Gap Years, Repeated Years and Leaves on a Japanese Résumé: How to Write Them When Graduation Shifts

Don't mention gap or repeated years. Just write the real dates

The education section is for writing the dates you entered and graduated from each school, exactly as they happened. During a gap year you aren't enrolled anywhere, so there's no line for it, and repeating a year simply lengthens your enrollment, so your graduation date moves later. There's no place on the form for either word.

• Gap year: there's a year or more between high school graduation and university entry. Write no line for the time between
• Repeated year: university entry to graduation takes 5 years or more. Write the entry and graduation lines as they are
• Leave of absence: like a repeated year, it shifts your graduation year. Depending on the reason, you might add one line

Recruiters will notice a gap or repeated year from the dates, but that alone rarely counts against you. Falsifying your graduation year to hide it is the real risk, since it becomes a misrepresentation issue when you submit your graduation certificate. Getting the years exactly right matters most.

Graduation years with gap and repeated years

Using someone born between April 2, 1998 and April 1, 1999 as an example, here's how entry and graduation from a 4-year university shift. Your graduation moves later by the total number of gap and repeated years.

To check with your own birth date, the Japanese Résumé Education Dates Calculator lets you enter your gap and repeated years. You can also find graduation years without a gap in the education dates table.

Whether to mention a leave of absence

You don't have to write a leave in the education section, and if all it did was shift your graduation year, you can leave it out. But if what you did during it helps your application, or if it was long enough to need explaining, adding one line makes the interview conversation easier.

If you write it, add a line between entry and graduation, dated from when the leave began. If the leave was for illness, adding that you've fully recovered reassures the reader that it won't affect your work.

The same thinking applies to high school repeats and vocational school

If you repeated a year in high school, your graduation simply moves back a year, and you don't write that you repeated. If you took a gap year and then entered a vocational school or junior college, your entry moves back by that many years. In every case, just list the actual entry and graduation dates for each school.

• 1 repeated year in high school: high school graduation is a year later than standard, and every later entry and graduation shifts by a year
• 1 gap year, then a 2-year vocational school: you enter in April of the year after high school graduation, and graduate in March 2 years later
• Vocational school after university: write the vocational school's entry and graduation after your university graduation line
• Studying for exams while enrolled at a university (kamen ronin): write 中途退学 (withdrew) for the first university, then the entry to the next one

Expected graduation and withdrawal on a résumé explains how to write withdrawal if you left one university and entered another.

If you're asked about it in an interview

An interviewer who notices the gap in your dates may ask why. They're not trying to criticize you. They want to know how you spent that time and what you learned. Rather than making excuses, state the facts briefly and lead into something positive.

1. 1

   State the fact in one sentence

   Start with the honest reason: "I took a year to get into my first-choice university," or "I was short on credits and repeated a year."

2. 2

   Say what you gained from that time

   Give one concrete example, such as keeping up a study plan toward a goal, or a qualification, research project or part-time job from the year you repeated.

3. 3

   Connect it to how you approach work

   Finish with how it helps you on the job, such as "That taught me to work backward from a deadline when I prepare."

FAQ

Do I need to write a gap year on my résumé?

No. Just write your high school graduation and university entry dates as they happened, with no line for the gap. The dates show it, but that alone rarely counts against you.

If I repeated a year, do I write that on my résumé?

No. Writing your entry and graduation dates as they are shows the longer enrollment. Writing an earlier graduation year would be misrepresenting your history, so give your actual graduation year.

If I took 1 gap year and went to a 4-year university, when do I graduate?

In March of your birth year + 24 (if you were born January 1 to April 1, subtract 1 from your birth year first). If you were born between April 2, 1998 and April 1, 1999, for example, you finish high school in March 2017, enter university in April 2018 and graduate in March 2022 (Reiwa 4).

Should I mention a leave of absence?

If the reason helps your application, such as study abroad or a working holiday, it's recommended. For illness or family reasons you can leave it out. If you write it, add one line between entry and graduation, dated from when the leave began.

How should I answer questions about a gap year in an interview?

State the fact briefly ("I took a year to get into my first-choice university"), give a concrete example of what you gained from that year, such as a habit of planned study, and finish with how you'd use it at the company.