Focus on Interviews: Explaining a Job Termination

Focus on what happened

Reflect on why your employer let you go, and gather candid feedback from former coworkers, friends, and family. Did you make frequent mistakes? Did you act unprofessionally? Did challenging working conditions—like a long commute or grueling hours—hurt your performance? Was the role a poor cultural fit? When you focus on what went wrong, you can explain the experience constructively.

Focus on honesty

• Assume recruiters will contact your former employer. They will likely verify:
  • That your employment dates match your resume timeline
  • Your rehire eligibility.
• Do not list the termination on your resume, but answer honestly if an interviewer or application asks about it. Recruiters strongly prefer hiring a candidate who lost a job over someone who lies on an application or during an interview.

Focus on the positive

• Never criticize or blame your former employer or leadership team.
• Choose your references carefully, as recruiters will likely contact them. While recruiters typically reach out to former managers, you can also list supportive former colleagues. Contact them in advance so they expect the call and feel prepared to highlight your strengths.
• Do not mention the termination on your resume. However, if asked, answer honestly and frame the experience constructively. Examples:
  • The position provided a valuable learning experience, but it did not align with my skills and interests.
  • I appreciate the opportunity to work at [former company], but external factors [e.g., a long commute] impacted my performance. The position at [hiring company] offers a much better work-life balance where I know I can excel.
  • I learned from my mistakes and look forward to applying that growth in my next role.

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