How many people have two pages or longer?

Some people say one page, some say two, a few say "never have 3 pages".

Mine is 3 pages long.

10/23/2006 11:34:09 AM

Well cut some stuff out, or something.

10/23/2006 11:36:06 AM

ive always heard keep it 1 page

10/23/2006 11:36:37 AM

Why is it that long?

The only reason I could see for that would be listing off numerous publications you have been a part of.

10/23/2006 11:37:42 AM

it depends on if you are doing a resume or a ciriculum vitae.

A resume should be very brief, include a notice of what education you have, your objective and recent work experience. Often the work experience can be taylored to the job at hand. Typically you cut it off at high school for early college grads (or in college) and afterwards it can depend but up to about 5 jobs is it.

Honors etc (again relevant) would be included and things like that.

If the references are on a second page thats usually fine.

A CV has all of the above but the jobs are typically described in more detail and any published papers and such should be on it. That is where it will typically lengthen. I have seen CVs as short at 2 pages and as long at 15 (though those are usually proffessors and researchers who have worked for a lot of years).

[Edited on October 23, 2006 at 11:39 AM. Reason : ..]

10/23/2006 11:38:44 AM

You can put all the important stuff on page 1, then have the other 2 pages as like appendices or something.

10/23/2006 11:38:57 AM

2 pages plus a good cover letter is all you need.

10/23/2006 11:40:02 AM

Mine is two pages. It will probably grow to three soon and I'll start getting rid of some of the jobs I had in college and some other non relevant experience which is listed. I would never have a three page resume. You could try decreasing the font size/margins if they aren't too tiny already or you could try using a table format in order to use white space more efficiently. That way you don't have a bunch of lines with just a few words on them.

10/23/2006 11:45:16 AM

bullshit--- Unless you have cured cancer or have some extraordinary circumstance(example: not another recent college graduate), you should not have a resume more than one page. You would look completely arrogant and if it came to my desk I would promptly throw it away. Oh and if you have a prominent reference you can use, put it at the bottom on the page-- I know people say don't list references, 'save it for the interview'. But that's ridiculous. The first thing most people look at on a resume is if there are references- who does he know-- how does he know them?

Be creative with your cover letter, use that as the tool to express your experience and how it relates to the job.

Everything should be tailored to the specific job and company you are applying for, make the resume look specifically for the company.

Have someone in your industry review your resume, i.e. a mentor, professor, professional friend-- whatever.

Good Luck

[Edited on October 23, 2006 at 11:58 AM. Reason : and check spelling--- unlike me ]

10/23/2006 11:56:41 AM

this is entirely dependent on how much experience you have - more than likely you don't have enough to warrant 3 pages - this should be your judgement call though - how much are you listing for college related things?

10/23/2006 12:01:48 PM

From what I have heard, definitely keep it to one page.

10/23/2006 12:03:20 PM

just depends who is reading it. much better to keep it 1 page and know that everyone will at least consider it.

10/23/2006 12:32:35 PM

Quote :

"bullshit--- Unless you have cured cancer or have some extraordinary circumstance(example: not another recent college graduate), you should not have a resume more than one page."

I had two relevant jobs in college and I've had three more since I graduated a little over a year ago. How do you expect me to fit all that in with my objective, skills, academic info, and references, which I currently do not list. Sure, 1 page is fine if you have one bullet under each job, but if you were responsible for a wide range of tasks, you're going to need some more room.

10/23/2006 12:55:20 PM

fresh out of college my resume was 2.5 pages long

and guess what

i got job (the third job i applied for) a making over 30k/yr

haha

(raise soon to come )

[Edited on October 23, 2006 at 12:58 PM. Reason : asd]

10/23/2006 12:58:19 PM

Quote :

"but if you were responsible for a wide range of tasks, you're going to need some more room"

That's what your CV is for Bro.

10/23/2006 1:00:45 PM

I'm not too familiar with a ciriculum vitae, but I don't see anything wrong with having 4-5 bullets under each job.

10/23/2006 1:03:31 PM

As someone who reads a lot of resumes, I can say that the longer the resume is, the more likely I am to toss it.

Even with the one pagers, I scan it for keywords that fit the job description, and only if I see keyword matches do I give it more than a cursory glance.

Chances are that if a resume is 3 pages long, most of it is going to be irrelevant to what I'm looking for, and even if the keywords i'm looking for are there, I might miss them.

The most important thing to remember is that you need to tailor your resumes to the job that you're applying for. If you're applying for a technical position, your grocery store experience from high school is not something I care about. Being an RA gets no points either. Unless you're applying for a job as a secretary, citing Windows XP and MS office proficiency will not win you any points. That co-op rotation that you did where you learned some of the technical skills needed to do the job that you're interviewing for is, however, important.

10/23/2006 1:28:05 PM

damn, BobbyD is always dropping knowledge on 'you people'

10/23/2006 1:35:22 PM

it's a shame that he has to though....this stuff should be common knowledge for any upper classman.

nc states career center is very helpful when it comes to these types of questions. it boggles my mind that such a great resource is available, and people don't take advantage of it and end up with crappy looking resumes.

[Edited on October 23, 2006 at 1:38 PM. Reason : df]

10/23/2006 1:38:32 PM

I once had a manager for a company I was interested in send me a 7 page resume and insisted I format mine like that one and it be at least 3 pages. Needless to say I did not waste my time with that company.

10/23/2006 1:44:11 PM

Coming out of grad school (MBA) and into the workforce, I'll tell you what I did - you can take it or leave it. But it was the standard format for our school and got me a job at a fortune 13 company making six figures.

One page - staples usually get you tossed
Top should be your name, address, one phone, and one e-mail address

Then I had academic info - I listed my undergrad school, major, and city plus my major academic achievement (honors, conferences, etc would be good here). I included my varsity sport just as a kicker - was a total of three lines. My grad school included concentration, leadership positions (two clubs and the team lead on a consulting project for Kodak), and my GMAT score and associated scholarship since I scored really high (95th percentile or greater was the rule of thumb).

As far as my jobs were concerned, the further back they were the less info I provided. Seeing as I was in the military, I had 4 jobs in a 5 year period plus an internship that turned into part-time work. The internship got the most as it was a corporate job. My job coaching right after graduation got one line.

I did include an analytical coursework section at the end of my resume when I started applying for more analytical jobs. I started in marketing and then decided to get into effectiveness/research jobs. For these I listed out coursework, methods, models, and software I used in class and for consulting work I did while in school.

I squeezed in some interests at the bottom - about two lines worth. Crap like a hobby or two may sound silly, but it can break the ice at places. I got one interview because the fact that I raced sailboats interested a brand manager - if the company hadn't been bought out, I would have gotten that job.

Personally, I'll never do more than a one-pager for an initial drop. Do the standard stuff - lead off with action words...nobody cares if you just performed your duties. Tell them what impact you had above the normal stuff. For example, the $1.5M a year I saved verizon wireless was my top bullet just as my medals I got in the military were the top bullet for those jobs.

And all that was done on one page, with 12-point font and 1" margins.

Anyway, that's about all I have - good luck and keep it simple.

[Edited on October 23, 2006 at 2:54 PM. Reason : .]

10/23/2006 2:54:13 PM

My resume rocks

Actually, how do you guys feel about a "Summary" section? I feel it should be there to give a brief overview of the resume itself for quick glancing, but isn't that what the resume is for?

[Edited on October 23, 2006 at 4:16 PM. Reason : ]

10/23/2006 4:02:38 PM

here's a tip: don't make your resume look like it was typed by a fucking fourteen year old

presentation doesn't hurt

10/23/2006 4:09:38 PM

mines a page exactly

I have my information at the top
education (4 lines)
experience (i have 3 jobs that deal with my major mostly my 2 internships and the job im working now)
activities and honors
and skills (the programs im good at, I also wrote what languages i know)

i would never read a 3 page resume..try and cut it down by about half (my roommates a page and a half, but she did it double sided)

also when you send out resumes (say in an email or something, put it in pdf form)

10/23/2006 4:23:09 PM

Every time I read one of these resume threads, I end up saying to myself, "Jesus Christ, I can't believe people actually think this way."

10/23/2006 4:34:23 PM

Quote :

"Why is it that long? The only reason I could see for that would be listing off numerous publications you have been a part of."

10/23/2006 6:14:10 PM

I have a 1 page resume, but it's pared down as much as i can to get it to just fit.
References- no, dont put it on the resume. There's no good reason for an employer to want to talk to your references before talking to you at least once. and for the fellow up there who apparently wants just one on your resume, that's exceptionally odd dude.

I've always been told, and think it reasonable
1 page for resume
1 seperate page for references

10/23/2006 7:36:59 PM

a few things

Quote :

"Unless you have cured cancer or have some extraordinary circumstance(example: not another recent college graduate), you should not have a resume more than one page. You would look completely arrogant and if it came to my desk I would promptly throw it away. "

Thats retarded, and thats why he'll never be reviewing resumes as he's stuck in his 3 by 3 cube.

A 3 page resume is fine, 2 pages of content, and a page of references. Using more than one measly page lets you tell the employer what the hell you did at your job at "a random company" nobody's ever heard of. And what's the point of not including your references, so they can hassle you for them later? Put it all together at once, they don't have time to screw around with calling people after 2nd interviews, they want to make the deal at the 2nd interview.

And one more thing, any place that doesn't have the time to read more than one page isn't a company you want to screw around working with. People who say they toss resumes if they are more than a page or "contain a staple" are dumbasses that don't realize that there people in the world that actually have accomplished things more than them that make someone need more than one page.

Think about what YOU would want to see if YOU were reading someones resume. I sure as hell would want to see what they did at the random internship at a company ive never heard of, what the hell they accomplished at the random company, and definetly things that show your character such as awards and interesting tips I'll remember about you. In addition I'd want to see your references contact info and what connection you have to them.

Not telling someone what they did at a position only signifies it was a bull shit job - such as one of those "unpaid internships" people do to "get experience" but its not even worthwhile for them to pay you.

If you want a job at a good company, make a good resume. If you want to work for a company that "scans" in your resume to look for key words because they're too lazy to read, then do a one pager with a load of useless information.

10/23/2006 8:26:00 PM

Ok I didn't read all of this above...

which brings me to my point, when I did hiring for my company this past summer for multiple positions I began to not focus on the person when the resume was longer than one page

It's a management thing... most people hiring don't have time/want to read something THAT long

10/23/2006 10:20:26 PM

if you have enough shit to make it 2 pages and not look drawn out i dont think you will have a problem

10/23/2006 10:29:15 PM

Quote :

"It's a management thing... most people hiring don't have time/want to read something THAT long"

Exactly. This is even more the case if the hiring managers are just engineers who are spending some of their time doing HR stuff. ^^^ This is just not realistic. For the most part, going through resumes is tedious for engineers. Get to the point, say it clearly, and learn how to filter. That in itself is a skill people value.

Furthermore, it's the opinions of these busy engineers that you should value the most, since they will be your coworkers and they have expert knowledge of the work. Contrary to what ^^^ says, just because they don't have time to read all that shit doesn't mean that they are bad to work with.

It should also be noted that the one page resume applies to entry level and new employees. It's not like we are saying you can only have one page for the rest of your fucking life.

[Edited on October 23, 2006 at 10:29 PM. Reason : sdfs]

10/23/2006 10:29:31 PM

i made a resume movie about my life

10/23/2006 10:32:52 PM

Quote :

"if it came to my desk I would promptly throw it away."

Quote :

"As someone who reads a lot of resumes"

Quote :

"when I did hiring for my company this past summer for multiple positions"

Is it normal for people in their 20's to be in charge of reading resumes and making hiring decisions? (just wondering)

Anyways, this thread shows all of what I hate about resumes: Nobody agrees on the desired length, content, format, or style. Therefore, there's always something wrong with my resume according to someone.

[Edited on October 23, 2006 at 10:39 PM. Reason : one more]

10/23/2006 10:33:30 PM

cut that sh!t down to two pages, B.


i have (2) pages, but then again I lie and say I have a bachelors degree when I never actually finished. THING IS. no one has ever asked for proof. COLLEGE is pointless !!!!!!!!!!!!!

10/23/2006 10:34:30 PM

Only full time job I've ever had was earned with a 1 page resume & a good interview to fill in anything not technical/professional enough to fit on a 1 page resume.

10/23/2006 10:37:57 PM

^^ yes, it's tedious and upper mgmt doesn't want to do it. At least when looking at the "big stack". Once you get down to a few good candidates who will be interviewing then that's when most upper mgmt really looks at candidates.

10/23/2006 10:38:53 PM

Really how much of a post do you read?

I read the first two lines and if they don't grab me I just ignore the rest. I bet the same thing goes for resumes

10/23/2006 11:21:50 PM

its tww, not your career

[Edited on October 24, 2006 at 12:01 AM. Reason : .]

10/24/2006 12:01:43 AM

1 page homes, no one wants a novel.


If your third page includes your 2rd Place Science Award from 8th Grade, it's time to let go and trim the resume fat.

10/24/2006 12:26:21 AM

^? Yes, go with one page--double-sided on thick and high-quality paper (watermark), which a potential applicant should always use for traditional resumes. In addition, the primary purpose of your cover letter is to get the hiring official to look at your resume, so write the cover letter in a way that continually refers to the resume. Like, "Hey, look over here--there’s some good shit happening over on this resume."

10/24/2006 3:08:15 AM

1 page

skills and relevant experience emphasis

10/24/2006 7:17:52 AM

i can't wait until we have paper than can play videos.

resumes will be so awesome with blinking shit and scrolling thingies to get your attention!

10/24/2006 7:46:59 AM

then resumes will look like myspace pages. Most will also have some horrid music playing too.

10/24/2006 7:51:36 AM

^and lilac scented paper.

10/24/2006 7:54:01 AM

Quote :

"Is it normal for people in their 20's to be in charge of reading resumes and making hiring decisions?"

i dont know if its normal, but im 25 and i read resumes, interview, and make initial recommendations for additional interviews....so its certainly not rare or anything.

10/24/2006 8:45:10 AM

Hiring...

If the HR rep doesn't more than one page you do NOT want that job. It means they are fucking retarded and don't know what they are doing or are too lazy.

Every "good" job HR staff wants as much information about you as possible that is relavent. If you are going for a Programmer position and have Binky's PIzza on your resume... nuff said.

Mine is 2.5 pages long. That's because I did a lot of contract work. Most peoples should not go over 2 that are 22-30

10/24/2006 8:57:31 AM

It's not the HR reps you should be worried about, it's the Technical staff and Hiring Managers. Their primary job is not hiring people, but they are the ones who ultimately make the call. And we don't like reading through pages and pages of crap. No matter how much experience you have, you can condense it to a single page. If you can't, there's too much fluff.

All the resume does is get you an interview. The interview is when you have the undivided attention of the people who will decide whether or not to hire you, and that's when you need to expound on the experience and technical skills that are listed, in brief, on your resume.

10/24/2006 9:46:08 AM

I currently work for a custom home builder and we recently hired a new General Manager. For whatever reason, the owner of the company handed me all the resumes (easily more than 100) he had received and told me to throw away any that were longer than a page (keep in mind this position was for someone with 15+ years experience). He also said, if any have any info about "salaray requirements" to toss those as well. That left about 15-20 and he interviewed 4 of them.

Take that info for what its worth

10/24/2006 11:12:55 AM

I would say that most HR people are fickle when it comes to Resumes. Sorry to the HR, its just an opinion. Big whoop, wanna Fight about it?


All you are to them is a piece of paper getting in the way of their daily Internet dicking around.

10/24/2006 11:20:07 AM

Set 'em up

10/24/2006 11:24:21 AM