Stay at Home Mom Resume Example & Writing Guide

Stay-at-home moms are some of the most capable people on the planet. They are adept at multitasking, and their versatile skill sets can make even CEOs envious. But when it comes to finding a job, it’s not just about having the required skills and knowledge; it’s about crafting a stay-at-home mom resume that properly showcases all that competence.

Fortunately, putting all your time management, conflict resolution, and creative skills to paper is easier than you think. All it takes is accuracy, conciseness, and the ability to recognize what the potential employer wants to see.

We’ll explore all that and more in this comprehensive guide. In the end, you’ll know how to craft an irresistible stay-at-home mom resume. Let’s dive in!

The Best Format to Use for a Stay-at-Home Mom Resume

The best format for most stay-at-home mom resumes is the chronological resume format. It utilizes reverse-chronological ordering to arrange details about your work history and education.

You should put your most recent jobs and degrees first before listing the rest down from there. Recruiters favor that arrangement, and most ATS software solutions are designed with this resume format in mind.

In specific circumstances, there are two additional formats to consider, which are:

Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Layout

A stay-at-home mom resume layout refers to the visual aspect of your application. It’s not uncommon for recruiters to skim through resumes and only focus on those that grab their attention. That’s why you want a professional and legible layout, which you can achieve by following these guidelines:

Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Sections

Knowing what stay-at-home mom resume sections to include helps you plan ahead and ensure you’ve added all the necessary details.

Let’s start with the five mandatory sections that every resume should have:

After that, you can include one or more optional sections to impress recruiters further and highlight your prowess. Some of these sections are:

To make your resume-building process even easier, we’ve created a software solution that features ready-made templates with all these sections built in. Instead of wasting time writing and formatting a document from scratch, you can simply pick one of the many templates and fill in the blanks with your information. You can have your resume done in minutes!

A Guide to Adding Contact Information to Your Stay-at-Home Mom Resume

The contact information section of your stay-at-home mom resume should be all about facts and accuracy. That makes it one of the most straightforward sections to create and a good starting point in your writing process. You can simply list the following information:

Including a mailing address is an outdated practice, so you should only do it if the employer asks for it. Also, avoid adding sensitive personal information, such as your age, religious beliefs, or even a photo. On the other hand, you’re welcome to include a relevant social media profile (e.g., LinkedIn) or portfolio.

Make sure you use a professional email address, and double-check for any typos that could render your contact information ineffective.

How to Write a Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Objective/Summary

Every resume should have a potent introductory paragraph in the form of an objective or summary.

Stay-at-home moms with little or no work experience should write a resume objective. Its focus should be skills and education as a sign of promise that they can successfully fill the role.

Experienced candidates can sum up their entire resume through a couple of the most prominent workplace accomplishments and write a resume summary.

Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Objective

A resume objective is all about showing recruiters and employers that you have potential. You can achieve that by leveraging your skill set, passion, and even some experience in the field through freelancing or solo projects.

Let’s take a look at stay-at-home mom resume objective examples, starting with the good one:

For comparison, here’s a poorly-written example:

The first resume objective is strong and focused; it shows skills, certifications, and relevant experience. The second one tells nothing about the candidate’s competence. While there’s nothing wrong with displaying a willingness to learn, you should show your potential employers that you already bring something to the table.

Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Summary

Writing a resume summary is all about putting your best foot forward to impress recruiters from the get-go. That’s why you want to mention some of your key achievements since past performance can strongly indicate future results.

Let’s start with a well-written example of a stay-at-home mom resume summary:

Now compare that to the following weak summary:

Simply stating that you’re a skilled individual doesn’t have nearly as much of an impact as providing concrete proof.

Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Professional Experience

The work experience section of your resume is usually the most important one. Let’s find out how you can get the most out of it.

General Tips

For starters, you should format your work experience section by including information in the following order:

Since this is likely going to be the biggest section of your stay-at-home mom resume, it’s vital to be concise. First off, you should only list those jobs that have some relevance to the position that you’re applying for. Unrelated roles you performed over a decade ago will likely do more harm than good to your application.

Here’s how you can do that while still creating an irresistible list of notable accomplishments:

Stay-at-Home Mom Graphic Design Experience

If you have a rich professional history, don’t let a small employment gap prevent you from highlighting it in your resume. As a stay-at-home mom returning to work, your resume should utilize the chronological format. List your past jobs, starting with the latest one.

Here’s an example:

Stay-at-Home Mom With No Experience

If you’re writing a stay-at-home mom resume with no experience, you can use other activities as a substitute. For instance, you could highlight your volunteer endeavors, participation in community projects, freelance work, and so on.

Let’s see what that can look like in an example:

How to Explain a Gap in Your Resume as a Stay-at-Home Mom

Having a gap in your resume might seem daunting, especially if you’re unsure how to mention it. One of the ways to solve this problem is to use functional or combination resume formats.

Still, you can explain the gap—and even turn it into an advantage—while using the chronological format, too. Firstly, it’s important not to attempt to hide the gap. Falsifying employment dates or omitting them without explanation will likely get your resume discarded.

One of the best ways to go about it is to add the time spent as a stay-at-home parent to your work experience section. Format it like you’d format any other job, along with the dates and bullet points with your achievements. Here’s an example:

Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Education Section

The education section is perfect for supplementing your work experience or backing up your skill set. Still, it should be a brief section, especially if you have a substantial professional history. Generally, it’s enough to list your highest degree and call it a day. Here’s an example:

You can make this part of your resume more prominent by adding bullet points with notable achievements similar to those in the work experience section. Moreover, you can include a degree even if you haven’t obtained it yet by simply mentioning how many points you’ve earned toward it.

How to Add Skills To Your Stay-at-Home Mom Resume

Your skills, in combination with your work history, can make or break your application. However, adding stay-at-home mom skills to your resume is a bit more complex than just creating a list.

Here’s a list of tips on how to optimally add skills to your resume:

Stay-at-Home Mom Professional Skills

A list of professional, hard skills will depend on your career and the job that you’re after. For example, as a graphic designer, you could list some of the following skills:

On the other hand, a teacher will have a completely different skill set, such as:

Stay-at-Home Mom Non-Professional Skills

Non-professional skills are also known as soft or transferable skills. They aren’t job-specific, but they can be just as important in the eyes of recruiters and potential employers. Here are some of stay-at-home mom soft skills to add to your resume:

Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Other Sections

Additional sections, when relevant to the job position, can vastly improve your chances of success. They allow you to give recruiters more information about your skills and accomplishments. While they shouldn’t overshadow the main sections, you should include them as long as you have room left.

Awards

Awards add credibility to your competence. They represent recognition of excellence, highlighting that your work has been validated by peers in the field. This section is even more important if you lack work experience, as it can be a solid substitute.

If you have multiple awards, you can list them chronologically or in order of importance. Be sure to mention the name of the award, the issuer, and the date.

Certifications

Certifications can enhance your employability by proving that you have undergone relevant training and education. Depending on the role you’re applying for and the value of these certificates, you can either include them in the education section or as a standalone part of your resume.

You can include minor certifications that supplement your formal education in the bullet-point list under your degree. On the other hand, certain certifications can singlehandedly put you ahead of the competition, so you should list them separately to make them more prominent.

Conferences/Lectures

Attending conferences and lectures shows involvement in the field. It displays dedication to the craft and a willingness to go the extra mile. Furthermore, it’s a strong indicator that you’re keeping up with the latest trends in the industry.

Lastly, this section indirectly highlights your communication and interpersonal skills. That makes it all the more important if you’re applying for roles involving extensive teamwork or interaction with others.

Publications

Publications represent proof of expertise, and they showcase initiative and leadership. They can be anything, from publications in highly valued academic journals to blogs on online platforms. Another upside to having publications is that they indicate continued involvement and refined writing and communication skills.

Languages

Proficiency in foreign languages is a valuable skill that can even be mandatory in communication-oriented professions. When writing this section, it’s vital to choose a proven framework and list languages in descending order, starting with the one you’re most knowledgeable in.

Hobbies & Interests

The hobbies and interests section adds a valuable slice of personality to your resume. It gives recruiters a glimpse into who you are outside of work, which can help them remember you, increasing your chances of landing an interview. It’s also helpful if you manage to convey some transferable skills through your hobbies.

Do You Need to Write a Cover Letter as a Stay-at-Home Mom?

Submitting a cover letter is not always mandatory, but it’s one of the best ways to show diligence and eagerness to go the extra mile. It’s also an opportunity to convey more information about your skills and experience without overburdening your stay-at-home mom resume.

When writing a cover letter, you want to keep it brief and concise. Keep it 3–5 paragraphs long while talking about your motivation for applying and those abilities and accomplishments that didn’t fit your resume.

3 Expert Tips for Writing a Stay-at-Home Mom Resume

Before we wrap things up, here are a few final tips to help you perfect your stay-at-home mom resume:

Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Example

Use this example

Before you start working on your stay-at-home mom resume, check out our professionally crafted example for inspiration and guidance.

Closing Thoughts

As you can see, returning to work or landing your first job as a stay-at-home mom doesn’t have to be a scary endeavor. You can even leverage the time spent and skills obtained while being a parent to increase your chances with recruiters.

Remember to carefully read the job ad, be concise when writing, and go the extra mile by submitting a cover letter. With the right approach, a gap in employment will quickly be a thing of the past, and your career will flourish!