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Currently I am applying for a job and just few days ago had undergone an interview with a panel. I noticed one of them(or may be all of them, I hope not) seems to care why I had been unemployed for more than 6 months. When they asked me, I told them that I was job hunting but doesn't prefer the offered work location (which I think myself is a very lame excuse because I sounded picky). So that was my excuse but actually after my last job, I already nailed a job from which took me almost 3 months to process. But unfortunately, during the processing of requirements, I have to drop the offer because of health history issue. So in the end, I have to start from scratch.

I might still have another interview any time soon but I don't want to mention that REAL reason of me being unemployed 'cause obviously that might lessen my chance of being hired. So, could anyone advice me what am I suppose to say when asked why I was unemployed for a long time?

Your humble advice will highly appreciated. thanks in advance!

Rai
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    Why do you think mentioning the real reason will lessen your chances of being hired? – David K Aug 19 '14 at 12:47
  • It is because it's a health issue and that makes me think that they might be strict about it just like the previous company I applied. – Rai Aug 19 '14 at 12:53
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    Are the health issues still preventing you from accepting or performing the job? If not, just say you had a personal situation at that time, but now you can accept a job. –  Aug 19 '14 at 12:56
  • Related (on the medical issue): http://workplace.stackexchange.com/q/12291/325 – Monica Cellio Aug 19 '14 at 16:01
  • Which country are you searching for employment in? – Jim G. Aug 23 '14 at 07:15
  • somewhere in southeast asia sir. pardon me for not being so much specific. – Rai Sep 03 '14 at 08:51

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The recent financial crash changed a lot of things. In 2008 if you'd had a gap of even a few weeks, a lot of hiring managers would have questioned it in depth.

Now a 6-12 month layoff is not unusual, it's the way it's been. It's always good to show things you've been doing to keep your skills sharp for your industry, but to be honest having been there myself, it can be a full time job dealing with recruiters and interviews .

As regards the reason for the gap, I think it's fair enough to say there was a long on-boarding process, which then fell through due to circumstances (I'd maybe not go into too much detail on the reason without prompting in case it causes the same issue in the next role).

Just don't say you've spent the time playing World of Warcraft, even if that WAS what happened!

The Wandering Dev Manager
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