Building resume from across pond easier for recent grads

Taking a "gap year" to go abroad, either right out of school or a few years later, can be an effective and fun way to gain real-world experience outside the confines of a cubicle.

However, in order to keep recruiters intrigued and impressed, it's important to give your travel activities the right spin on a resume.

Diana Fitting, senior vice president of Adecco Professional Staffing, says that recent graduates are at an ideal time in their careers to take time off for traveling.

"If you're in the first five years of your career, it's very easy to fit in a travel gap, depending on how you turn around and position that to future employers," Fitting says. "Once you've been working for more than five years and you're not changing careers, it's hard to position it as a learning experience."

Fitting has a few tips about what to do on your travels -- and what to say about it on your resume -- to get the right response from potential employers.

On the trip

n Make sure the time off won't hurt you career-wise. For most fields, the universal skills you learn will help you land that next job, but be mindful if you're in a profession where "if you don't use it, you lose it," Fitting says.

n Visit places and do things that will enhance your career long-term. "If you're going to law school, visit large legal firms around the world while you're traveling," Fitting says, adding that if you're doing anything besides just sightseeing, it's going to be beneficial.

If you'll be enrolling in a program or hunkering down in a certain location and finding work, choose activities that will hone skills you need in your career path.

n Volunteer. "Many people also take time off to give back to the world community, and companies are always looking for social responsibility," Fitting says.

On your resume

n Only include the abroad stint under "work experience" if you were actually working. If not, add it in another category to account for the gap in work, and be prepared to talk about your experience in the interview.

n If your work abroad hasn't directly related to your career, highlight the fact that it provided a wider perspective. "Many kids haven't been out of their backyard, especially if they haven't traveled far to go to college," Fitting says.

n Focus on universal skills that will be valuable to any employer, like budget and planning, independence, adaptability and learning about languages, cultural customs and international business.