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I've been fired after 5+ years at a software engineering job in the UK. My previous employer can give me a basic reference.

What are my options:- How do I explain I was sacked to agencies. How do I explain I was sacked in interviews. Any other advice?

Joe Strazzere
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anon1234
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    For what reason? – Neo Sep 11 '17 at 14:19
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    This is a very common question here, typically with the word "fired" rather than "sacked" but I believe you'll find the existing advice useful. Good luck and I hope you find another position quickly. – Kate Gregory Sep 11 '17 at 14:19
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    Were you actually fired or just laid off? It makes a difference to future employers. Being laid off is not your fault. – Steve-O Sep 11 '17 at 14:21
  • Why mention that you was sacked? Just say you felt it was time to move on. – Ed Heal Sep 11 '17 at 14:31
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    I would caution against marking the question as duplicate because this is about the UK and the other question appears to be US-based. – rath Sep 11 '17 at 14:38
  • Note to the US - being sacked is a UK colloquialism for being made redundant or simply being dropped, not for being fired... – HorusKol Sep 12 '17 at 00:14
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    @HorusKol: No. Being "Sacked" is equivalent to being "Fired". Being made redundant or being dropped could be phrased as being "Laid off". (Source: I'm British) – PeteCon Sep 12 '17 at 04:16
  • @PeteCon funny that - I'm British, too... Maybe it's a regional thing, but being given the sack or being sacked was not the same as being fired where I worked in the UK – HorusKol Sep 12 '17 at 04:22
  • @HorusKol: My interpretation might be a Northern thing... :) – PeteCon Sep 12 '17 at 05:05
  • @HorusKol unfortunately I was fired – anon1234 Sep 12 '17 at 08:41
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    @PeteCon - Nope. My South-East England interpretation of "sacked" is "fired". – AndyT Sep 12 '17 at 09:35
  • @Joe Strazzere Poor performance - software changes I performed caused some crashes - although the software had passed QA – anon1234 Sep 12 '17 at 11:27
  • @EdHeal I'm not sure if I could get away with that? – anon1234 Sep 12 '17 at 13:41

1 Answers1

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How do I explain I was sacked in interviews. Any other advice?

Tell the truth when asked about it. Do not embellish with tons of details, stick to the script of "I am looking forward to the next opportunity, and grateful for what I learned from my previous employer".

Also, very little comes from speaking bad about your previous employer. Refrain from doing that in your future interviews. Keep all of your conversations as positive as possible.

Neo
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