Not working in your desired field? Bridge jobs can still be beneficial to your career

A bridge job can be more than just a temporary gig while you wait for something better. It brings its own opportunities, and potentially surprise twists in your career.

Young job-seekers who aren’t landing opportunities in their field might find themselves picking up other work to fill a gap in employment — but this shouldn’t be seen as a step down, said Yulia Gracheva, career consultant at Flourish Career Consulting in Vancouver. In fact, it can give you a little boost.

“It releases some of the stress,” Gracheva said. “You feel more confident when you have a job that is paying your bills, and you’re still staying in a professional field. It may not be the job that you’re doing for the rest of your life, but having that confidence and looking for the next job — it will be a benefit for a job seeker.”

According to Gracheva, it’s ideal if the bridge job lands somewhat adjacent to your desired industry or role. If someone’s field is health care, for example, administrative roles in health care organizations can be beneficial. For young marketing professionals, a sales role is valuable. If you have a background in IT, you might aim for technical customer service, perhaps within software sales or support. 

“It’s something where you can learn the industry — you may not be in the industry, like right in the middle of it — but you communicate with stakeholders in that industry,” she said.

But getting close to your field isn’t a necessity, said Wendy Giuffre, president of HR services firm Wendy Ellen Inc. in Calgary. Her top picks for bridge jobs are frontline roles — customer and client service — no matter the industry.

“Any place that you’re dealing predominantly with the public, I think, is a great place to take that bridge job,” Giuffre said.

“Unfortunately, in a lot of those jobs, the pay is not there. But the opportunities when you’re in those jobs — take advantage of getting to know your customers.”

Giuffre has a few examples from her clients. Someone working in a sales role was brought up into luxury sales, due to a customer relationship, she said. One young worker was a server at a golf course, and became acquainted with a regular member. He later hired her for an entry-level role in his company.

“She had the confidence, she spoke well, she had a university education,” Giuffre explained.

“I’ve had some clients that have picked people out of restaurants. They get to know a server and like their personality, talk to them, find out they have some of their [desired] skills and offer them work.

“So that’s what I’m talking about — getting to know your customers.”

Even if you aren’t plucked directly from your bridge job, you’ve opened up your network to a more diverse group of people, both customers and colleagues. And today, networking is paramount.

“That’s really how most jobs are acquired nowadays,” Giuffre said. “Yes, you can apply online and if you’re lucky, get your resumé found through the hundreds and thousands. But the majority of jobs, especially good jobs, are found through networking. So taking a gap or bridge job, it’s really the main benefit — just expanding on your network.”

Then of course there are transferable skills, which are the purpose of a bridge job: It gets you where you want to go. 

Communication skills, problem solving, time management, administration, project co-ordination or management — Gracheva encouraged bringing these forward on your resumé, showing how your bridge job developed them further.

“It may not be the first function, not your main duty in the job, but you want to make sure you highlight the skills that are relevant,” she said. “You also want to make sure that you provide some information about the results of your work. Something that will look like your accomplishment.”

You can vary your resumé format to highlight this skills development, Giuffre pointed out. Competency- or skill-based resumés can bring your strengths to the top of your application, rather than using a chronological list of roles.

And fundamental to any application, you have to be attentive to the job posting and match it — whatever skills they require, Giuffre said, ensure you’ve included them in your resumé. This also helps with any keyword scans from application-tracking software.

Giuffre’s top skills to bring forward in your career progression: client service, communication, critical thinking, emotional intelligence, and the ability to think on your feet.

You can use sports extracurriculars and volunteering to showcase the same areas, and round out your experience with the bridge job, she added. For sports, any coaching or refereeing can be particularly valuable.

“Volunteer work can be just as important in getting your next job,” Giuffre said. “Obviously you’ll have to have a paying job as well to pay your bills, but volunteer work is key to developing the soft skills, but also, once again, expanding your network. And it looks good on a resumé.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 24, 2026.