One look at your resume and you immediately know that your first job title isn't "Resume Author"... Who's is though? I would venture to say very few people. However, that doesn't prevent you from showing up with a resume that's at least presentable. A common question I hear is "How long should my resume be? One page? Two Pages? Six???" There is no "right" answer for this, nevertheless, there are some guidelines you can follow.
#1 Make sure your resume represents the extent of your knowledge and experience without being repetitive and boring. A way to accomplish this is to use power words in your resume, paraphrase long paragraphs into bullet points, and to not be repetitive. A resume should typically not 10 pages long because a manager is looking for a resume, not a short story.
#2 Be certain your resume isn't too short. I often come across resumes where a candidate will have been in a job for five to ten years and only have two or three sentences describing his/her experience (and these aren't even run-on sentences at that!). If you can describe the wealth of your experience that briefly don't expect to attain much wealth. Be descriptive and make sure your resume compliments the requirements listed on the job description you are apply for.
#3 A common misconception is that resumes should be two pages long. If you have 20+ years experience odds are you won't be able to represent yourself in two pages. However, you don't need two pages for this. A good idea would be to make sure your most recent jobs are most detailed and the descriptions beyond that taper off a little each project. Anything beyond 5 or 6 pages is getting to lengthy.
#4 The more detailed your job is the longer your resume will be. It is easy for lower level positions to have smaller resumes. However, the more responsibility and detailed your positions have been the longer your resume will be. Nevertheless, as administrative assistant should still come off articulate and descriptive of their duties.
As you can see there really are no set rules on the length of a resume. It really is dependent on your position you are applying for, your experience, and ability to describe what you have done in detail without being repetitive. A good rule of thumb would to be to reach out to a recruiter, hiring manager, or even a friend and solicit their opinion about your resume. They can let you know second opinions and also edit your resume for typos as well.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Alex Rudloff says: (10:24AM on Jul 2nd 2009) Vote Up Vote DownReport2/5
This is probably the #1 question I get about resumes, and the issue that most people seem to be the most concerned about. "Shouldn't my resume just be one page?"
Well.. It depends. The idea isn't to limit your sales pitch to one page if you have enough experience to back up more than that. You want to give as complete of a background as you can.
On the other hand. If you are blindly sending in a paper resume, it can make sense to send in a short version that just has the 'best of' -- think of it like a summary. I keep two resumes up to date at all times -- a 'one sheet' and a 'complete'. This gives me some flexibility in how I present myself depending on the situation.
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keith green says: (1:29PM on Jul 2nd 2009) Vote Up Vote DownReport2/5
I am an interviewer and I look at individual resumes they seem to be just a little bit too descriptive in their resume. To me keep it simple enough in which what your describing makes sense to me. Also I feel as though the resume should not exceed no more than one page. If neccessary, but your job and internship included in your resume instead of random jobs that doesn't have to do with the job you are actually applying for.
Stephen says: (1:36PM on Jul 2nd 2009) Vote Up Vote DownReport2.5/3
Keith, Make sense that your resume should refelect your experience relevant to the job you are applying for. However, in todays market nobody wants to give a reason to be skipped over in the resume selection process. Sometimes a career progression is completely relevant to the job and will give the interviewer an idea for what you have done and where you are going. Also, you dont want to leave gaps in your job history as that can be a red flag to interviewers.
I agree, for lower level jobs that a smaller resume is more beneficial. Again, it is totally dependent on what you are interviewing for and what your skill set is. I know as a recruiter I can keep my resume to two pages, but any role that is technical or has more accountability will be harder to scale down. Especially if your summary, education, certifications, and skills related to the position are listed on the first page.
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