Hi Bridget,

Congratulations on making the leap to a new career! I can’t speak to what the requirements would be for getting an LPC, I would recommend getting in touch with a licensing board, or asking around in your masters program to see if there is any information regarding the process and requirements. Sometimes school career offices or career counselors may be helpful. Otherwise, checking out your state licensing board website might offer you the information you're looking for.

As for your second question about your work gap, seeing as you are making a career change you can get creative about how you describe this time off. You can say that you took time to focus on identifying your passion. This may have included doing independent research, volunteering somewhere, or just taking the time to connect with yourself to determine the next steps you wanted to take. This also sounds like a question about disclosure. Our website has an article on Managing Disclosure When Looking for a Job that I think might provide you some guidance. Additionally, we have a recorded webinar on Disclosure, Privacy & Online Brand that might shed some light on how to approach disclosure and decide if you want to share any information at all. Understanding your options, as well as potential outcomes of disclosure, can really help you make an informed decision that will be best for you.

Additionally, if you’re concerned about your resume, I would recommend utilizing our Resume Review Service to help you structure and format your resume so that it is best suited for your career change.

I’m happy to speak further with you regarding how to approach interviewing and explaining any gaps. Feel free to send an email to cancerandcareers@cew.org to set up a time to talk.

Best of luck on your master’s program!

Warm regards,

Nicole Jarvis, LMSW

Assistant Director of Programs

Cancer and Careers