Thursday 14th August 2008
Gap year experience important to getting a job

Getting relevant experience in your gap year could make the difference when applying for a job, a volunteering charity has claimed.

Gaining focused work experience in a relevant industry such as the financial industry will help much more when applying for a job in finance compared with going travelling for the year, according to Lattitude Global Volunteering.

Ben Clifton, spokesperson for Lattitude, said: "It very much depends on what you do. If you are just going to buy yourself a round the world ticket then you are not really adding anything to your CV."

Mr Clifton claims that employees are more likely to be impressed by applicants who spent their gap year learning the necessary skills for their future career.

"Be it teaching skills, leadership, that sort of thing that you can add onto your CV- then absolutely. It really can make you stand out from the crowd when applying for jobs," he added.

According to gapyear.com, recruiters and university admissions departments are finding it increasingly difficult to differentiate between candidates.

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