who asked, quite directly, who would look after my children. I will also talk about the skills those six years actually gave me and how to phrase them so they are taken seriously. Your action this week is one sentence, and I will explain it at the end. You are listening on Witspeak Podcasts.
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