Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Examples That Get You Hired in 2025
Image: https://pixabay.com/photos/family-portrait-outdoor-fall-7584005
Being a stay-at-home mom provides you with more marketable skills than you think. From providing academic assistance and emotional support to delegating chores and budgeting, there are plenty of things to include in your stay-at-home mom resume to cover up for your career break.
To create an effective stay-at-home mom resume, think about where you are headed in your career, what skills you'd like to emphasize, and what job title you're targeting. Read our guide below to write a resume that meets the expectations of the hiring manager and gets you hired faster.
Should you list being a stay-at-home mom on a resume?
The biggest issue that puzzles a stay-at-home mom returning to the workforce is explaining the time off work that you took to raise children. Employment gaps always raise red flags with employers, so it is best to indicate that you left your job to be a stay-at-home parent. You can add being a stay-at-home mom to the Experience section and describe it just like a paid job.
Adding your stay-at-home experience as a full-time job helps you downplay a career gap that most recruiters frown upon. Plus, it helps emphasize some great sought-after skills, such as time management, strong organizational skills, empathy, and verbal communication skills. Such skills are especially beneficial in customer service, event planning, and administrative positions.
Another great reason to list parenting experience is because you show a strategic approach to your career. You don't just admit to being out of work for a year or more - you highlight skills you've gained for the employer and think about how they can benefit the company. This can generate more attention to your candidacy.
How to Describe Your Experience as a Stay-at-Home Mom on a Resume
When writing a stay-at-home mom resume, you have two goals. Firstly, you need to explain that you took the time off work to raise a child to avoid raising red flags. Secondly, you should showcase that you committed to personal and professional development during your career break.
The key relevant skills to include on your stay-at-home mom resume include multitasking, interpersonal skills, planning, and organizational skills. You've probably managed family finances, planned the time out, scheduled medical appointments, organized educational activities and helped with homework, and more. Choose the most relevant skills for your position, and describe your parenting experience in detail.
When applying for a job as a technical support specialist, highlight such skills as active listening, communication, and empathy. If you want to continue your career as an accountant, add skills in financial management, planning, and organization.
Here's how to write your resume step by step.
Add it to your Experience section
Put your stay-at-home mom experience at the top of your Experience section. Even though it might not relate to your target job, this is where recruiters will immediately see it. Add start and end dates and format it like other jobs in the list.
List it like a full-time job
Describe your parenting experience and skills as if it were a paid job. Use Stay-at-Home Mom or Household Manager as a job title and add your physical location. Use bullet points to describe your primary duties and qualification highlights, such as managing a household budget, child development and tutoring, scheduling and planning, and other mom skills.
Remember that many of these valuable skills can be helpful in the workplace, so use the language that will resonate with hiring managers.
Be concise
The main goal of adding your parenting experience to your professional resume is to explain the employment gap and show you've learned some skills. So, keep the job description concise - 3-4 bullets will be enough to show your transferable skills.
Example of stay-at-home mom resume experience
Stay-At-Home Mom May 2022 - July 2024
Austin, TX
- Fostered a positive learning environment for 2 pre-schoolers, contributing to their cognitive and social development
- Implemented a structured daily routine, and organized household activities including cleaning and cooking meals
- Successfully negotiated and managed household finances, maintaining a balanced budget
- Operated a parenting video blog receiving 3,500+ visitors per month.
Download Free Stay-at-Home Mom Resume Templates
Professional resume templates can help your application stand out. Our templates are designed with the recent resume trends in mind and organized to present your work history effectively. Instead of developing your resume from scratch, you can simply insert the content into a template, which saves you a lot of time. Plus, with a unique and bright template, it's much easier to grab attention of the hiring manager.
What resume template to choose depends on your specific career situation. You can find chronological resume templates for women who continue their career after being a stay-at-home mom, or functional formats for those embarking on a new career path.
All templates are downloadable for free in Google Docs. Choose a template and use a special link to save the copy of your template to your Google Drive. Download our ATS-friendly templates for free!
What Recruiters Look For in a Stay-at-Home Mom Resume
In a stay-at-home mom resume, employers expect to see that you kept your skills up-to-date or developed new competencies. If you attended training, workshops, or online courses, be sure to add them to your resume. Thus, you will show the hiring manager that can add value from day one and don't need much onboarding and training after a prolonged time off work.
Make sure to list your parenting experience as a full-time job, especially if you've been out of work for more than 6 months. Even though it might be not conventional work experience for you (i.e. if you worked as a software developer or accountant before), such experience helps cover the gap and show that you had a solid reason for being unemployed.
Emphasize valuable skills you gained through parenting. The soft skills you gained can increase your productivity and interactions at work, so don't hesitate to include them. Most recruiters value such skills as communication, adaptability, and problem-solving. Check out our resume skills that recruiters actually care about to fine-tune your resume.
Tips to write a stay-at-home mom resume
In addition to adding your parenting experience, it is essential to update all sections of your resume so that it positions you for your dream job. Here's how to write a stay-at-home mom or stay-at-home dad resume that wins more interviews.
Choose the appropriate resume format
What resume format to choose depends on your career goals. As an experienced professional, you should use a chronological resume and list all your jobs and degrees backward starting with the most recent one.
If you are starting a new career path or have little relevant experience, then a functional resume is your best choice. This type of resume focuses on your hard and soft skills over work experience. Or, use a hybrid resume that is detailed about both skills and work history and is suitable for all types of stay-at-home moms.
Adapt it to the job description
Since most companies use an applicant tracking system (ATS), it is essential to insert relevant keywords into the resume. Without keywords, your application will get tossed as irrelevant. You can find keywords in the job posting - pay attention to the skills and credentials that the employer demands. Add to your resume just what the job ad focuses on.
A certified professional resume writer recommends that you insert keywords in the top third of your resume where they are most valuable for the system.
List relevant education
Use the Education section to list your degrees, certifications, and ongoing professional development. Organize your degrees in reverse chronological order, including the school name, major, and achievements.
If you used your time off work to go back to school, put the Education section above experience and add the details about your new degree.
Expand on professional experience
Your Professional Experience section is your biggest asset, so keep it informative and concise. Focus on relevant experience and, if possible, emphasize your career growth and achievements before taking a long parental leave. Your goal is to prove your professional competencies and position yourself as a knowledgeable, achievement-driven professional.
Format your existing resume using bulleted lists, not paragraphs. Write no more than 5-7 bullets for each job you had to keep your resume short and sweet.
Consider a resume objective
If you have a long career gap, adding the Objective section can help in your job search. Write 2-3 sentences at the top of the resume to summarize your biggest strengths and current career goals. Use it as an elevator pitch to impress an HR manager.
Discuss your key skills
Being a stay-at-home parent has equipped you with valuable skills that you can add to your resume without hesitation. Examples of such skills are project management, time management, coordination, negotiation, mediation, research, problem solving, and conflict resolution.
Don't forget to list relevant professional skills as well. As a seasoned professional, specify both hard and transferable skills. For example, if you are a copywriter, you can add such skills as writing, copyediting, search engine optimization, CMS, WordPress, or Photoshop.
Don't forget to adjust your list of skills for a specific job posting. Skills often work as keywords, and if you don't add some skills crucial for the job, your resume might get tossed before a recruiter sees it. Cut off the irrelevant skills you no longer use to keep your resume focused. Strike balance between soft skills you built as a parent and professional hard skills for the best result.
Add your name and contact details
Although writing this section seems like a no-brainer, it's important to keep these details in mind:
- Include your full name at the top without additional details or abbreviations that can confuse the ATS.
- Use a professional email address that has your first and last name. Avoid "funny" email addresses as they look unprofessional.
- No need to add your full address. Include your city and zip code.
- Add LinkedIn profile address if you use this social media and your profile is active and complete.
Emphasize professional development
In the resume of a stay-at-home parent, employers want to see that you developed professionally while unemployed. Ideally, you should add trainings, courses, or workshops you attended while raising children. If you completed projects as a freelancer, you may add these projects too. Employers value professionals who constantly work to improve their skills.
Listing unpaid experience or volunteer work can increase your chances for employment, too. If you fundraised for a charity organization, organized local garage sales, or worked in community development, mention this experience on your homemaker resume.
What to do if you haven't completed any courses or projects while staying at home? You can take a couple of short-term courses lasting a week or a month and complete them now while you're job-hunting. Thus, your Professional Development section on a resume won't look blank, plus, you can actually learn something helpful for your career.
If you're retraining to start a new career after a parenting leave, place the Professional Development section near the top of the resume. Show the employers that you've gained skills and are ready to start a new professional chapter.
List achievements
As a stay-at-home parent returning to work force, you'll want to mention a few achievements on a resume. Read the job descriptions and recall your experience that aligns with them. These can be academic or professional achievements.
Examples of achievements are completing multiple projects on time, increasing sales, speaking at the conference, exceeding expectations, or winning the Employee of the Year title. Your goal is to impress the potential employer and show that you are willing to deliver results for an employer and outperform.
Don't stretch the truth
Your communication with the future employer should be based on trust. Even if you suspect that being a mom can affect your interview chances, don't hide this fact from the employer. Don't try to hide your career gap by adjusting the dates of previous employment. A quick background check will reveal the truth, and you will lose the career opportunity.
Add a matching cover letter
About 60% of employers expect cover letters with your resume. Remember that a good cover letter should be personalized and reflect your fit for the particular company and role. Keep your letter short - between 3 and 4 paragraphs - and focus on the most important experiences and achievements.
For stay-at-home moms, a cover letter is a place where they can explain the reason for an extended gap and what they did to keep their skills current.
Want to know how to update and perfect your resume so that it brings more results? Read our guide on how to perfect your resume in just 30 minutes.
Not Sure What Resume Format to Use?
Here's a breakdown of three main resume formats:
- Chronological. This resume type is perfect for stay-at-home moms who continue their career path. This format emphasizes work history and downplay any other details. However, if you took a long time off work or your career history has issues (in addition to a parenting leave), it's best not to use it.
- Functional. Functional resumes are suitable for professionals changing careers. If you want to start a new career after full-time parenting, choose it. This format focuses on skills and competencies which are placed at the top, and the employed history is downplayed.
Combination, or hybrid. Such a resume includes a resume summary, a list of key skills, and a detailed work history, thus combining the feature of the above two. It's the most suitable format for all career situations.
Now, let's look at specific examples to help you choose.
3 Resume examples for stay-at-home parents
Are you here for a stay-at-home mom resume template? Pay attention to these stay-at-home mom resume examples:
Experienced stay-at-home mom resume sample
Why is this a good resume?
- It is professionally formatted. The resume uses a creative yet neat design which is easy to skim through. It is one page long, which is the recommended length.
- This resume has the objective section. It works as a professional summary, presenting the candidate's key strengths and the type of role they're looking for (staff development and customer service positions).
- It emphasizes work history. This candidate includes their experience as a stay-at-home mom with duties such as housekeeping and child development.
- It features educational background, relevant certifications and skills, among other things.
Once you are done with resume writing, update your online profile after a long break. Read our ultimate LinkedIn guide and prepare your profile for a successful job search.
Entry-level stay-at-home mom resume example
Why is this a good resume?
- It has the right format. This job-seeker uses a functional resume format which is best for someone with limited work experience. The resume features key competencies in social media and email marketing, as well as measurable achievement.
- Objective statement. The candidate uses the resume objective to summarize key skills and relevant experience, and aligns them with skills acquired while being a stay-at-home parent.
- Work experience is listed briefly and showcases marketing background along with being a stay-at-home mom.
- Effective formatting. The document has a plain formatting which is optimized for ATS software.
Career transition resume example
Image source: https://d25zcttzf44i59.cloudfront.net/housewife-resume-example.png
Why is this a good resume?
- It is perfect for career transition. If you're transitioning from being a housewife to a full-time job, or want to continue your career in a new industry, this structure can effectively emphasize your previous positions and skills.
- It has a career objective focused on the candidate's skills and how their competencies can be helpful for a potential employer.
- The work history section describes volunteering projects as full-time jobs, focusing on duties and presenting key achievements with numbers.
- The document has effective formatting with bullet points, making the previous roles easy to skim through.
Adding your stay-at-home mom experience to the resume can emphasize valuable soft skills and build credibility with the potential employer. Be sure to list skills you developed while taking care of your kids, as they can be a valuable asset for many employers. Add parenting experience to your resume naturally, but be sure to focus on your job-related competencies in the first place.
Ready to Get Hired? Optimize Your Resume Today
Writing your resume from scratch can be overwhelming. Our free resume builder will help you get started with it. Use our free tool to add your resume summary, skills, work history, education, and other details step-by-step. Quickly create a basic resume and enhance it using our tips and advice above to create a truly compelling resume that the hiring manager won't overlook!
<p>Use our resume builder and AI-powered suggestions to polish your resume. <a href="/resume-builder">Get started now</a>.</p>
Resume Tips for Special Situations
Resume for Stay-at-Home Mom Returning to Work
There are three key strategies you can use to write a resume for a stay-at-home mom:
- List your parenting experience as full-time employment. Thus, you'll avoid an employment gap that turns off recruiters and show that you've gained valuable soft skills. Plus, many companies appreciate mom returning to workforce as they are usually loyal and responsible.
- Update your resume with recent courses and freelance work. When describing your unpaid experience, include powerful resume words that can boost your impact.
- Write a dynamic summary that explains your career gap and emphasizes key skills for the target position. Include 1-2 key achievements to draw a recruiter's attention faster.
Stay-at-Home Mom Resume with No Work Experience
What do you do if you had a child after graduation and don't have much paid experience? Use a functional resume format that emphasizes your transferable skills, such as multitasking, organization skills, creating positive work environment, project management, planning, budgeting, and more. Focus on skills you gained in college or through volunteer projects.
Describe your unpaid or volunteer work briefly and list skills and competencies you've built at the top of the resume. Mention specific projects you worked on and any achievements relevant to your target job. In the Work Experience section, list freelance jobs and community projects along with your parenting experience to make your resume look more detailed.
Resume Objective for Stay-at-Home Mom Returning to Work
Proactive full-time parent with 1+ year of marketing experience seeking an entry-level marketing position. Seeking the opportunity to leverage strong organizational and creative skills honed through household management. Skilled in data analysis, paid ad management, and copywriting.
In need of a standout resume?
A good resume can skyrocket your chances for employment even if you have a significant career gap. At ResumePerk, we write custom resumes for career switchers, parents returning to the workforce, experienced professionals, and more. You'll work directly with a qualified writer who will take all your requirements and expectations into account. Chat with us to learn more about our services!
Frequently Asked Questions about Stay-at-Home Mom Resumes
How to list stay at home mom on resume?
Use a professional job title and include your responsibilities. You can also consider these reasons to hire a professional resume writer if you want expert help.
What resume title should I use as a stay-at-home mom returning to work?
You can use "Professional Resume for Stay-at-Home Mom Returning to Work" or "Resume for Full-Time Parent Rejoining Workforce". Keep it professional and align it with your target job role.
Can I use a resume template as a stay-at-home mom with no work experience?
Yes. Functional or hybrid resume templates are best suited for moms without recent work experience. These focus on skills, accomplishments, and volunteer work instead of employment history.
How do I explain a resume gap due to being a stay-at-home mom?
You can briefly mention your parenting break in the experience section or in a summary. Focus on any freelance, volunteer, or learning activities done during that time.
What skills should a stay-at-home mom list on a resume?
Include transferable skills such as time management, communication, problem-solving, organization, and multitasking. Highlight those that match the job you're applying for.
Should I include volunteer work in my stay-at-home mom resume?
Yes. Volunteer work shows initiative, relevant skills, and community engagement. It's especially useful if you lack recent paid experience.