It depends on the industry, I think. In acting, for instance, they aren't going to read a page 2. They already have to look over your portfolio and audition you, and those things are going to give them a much better impression of what you're capable of than a piece of paper. In acting, the resume matters very little indeed unless your resume says something like "I WAS ON FRIENDS!" which hardly needs more than one sheet. I used to hire waiters for a pretty big restaurant for a living, and anything over a page really bothered me, there, too. I don't need to know that you worked at Big Boy fifteen years ago. I need to know if you have decent, preferably recent, experience that I can verify, and that's all. If, however, I were hiring an engineer or a pilot, the more experience you can show me, the better. If you're on the bubble, how about going with a double-sided resume? It's a page-2 that doesn't get lost, they can read it if they want to!

BonnieDeion

@rand0mCreep: Hmm... I'm no "fanatic" but making a religious reference on my resume is rather unavoidable, since I graduated from a church-sponsored university.

That's a regrettable perspective, but I'd imagine you've had an experience that has convinced you of that, and I'm certain no amount of evidence to the contrary would dissuade you.

Russkiejedi

What I've gathered from reading all this content in the comments is that it's a complete crapshoot.

If you know your industry, you might be able to make an informed guess as far as how much content is necessary to sell yourself, but you're basically at the mercy of the habits and laziness of the person reading the resume first.

Some jobs, like web design and software engineering, can be described in buzzwords, like what software you can use or what certifications you have. Others are better attacked with descriptions of the tasks and their results. Generally, there's one that works best for your industry, but good luck finding it out without asking HR people in your industry...

So many comments here are like "When I read a resume, I ____" followed by a whole bunch of different things. This tells me that personality of the reader matters a ton, and there's no real consistent way that people read resumes.

One thing from my technical writing background - any document you write you should identify the audience first. With resumes, that's like trying to hit a moving target, since your audience is the unknown shadowy figure lurking on the other side of that addressed envelope or computer screen.

Makes me glad that I'm staying put for a while!

TheFlamingoKing

If you have 10+ years experience and you don't have two pages then something is wrong. Note: Two maximum no matter what.

gopanthers

Most long resumes I have read were trying to make up for lack of experience with exhaustive descriptions of how being a manager at Old Navy somehow imparted the job skills required to be a marketing account executive.

A short and sweet resume combined with a well-written cover letter trumps a 3-page encyclopedic description of every time you worked as a lifeguard every time.

loronaaa

When I had my last job interview, the interviewees commented on my one page CV as being something strange, and seemed less than positive about it. But then I got the job, so I don't know what to think about this.

They were also impressed by the font I used, probably just surprised it wasn't Times New Roman/Arial. Georgia: works every time.

richardaholden

@abhiroop: Any internships or clerkships? Awards/scholarships/academic contest wins? Study abroad experience? Otherwise, highlight things that tend to demonstrate leadership or organizational skills or charity work. I would certainly NOT indicate that you have "a LOT of experience in various clubs, societies and other positions" - it can make you come across as something of a social butterfly who lacks focus. Better to pick about three social items that feature the criteria above. A single conversation piece ("you did what now? Tell me about it!") is okay - it adds a glimpse of personality without overpowering the rest of the resume. Otherwise, if you've taken any interesting courses at this point, an "Areas of Study"/"Legal Coursework" section could help fill in some space at the bottom. Law firms know that first years don't know much of anything... it's okay.

If it helps, when I was job-hunting I got a lot of interviews for positions I wasn't qualified for on the strength of my (albeit eclectic) resume and cover letters; several interviewers told me flat out that I got the interview because they wanted to meet me. I don't know precisely why, but that changed the way I thought about the often times frenetic resume/cover letter aspect of the job hunt and made the whole experience a lot less painful. Two of those interviews landed me job offers and many others allowed me to build networking contacts. (And one or two provided me with horror stories.) I hope that helps - good luck on your job hunt.

Wit

I've been in IT Staffing for a decade, and encourage IT folks (and maybe even others!) to do this:

1) Write a six page resume (or however many pages) with EVERY single little thing you've done, managed, learned, touched, worked with, and save it as your Master Resume. All details are relevant here.
2) Apply to any appropriate jobs with that resume, but CUT any IRRELEVANT details from it, keeping it to 3 pages or less (a survey of our hiring managers indicates that they really place greatest weight on the first page, but also want to see any relevant info on later pages). A customized, pointed resume is far more effective than a shotgun-approach one.
3) Every quarter or so, in your new job, review your Master Resume, and add things that you've done, to keep it current (you never know when I'll be calling you to recruit you to a NEW, better role!).

FYI, your GPA and clubs/hobbies/career objective are pretty meaningless to me. Try to anticipate my most basic questions about your experience and how you fit my job in your resume, and you'll have a better chance of getting my call back.

Remember, most resumes are just viewed as electronic copies, making the number of pages somewhat irrelevant--but put your most important info up front. Also, as has been noted, the resume is a TOOL to get you the interview. Nothing more, nothing less. Keep it accurate, and to the point.

Now, this comment is longer than some resumes, so I'll stop writing.

jaydub

I've hired several positions. Thus I've reviewed hundreds of resumes. Unless you are an executive or high level management - ONE PAGE. Resumes should highlight your skills, etc, they dont have to be an autobiography. Plain and simple: the reviewer just doesnt have time to read it all. Most only spend seconds skimming thru each resume before they put it in a "good" or "bad" folder. I speak from hiring experience.

joeny1980

@Russkiejedi: that is correct, not only will it disqualify them, it will get their resume pitched and their name distributed to a "do not hire" list that will help other employers out. 99% of religious fanatics are nothing but trouble in the work place. it's finally time they're weeded out until they learn to behave properly in society.

rand0mCreep

As a technical manager of an engineering group, I want to see resumes that reflect experience. If you have 10 years experience you darn well better send me a multi-page resume. A single page from a deeply experienced candidate is a red flag. That said, the opposite holds true for a green engineer fresh out of school.

trick420

One page. No question. If you can't interest a prospective employer with the highlights, then you're not going to get a call anyway. If you DO get to the second step, you can always fill in the gaps.

For me, the one-page version has outscored the two-page version 3 - 1.

Counterglow

@abhiroop: I don't work in the legal field, but rather than creating one big list of all of the clubs you were involved in, you might want to consider organizing it by skills, listing only the skills that are relevant to the job.

For example, if I'm in the hiring department, I would care less that you were the editor of the school paper and more about your communication and management skills (that you probably used while you held that role). Unpack those skills in your resume, with a brief mention of where and when you used them. If they're interested, then you can talk more about those experiences during your interview.

ejoy

I'd rather see a resume that has enough information to tell me whether or not the person can do the job than see a resume that has too little information because the applicant tried to fit it all onto one page. (If I think you *might* have the skills based on what you put down, but it's not clear, I might not rule you out yet, but you'll probably be the last applicant I check on.)

Similarly, the resume should be readable. If it's a big block of tiny text because the applicant tried to force it all to fit, that doesn't work either.

On the other hand, always make sure that all of the stuff on your resume is relevant to the job you're applying for. (This takes longer, but will definitely make your resume stand out more, especially if you use the terms from the job posting.)

And make sure your name is on each page; this will help if papers accidentally get shuffled.

ejoy

It's sort of humorous how many of us have written short essays about our hiring practices during the work day. Maybe I should review my job description...

tgebauer

So what I've read leads me to the conclusion that one size does not fit all. Not all jobs/industries are the same and no two candidates are the same. You need to know what is appropriate both for you and the job for which you're applying. End of story.

tinyhands

I usually omit the places I've been fired from, which leaves me a rather short resume.

Capone

This is an interesting question. My husband (I don't work and have no resume) has a what would be a 2 page resume. However, no one ever asks for a hard copy of it. It has never, so far as we know, been printed. He's a software engineer. Everything tends to be done digitally.

radleyas

1st page should have enough to make the interviewee interested, but 2nd and 3rd pages are OK if they add value.

Also, I agree with previous commenters, if the job is so low-level that they only want some one-pagers (what i disdainfully refer to those of you without enough qualifications to fill more than a single sheet resume) then perhaps you'd be better off simply filling out the application form that they can surely tear off of the pad they get from corporate.
If you want to make a big impression, carry the sign they posted in the window up with you when you have completed the page. Expert tip: remember to brush off the dead flies first, and bring your own name tag.

TechTalk WRLR 98.3FM

I provide a single page "executive resume" that shows the high points relevant to the job and at the bottom states that a "full CV is available upon request." My full CV is 18 pages long, includes all publications, jobs, details, and so on.

I find more often than not potential employers request the full CV at the interview and are highly impressed by it and my ability to distill it into a single page.

On the other hand, I hate my single page resume because it definitely does not show anything worthwhile about me - in my personal opinion. :\

maztec

I suppose in these days of Monster job boards, the bigger myth is the notion of "pages" at all. Your resume should be long enough to describe you and your skills, and brief enough so that a short-attention-span hiring manager will understand your skills before moving on to the next resume.

I'm in a communications field that values brevity and the ability to condense complicated stories down to small chunks -- so I suppose I'm biased towards short resumes. If you don't have the skills to tell me in a single paragraph why I should hire you, you're probably not right for the job.

dotyoureyes

@abhiroop:

Aside from *maybe* your first job, none of your employers are really going to care what clubs/societies/etc you were involved with in college.

I would recommend perhaps putting one or two 'notable achievements' at the bottom of the first page to simply establish your character or worth.

Eric Crist

One page is best when I'm going through resumes. If you can't get the relevant info on yourself into one page you probably can't write a decent summary. Two or three pages is ok. When it gets to 4 pages and above I find that people start to repeat things and it just becomes a laundry list. I usually end up skimming the back pages but I don't bring them up during an interview if it was more than a few years back.

Dillenger69

If brevity indeed is the soul of wit, then one-page resumes must be the gold standard.

ebcindc

I review hundreds of resumes a year. Multiple pages is just fine.

Any resume with misspellings or terrible grammar gets tossed in the trash immediatly. It is incredible how many resumes coming from people who claim to have college diplomas appear to have been written by 9 year olds.

I also shy away from people who's email address is something like pokerstud420@dolphinsfan.net .

I would say that including work history back to 1972 is a negative. This tells me you are old and almost certainly do not know how to use a computer.

Also, don't waste space on all that "Resumes for Dummies" crap like "I'm self motivated!", "I like to work in a team!" - this stuff could not be more meaningless.

bdgbill

@abhiroop:

Realize first that the goal is to land the interview. If you have less law-related experience, tell the lawyer about experience that demonstrates skills that he/she will want you to have. Any kind of editing, writing, and ability to investigate facts will probably be useful law-related skills. Leadership positions, including student government, are probably also helpful, as is any experience involving positions of trust (e.g., treasurer) or responsibility.

uberfiend

As several others have mentioned, it really depends on the field, the candidate and the position. I had always stuck to the one-page rule, and when I was working with some tech recruiters in the city, they asked me to go into more detail and make it longer. Not rambling paragraphs, but after 13 years in the industry and after having co-authored two books, one page really doesn't give a good perspective on anything. If I were right out of college, of course my resume could be one page, but at this stage in the game, one page is really *too* barebones for me. I've done it in a creative way to maximize content without making the reader's eyes bleed, but that extra page is important. Plus, you figure your most recent work is arguably the most important, and that's going to end up on the first page anyway.

For tech jobs, my advice is:

Skip the objectives - no one cares, and they know you're lying. DO include a skill list so the hirer can have some idea if you're even close to the right fit, and go to two pages if you have to - but only if leaving it at one would really strip it down too much.

phpchick

The one page rule is absolutely mandatory in the legal profession. No matter what the latest whiz-bang job guru says, in the law profession: one page. Period. The end.

storm

I need to understand this properly. The problem for me is that I am just in my second year of university. I have little job experience (just a couple of postings). However, I have a LOT of experience in various clubs, societies and other positions. They rack up about 3 pages. Now if I'm going to an interview what should I take? Lets say its a law firm. Naturally I did law (so I put in my education). Then I have 1 legal work experience and one other small campus job. Thats it for work experience. So for the rest should I add on for example I was editor of school news paper, I did charity work etc?

abhiroop

>> It depends on the position for which you are applying. For academics, journalists, authors, and other professions in which publication credits arise, resumes are several pages long. <<

Those are called CVs? (Some people use "resume" and "CV" interchangeably, but CVs are usually comprehensive career outlines as you describe.) They're also common for company executives.

olegna

If I get a resume with more than one page, it immediately goes in the trash. If you can't tell me everything you need to know in one page, you are probably a self important blowhard.

And to answer Russkiejedi's question about missionary service on a resume, yes, I too would discard this resume. Unless the religious service is directly related to the job, I could care less. Putting down you are an Eagle Scout is something else that will get you out of consideration. People who put down these types of activities when they have nothing to do with the position applied for are looking for praise and admiration. This is why people like rand0mCreep and I do not bother ourselves with them.

Ex_EA_Slave

For my last job search, I had a short (one page) resume and a long (2.5 pages, one for each decade of experience) one. Every time someone got the short one, they made a negative comment: why so short a resume for so many years experience? Now, I just provide the long one.

codehead

I don't care about how long the resume is - rather, I care about how the information is organized. If you have a really nicely laid out two page resume, with a clear hierarchical structure that makes it easier to read, then you're resume is on the "keep" list. BTW, I work in advertising/graphic design.

If you give me a word resume with 1 inch margins set in Times New Roman, you're not getting the job. Quite honestly, a resume is about you and your job experience - so make me *want* to read it.

Yes, it is nice to have an efficient presentation of information. However, the potential employee must take into consideration the job they are applying for.

Maybe if you're getting a job as an engineer, a Word resume will be fine. However, if you're doing something creative, don't send in a boring resume. But don't do something *too* crazy, either.

In short, I don't care if your resume is 2 pages long. Just make me want to read it using your design skills, esp. if you're trying to apply for a design job.

tgebauer

I use a PDF version of my LinkedIn profile for my résumé. It works quite well as it is clean and information rich. Also I think using a standard of this type makes it a lot easier for the information that actually matter be conveyed. The length varies but there is a lot of white space so it is not really a case of providing too much, just providing it in a more readable way.

To me a good résumé has no flash just clean information. Length does not matter, just quality of content.

Metophile

@rand0mCreep: So someone putting missionary service on their resume would disqualify them from employment with you? How presumptive and intolerant.

Russkiejedi

i look at two things first when i read a resume. first, did this person write the resume themselves. is it original or was it taken from a source. second, does it have any religious preferences in it. that tells you right there all they will do is annoy everyone else. more than one page is o.k. if it's relevant.

rand0mCreep

As a hiring manager and with more than a few decades in management, the answer is simply: No.

That said, the first couple of inches at the top of page one better be good.

Look at this way:

The job of your reponse (cover letter, e-mail) is to get them to open the resume. The job of the first sentence is to get them to read the first two sections. The job of those sections is to get them to read most of the first page. The job of the the first page i to get them to call you.

Too many candidates think the job of all those things is to get them to hire you.

moe52

It depends on the position for which you are applying. For academics, journalists, authors, and other professions in which publication credits arise, resumes are several pages long. For everyone else, it's usually one page, the exception being artists, models, and other non-desk-jobs, who presumably would show up with a portfolio rather than a resume.

elgilicious

Like jglessner, I use a 1 page resume but have a more complete resume on my resume website. (PDF and HTML resume are here: www.david-towers.co.uk )

I think what is important more than anything is that your resume has impact and stands out from the crowd.

I've just been reworking my resume and have come up with a version I'm quite happy with. I wanted to keep my resume to 1 page because that way I can include a second page with experiences directly relating to the job I'm applying for formated with heading such as organisational skills, marketing etc.

davidtowers

I think your profession is also an important factor. I'm a freelancer working with cultural events and also translation. All of my jobs are temporary and for a freelancer, the more jobs I list, the better. Of course when I'm applying for translation jobs, I don't need to include all my production experience, but when applying for producing a film festival my translation experience is often an advantage. I just worked at a very prestigious film festival and the director told me that they almost never hire someone who is not recommended by someone in the team, and that they made an exception in my case based on the strength of my resume. (She also complimented the layout, which I think is very important.) As a bonus they ended up using me as a simultaneous interpreter for some of their events, which gave me a chance to make some extra money.

tiemposbuenos

A professional recruiter (up to C-Level) told me that the newest trend was to have a concise one-page physical resume to distribute by hand, but to have an electronic copy that's loaded with keywords.

Whether you spread out the keywords throughout the resume or just collect it at the end (you know, circa 90's internet), you'll keep popping up in people's searches, getting your name out without the impression that you're spamming people (unless of course, your keywords aren't warranted).

Resumes should also be "scan friendly", so that if they're scanned to plain text (to be saved in a HR database), they're both easy to search and still understandable. It's good to keep such a copy just in case.

Also, not everyone who's sifting through resumes is doing it as their primary job. Sometimes the regular employees/managers have to sift through them as well, on top of their actual workload, so it'd best not to piss them off with a superfluously long resume.

I keep two resumes: one that prints to one page and is concise but information rich, and it has a link to an extended version on my website that is more detailed and with more applicable, yet possibly less commonly used, keywords.

If I'm submitting direct to a potential employer, I'll send the condensed version, but if I'm posting a profile on a job search site, I'll try to post both, if not just the extended one to boost hits in searches.

That being said, I've just signed a job offer this past week to an international consulting firm for a long-standing contract with Microsoft, so my methods can't be too off base...

Jon

In my line of work (medicine), we always use the CV -- which can be upward of 5-10 pages or more. The concept of a résumé is foreign to me... Anyone have a good reference for résumé and CV styles and guidelines?

cavalierex

I just completed my resume today - my first one (you don't do resumes in a military career). Thus far, the criticism I have received, from quite a few friends in the Web Development industry (where I am seeking employment) have said good things about it.

It's one-page, which was a pain in the ass, but I think it was worth it. It's quick, concise, and just enough to make you think "we need to interview him - he's our man." Then I can wow in the interview, I'm a people person.

1-page:

Objective (One sentence, the position I want and why your company needs me)

Qualifications (bullet statements outlining my skills and unique experiences - have you supervised/trained subordinates on how to repair a client's PC while being mortared? I have)

Experience (3 previous jobs listed, my last 2 bases where my work was highly relevant to the position in which I am applying and my freelance career). Each job has a one sentence description of responsibilities and 3-5 bullets on accomplishments.

Education (1 line per "school" I included USAF training, completed certificate programs, and the certificate and BS programs I am currently attending).

Michael Wales

I keep my resume one page, with a link to an online resume that is MUCH more detailed (and includes several projects that I've done that are not really related to my job per se, but that have relevant use of technology).

This way the person looking at the resume gets a high level overview of me, and if they are interested they can learn quite a bit about me and my experience, should they desire to.

If you go this route I would suggest having a single short landing page for the resume with links to detailed job descriptions and skill sets. This lets the potential employer pick and choose what bits of information they want about you.

Oh, and don't use geocities and some cookie cutter page template for this. If you can't create the site yourself, have someone do it for you, and register a domain name with some decent hosting.

I had one applicant try this and when I went to their web page it was basically the text only version of the resume (mis-spellings and all) with banner ads for the free hosting site.

Oh, and no matter what the format, have at least three different people check it for spelling and grammar mistakes before giving it to a potential employer. If I see "Micorsoft Windows" on one more resume I'm going to call that person in for an interview just to give them a Dennis Leary style verbal beat down.

jglessner

Isn't this the difference between a resume and a CV? A resume should be a 1 page quick look, while a CV is a longer more thorough look containing multiple pages and more information? If the employer asks for a resume, give them a resume. If they want a CV, give them a CV.

Josh

@etc - YOU don't read objectives, but YOU also don't hire people.

When I sit down with a candidate, that's the first thing I read. That tells me what the candidate wants in a career, what kind of environment they want to work in, what's important to them, etc. The rest is usually just a collection of buzzwords.

The flipside is a poorly-written objective is useless.
Any objective that starts with "To get a job..." is an instant turn-off for me. McDonalds is "a job", software should be a career/lifestyle.

SuperChuck

It's a question of PAPER v. ELECTRONIC.

A paper resume, in my opinion, should be 1 page. But, if you're applying for jobs online or sending out e-mailed files, then who cares how many pages it is.

I have a single page paper resume and another version that I use for online applications that lists every publication I've written (only the 3 most important are on the paper version).

TC2COOL

I think it's important to realise also it is dependent on what exact industry you're applying for - and even individual firms' culture. I applied for several internships this summer and each firm has a different opinion on one page resumes.

Sideath

@Joseph: experience = more expensive.

It's far cheaper to hire a green kid from school than a seasoned guy with 20 years experience.

timgray

Doesn't really matter if you rely on nepotism.

wildness

If most of your experience is not relevant to the job you seek, then keep it brief and under a page. This applies to people changing careers and people starting careers. Once you become a "veteran", having a second page is not a negative in my book. I've been in the industry for 14 years and listing relevant projects and what I can bring to an organization takes up a good bit more than a page. I usually try to round it out at close to a full two pages without including irrelevant items. Anyone with a resume longer than two pages probably has some stale information that is no longer relevant (that GW-BASIC program you worked on in your first job can be nixed from the resume) or should be reworded to focus on just the relevant parts (in that GW-BASIC project, maybe you learned how to do embedded systems which is relevant for the job you seek).

SQLGuru

A resume should be as long as it needs to be. It's ok to list some accomplishments but I also want to see prior job's responsibilities. This will make it easy for HR to connect the dots to what I'm looking for in a candidate.

TechNTools

As a resume reader, I care about value for time. A one-pager is a "safe harbour" since that's the standard. A 2+ pager is fine, but the burdon is on you to demonstrate that you really needed to use the extra pages and that you could lay it out in a way that would make good use of my time reading it.

hesspaul

Resumes are not the place to experiment with being non-conventional. If the prevailing understanding is one page, then the safest route is to stick to convention.

Put it this way: a two-page resume damn well better be worth two pages, because if it isn't (or is perceived to be long and filled with superfluous information) then you're screwed: the resume goes into a trash bin.

The beauty of the Internet is that the resume on your web page can be longer, and the link to the document can be one-page.

I do it like this:

My online resume has two items in each job I've done:

#1.) My duties in each position with one small reference to any core achievement; and
#2.) A paragraph in italics that explains my performance in each role in more detail.

The resume that can be downloaded from there excludes #2. When I apply for jobs I link to my web page and paste the longer resume (the one online) to the body of the text.

If they want a document, they go to my website and get the one-page resume.

That way:

a.) They have the long version in an email -- if they print it out from there it will go over one page anyway because of the way email is formatted;

b.) or they can go to my website and download the one-page shorter version as a formatted Word, PDF or TXT document; and

c.) I can monitor any activity to my website by viewing the stats to see who was interested enough to visit my site from the email I send to them, what pages they viewed and if they downloaded my formatted resume from the site.

olegna

I'm sure I'll get negative comments about this, but my resume is pushing four pages and I've never not been offered a job at an interview, and almost always get interviews wherever I apply.

I'm in my mid-20's, but every position I've held (more than you would expect) has been highly technical and isn't somthing that can be described in a few short lines. (Encrypted military communications, DoD network security, etc, etc.)

My resume lists not just the jobs themselves, but needs to cover security clearances, polygraph, specific equipment I'm qualified to maintain and operate, etc.

I agree with some of the posters above. Most people don't need more than a page or two, but if you have the experience to back it up then document that experience. Not one interviewer or HR person has said my resume was too long.

jsalbre

As someone who just finished wading through about 400 resumes to hire an employee for a small non-profit, I resonate with much that was written here. I didn't care how many pages the electronic resumes that were e-mailed in were, all I'm doing is paging down anyway. But I rarely had the time, in addition to my "real" job responsibilities, to read through the 2-3+ pages of some of these resumes. And the fancy ivory ribbed paper is a nightmare to photocopy and distribute to other people. I also completely ignore the space-eater that is an objective statement (I know why you're applying, you want the job). But, in general, having all the major pertinent information on the first page, and extraneous information (like all those clubs you joined in college) on the second page worked well (at least for the woman we hired!)

TrexSchad

I question the need for long CVs, mainly because I have seen so many bad ones.

What I want to see:

*Name.

*Skills the relate somehow to the job you are applying for. You might speak fluent German, but that's not a selling point when applying for a job as an artist.

*Relevant work experience. I don't care that you gutted fish for 2 summers or worked in a bar at the weekend.

That's it. Anything else is fluff.

In the UK we get taught early on to add our hobbies and interests to make us seem like well rounded human beings. I supposed that it does depend on the job, but in my line of work that's a waste of space that I don't want to read. If you make it to the interview stage and I'm in the interview, I'll ask you what you like doing (if the interview is going well).

My beef with the hobbies/interests is that they tend towards 2 categories:

a) generic. I like the cinema. I like to read. I like...games. Well done, you are like 99% of the population. I'm glad I took the time to read that. How many people take the time to try and make listening to music sound like a hobby?

b) lies. I'm writing a novel and I'm learning Japanese. No, you are plainly not.

Again, it will job specific, but if you have a degree, put that on. If you have a degree, then your A levels and GCSEs are redundant.

RickStirling

A couple comments regarding academia/teaching were mentioned, so here's what I've done. For public school positions, most states are using a standardized application, along with a cover letter and resume. My resume is one page long. However, I carry a fairly large portfolio (3 ring binder) to interviews which contains very detailed examples of lesson plans, teaching, awards, etc.
The resume is my "foot in the door".

rorowe

i'm a fan of the two-pager, with the most important stuff on page 1.

i start with a SUMMARY (not an objective) that lists my skills and strengths.

then i list 3-4 significant projects (i'm a web developer) and a description of my role in each / the technology used.

after that? my RELEVANT work history. i put my educational background at the bottom. i have a bachelor's degree, but in an unrelated field. i don't include the year.

since the person reading my resume is most concerned with what i can do, that's the info i give them up front.

tiffany

I can only speak for IT jobs here but you can really shorten your resume by not summing your experience by job, list your jobs as you would schools you attended and generalize your knowledge in a separate area. Your resume should spark interest and prompt an interview. This also reduces the redundancy if you've worked similar roles in different companies. I know I got more responses when I went to a 1 page with that strategy than when I had a 2 pager with skills mixed into job history.

magickal

@A3sthetix: that sounds really unique. Do you have an example online that you could show me?

kwbridge

1 page, 2 pages, 3 pages...I don't really care as well as it accurately reflect your career and how it relates TO THE JOB I'M HIRING FOR. I'm also more likely to interview you if the cover letter shows that you've read the advert and have done some research. And, if the cover letter is in the T-letter format (list of my requirements for the job with how you meet or exceed each requirement), well, I'll even buy you lunch at the interview.

Sir Winston Thriller

In my discussions with HR folk, it largely depends on the type of job they are applying for. If there is a lot of relevant experience, then an extra page is worthwhile.

For most jobs with younger-aged employees (read: mid 20's), a page should be adequate. The HR person has more of a problem if the person is reaching to add more the the resume for the sake of length than if all the lines are quality.

cafematt

If you have the experience, put it in writing - forget the number of pages. Put the relevant experience on the front page. (Seriously, do you really want to send a resume AND a CV to someone? You're lucky if you get that first read through -- give it all to them all at once.) Keep in mind that for your next job to be meaningful and fulfilling - you want the manager that will take the time to read the second page -- otherwise, it's just going to be gig to pay the bills.

When I hire people, the interview process takes time and I do read the second page -- b/c I believe I'm hiring a person to represent me, my team, and my company - I'm not just hiring a skillset. I'll use consultants for that. (not that being a consultant is a bad thing - I've been a consultant for 8 years in the past.)

Bodybybuddha

@etc: I totally agree about those silly things that MSWord resume templates add in. "Career Objective" is soooo generic and adds nothing but 1/4 of a page you could be using for something else.

I stay away from templates in general and instead format it myself. This gives me more control over spacing etc.

Also, just saying "References Available Upon Request" is another waste of space. Employers usually ASSUME you will be able to produce these, so there isn't really a need to say it.

amyschiff

It depends on how conservative your workplace (or even your region) is. Inconvenient or not, one page is the standard format. To those sensitive to these things, you having broken with that tradition could imply that you are so overwhelmed with your own importance that you feel that you don't have to follow the same "rules" as everyone else. Personally, I would discard resumes over one page for that reason, but my profession requires at least a perfunctory nod at the rules and an observation of standard format. Those are valuable skills for us, so you ignore them at your own peril.

I'd think of your resume as a teaser - its job is to intrigue someone enough that they want to meet you. You can explain all your other qualifications and brilliant achievements at the interview.

Wit

I'm with bastewart -- I've got a one-page resume but I always include a link to my website.

There aren't a flood of people applying for the kind of work that I do, so I don't think the extra work is too taxing for the interviewer, but it does give them the information if they want it.

atomicpodcasts

@Mav: As previous commenters have mentioned, more than one-page should be done only when the experience is essential to the role. You have to remember for a lot of highly applied to junior roles that there will be numerous qualified candidates. Thus, disposing of someone who doesn't demonstrate the skill to communicate briefly and effectively is not a big loss.

Youll be sayin no, no, no, no, no

For what it's worth, I was told that unless I was going in to academia or planning to work outside the US, I should aim to keep the resume one page until grad school, and then let it become two or more. A page a decade, is what one guy said...

varun

as far as i'm concerned two pages is the minimum, suppose duplex printing is an option to get around it on one page and not thrown away but still keep all the information you want on there. my cv is two pages of information and that's that

Gonzie

I also want to point out that this is your chance to prove your rhetorical abilities, but being a succinct as possible.

etc

Please note I have multiple versions of my resume for diff jobs... This helped me get diff. short term projects as well as a long term job eventually...

laker

I'm in HR, and I can tell you that the truth isn't so black and white.

You can effectively make a 1 page resume that is more than 1 page by placing most of the "meat" on the first page. Also, less job description, and more differentiating achievements.

Get rid of that ridiculous mission statement as well, it is worthless, and NOBODY reads it. In fact, if it is cookie cutter, it might even hurt you.

Eric above gives some pretty good guidelines for writing a resume.

etc

Sorry I SHOULD add that I have different versions of my resume for different jobs. VERY HELPFUL... it helped me land 2 diff. gigs (one was short-term) within 2 months!

laker

All your applicable experience goes on your resume. Period.

My first resume out of school was 2 (maybe even 3) pages because I included all my experience. I had worked a couple summers at a software company, I had management experience, I had a paper published in a journal, and I listed several of the projects I had worked on at school.

I had experience, so I listed it.

From the other side of the fence, I have been interviewing people for many, many years. I fully expect to see 2 or 3 pages on a resume. For very well qualified people, I expect to see more. The more information on the resume, the more I can ask a candidate, and the easier I can determine if the candidate is qualified.

I think the single-page-resume myth is perpetuated by schools who talk to the wrong people. If you asked the HR rep at my company who makes the hiring decisions, she would say she does. In reality, she does little more than shuffling paper.

SuperChuck

I think it's important to stick to 1-page. As others have mentioned, a CV is different. But a resume is best at 1 page. Most employers won't look past 1 page to be truthful, and not necessarily because they're "not the type of employer" you would want to work for... but rather because they have dozens, if not hundreds, if not thousands, of resumes to review. Keeping everything on one page keeps things pertinent. I usually include more detail for more relevant jobs, and less for less relevant, and of course leave out those that are not relevant at all as I have more than enough content/substance.

Just my $0.02, but it's worked for me consistently.

laker

I have never used a one-page résumé to get a job. I do currently have one, however, I haven't gone job hunting in years.

My current solution is to have my résumé encoded as XML, and to couple it with one of two stylesheets, depending on whether I want the concise, one-page version, or the longer version.

kc2idf

I've been a programmer for 24 years. That ain't going to fit on one page. :)

However, the first page is the billboard. If someone's looking for buzzwords, they'll find them there. Anything particularly noteworthy is there, too.

The rest of the document contains my work history, should anyone care to read it. Probably most don't. In my field, at least, a resume is just a means to determine whether you should pick up the phone and call a guy.

///ark

Mark Wilden

If you are writing a resume, and not a CV, then it should be one page. This is especially true if you have just graduated from college. No one cares about all your "leadership" experience at the soup kitchen. (I say this as someone who graduated from college and wrote a 3-page resume including just such "leadership" experiences, then realized how dumb that was.)

In fact, it should be one page with plenty of white space and no smaller than 12 point font. Yes, this is hard. You have to cut it down to the most efficient statements possible.

If you have been in the field for a long time and truly have a lot of directly relevant experience, then 2 pages is okay.

A CV is a totally different animal, as you are expected to list at length your publications, presentations, teaching experience, and awards won. Know which one, CV or resume, is appropriate to the job you want.

snowmentality

@t3knomanser: That's a good suggestion. When I deal with resumes, I want to see work history and experience on the first page so I can make a quick decision whether a phone screening is necessary. However, I love to have additional info to use during a face-to-face interview. The best one I've seen involved a one page resume, but when we got to the interview, he presented the panel with a bound package that presented him in the most complete light possible. It was very impressive and worked well.

jonny6pak

For any reasonably senior position of course you need more than one page. And, yes, the useful stuff should be all on the first page. I want to see your skill set and where you recently worked, mostly. But I'm also going to look at your education, and that's typically at the end. What I don't need to see is jobs from 20 years ago where the skills are almost surely irrelevant to what you want to do for me (since I'd be hiring internet developers it is borderline useful at best to know that you used to do device drivers in the 1970s).

Having said that, I also freely admit - in front of candidates - that when I'm staring at the resume it's not because I'm reading it, it's because I'm thinking of the next thing I want to ask. The most the resume gives me is a couple of talking points. I don't go through the thing with a fine toothed comb.

[duanesbrain.blogspot.com]

Duane

As someone who has reviewed hundreds of resumes/CVs for biologist and chemist positions, I'd say use whatever space it takes. Someone with significant experience and publication in either of these fields should have more than a page. As an employer, I wanted to gain the most thorough understanding possible of the experience applicants had gained. A short resume says "little experience" to me. My own CV is currently four and a half pages.

If supervisors rely on HR screening of applicants, they'd better be REALLY certain that those screeners have a complete understanding of the job and duties involved in the position and be looking for the subjective qualities of applicants that will fit into the workgroup. My experience tells me this is seldom the case. I took every chance to fight tooth-and-nail to see the complete applicant pool for any position I hired so that I (as supervisor/manager) was making the decisions about candidate qualification rather than some HR technician solely focused on buzzwords.

Above all, no matter the length of the document, be sure that every word is spell checked (MANUALLY) and grammar is immaculate. Nothing screams "DON'T HIRE ME" more than apathy toward your resume.

lausley

I've been tasked with hiring another Sys Admin where I work, and I'll tell you I generally don't look past page one. My recommendation, and what's always worked for me, is the following:

1) Give me an objective. What kind of job are you looking for? What sort of responsibility? You'll save yourself and the potential employer a lot of time and money.

2) No more than three job history on page one. I don't care what you did 10 years ago, and if I do, I'll ask.

3) Give a brief list of credentials or notable achievements. This is separate from the three job descriptions above, but can be related. Have a State License for something? Tell me about it. Are you an officer for XYZ Association in your off-time? Tell me about it.

4) Include a page 2 with the 'other' information. I put references, yes, even if I haven't been asked yet, a detailed list of skills/knowledge, and a solid section on things I've done that should make more more hirable than the next guy.

Now, I'm not in HR, and I don't hire people every day, so what they want may be different, but this has worked for me both from an employer perspective as well as from an employee point of view.

Oh, one last thing, don't lie. It'll catch up with you. Be honest and bold.

Eric Crist

I'm sorry for being slightly OT, but the environmentally responsible person in me can't let it go. To all you "trashing" your resumes, I sure hope you are recycling it!

And please don't recycle mine. Re-use it for a second interview. ;-)

Taco Del Marcel

One page is the threshold for me. Generally, I'll be concise, stick to one page, and call it a resume. If I feel like I need to go more than one page (or they ask for it) I make an exhaustive document and call it a curriculum vitae.

Scott D. Feldstein

If for some reason I can't trim it to one page, I work under the assumption that the second page may never be read.

If the person reading the resume is willing to toss it out SOLELY on the grounds that it's more than one page, they are probably doing me a favor in not wasting my time thinking I might actually want to work for someone like that. Sometimes I am tempted to intentionally have a second page just to help weed out these kinds of employers.

Troy F.

I am in Higher Education and, depending on the position, you can expect to see 20-page resumes easy...especially for faculty positions. We review them digitally so length is not an issue and ironically good textured paper makes it harder to read the digital copies.

Being a web person myself, I have a one-page resume that points the reader to a resume portfolio website. I personally think this is the direction resumes need to go. Simple introduction, sell yourself and then send them to a website that contains the nitty-gritty all neat and organized.

bastewart

Let's not forget, one of those applicants might well be the future CEO.

ICEBreaker

@Mav: Agreed, and the same goes for those universities who boast that they throw away x% of the applications because they are just too overwhelmed.

I mean, come on. Just look at the qualifications and do a quick filter. I don't think any firm in the world can say they have too many job applicants from Ivy League graduates that they have to chuck away that second page.

It's just something egoistic people / organisations say to make themselves seem above it all.

ICEBreaker

when i find a two page resume on my desk I usually go quickly over it and see if it is interesting or not. If it doesn't grab my attention within the first ten seconds I look at it, it goes in the trash immediately.

I have to agree here with onesix18 on that one. If you can't handle to bring all your skills on one page then you are not made for a job where organizational skills are necessary. If your resume is only a couple lines longer than one page, then choose a different format. Example: a 1.5 inch column on the left for your contact info, then you have almost a full page for your actual information.

thegermandude517

@Joseph: RE: Interviewer-"Hmmmm.... 2 pages... he knows too much so I'm gonna throw this one out"
More likely "2 pages...guy doesn't know how to be succinct, doesn't know which skills are relevant to this job...but these 50 other guys do...".

Although I have to say that with so many companies going to digital-only applications, the # of pages becomes less important. Regardless of paper or digital, you should be able to make it quickly obvious, even to someone just scanning it, why your resume is relevant to the job opening.

mrs_helm

I find that if a resume is in print, 1 page is beneficial if possible. If electronic, 2 pages doesn't really matter. The hiring party won't figure it out until they are already reading it or have invested time in printing it. However, the same formatting rules (short fragments, etc.) must apply to justify 2 pages.

nealglatt

MYTH

My resume posted online and searched via keywords. I use as much detail as possible.

I am also a member of the local PMI job team and our results show that more detail is better. My previous project ended Jan. Using tons of keywords and details I was working again in March. When I added the additional details to my resume, my incomming calls went from 2 per week to 10 per day.

Adding keywords and as much detail as possible is so effective that I still receive 2-3 inquiries daily and I've been working since March.

It is the first thing that I recommend any job/project seeker do.

If you are a project manager in the sacramento area go to pmi-svc.org to find out about the next job team meeting.

AndyW

@onesix18: I agree, editing to produce an incredible 1 page resume is a sign of editing skills that a multi-page resume doesn't necessarily imply.

moore850

i have always used a 1 and half page resume, Listing all my qualifications as well as the software i am competent in. Every position i have interviewed for i have got the job so cant be too bad to use two page

AceSev3n

Can I just point out that it SO depends on the field? In academia, a one-page resume would likely be tossed outright as you're expected, even while in grad school, to have multiple pages (ca. 3-4 is standard).

Nemtynakht

A resume's purpose is to get you in the door, to get you in front of someone. If you have absolutely essential content that just won't fit on one page, then create a CV that you can bring with you to the interview (or send as a follow-up). Otherwise, boil it down, like maple syrup, until you have one page of great stuff. And please, leave some white space on the page so it doesn't look like an exam cheat-sheet.

onesix18

I use a 1-page double-sided resume. It's landscape with a 3-column format and I subtly use colour to create accents for headers and contact information.

I've used the format many times and have landed quite a few jobs and my current career. I like how people react to something so fresh... they take the time to read the content.

A3sthetix

It's rarely HR are filtering CVs - it's more often the team who is looking to hire who read them.

And whilst you do yourself a lot of credit my making the first page of any length CV a "wow, must have this guy" page, I feel an extra page or two is worth having if it's adding value.

Don't forget that a job application is a TWO WAY process - if I don't feel the company will have time to read what I view as essential information on a new employee, I must also take the assumption that my potential new work colleges were picked in a similar manner, and therefore not well-filtered either. So is that the company I really want to work for ?

bdturner

When I interview the second page is greatly diminished. I separate what is on the second page from what is on the first. Forcing yourself to get it all on one page lets me see you in one glance instead of having to mentally stitch together a picture of you. My opinion is to keep it to one page, drop the summaries, and give me a chronology of your best work with the most recent first. Skip no-where jobs. For each job listed I like seeing your responsibilities and, separate, you accomplishments using numbers. The key to all of this is realizing that I really would rather be coding / designing / reading Lifehacker, but someone asked me to "filter" you. I'm going to be rushed and, unfortunately, I could miss a good candidate because "Hibernate" was on page 1 and "SQL" was on page 2 and I wanted someone with both, but was too rushed to read that carefully. Hope this helps! Sam

WolframNelmes

@Mav:

The one-page rule isn't so much for the HR person as it is for the hiring manager, at least in my field.

I don't need your life story. I need to know what skills you have that are relevant to the position, so that I can figure out whether it's worth bringing you in for an interview. If I can't figure that out in ten minutes, then the answer is probably "no."

black_rabbit

You can have a multi-page resume, but only if you've got the experience to back it up. If you're looking for your first or second job, you probably don't have enough experience in that field to warrant anything more than a one-pager and like daybringer says, it'll probably just get chucked.

Most of my managers have only been concerned with how your resume relates to the job description so you don't need to pack it full of details that are unrelated to that.

youngheart80

@daybringer: HAHA companies want the people with the least amount of experience. I can see it now.

Interviewer-"Hmmmm.... 2 pages... he knows too much so I'm gonna throw this one out"

Joseph

It depends on the job and candidate in question. Where I work, I have mostly been involved in recruiting college hires. In those cases, we absolutely expect a résumé to be at most a single page. It is a rare college student who actually has enough experience to merit more than that, so multiple pages generally means the candidate is padding.

That being said, more senior candidates have had more jobs with more responsibilities that require more explanation. It is not unusual for our senior candidates to have three or four pages; in those cases, we generally appreciate the extra insight into that person and his or her career.

gregdor

To me it's more about layout and content than the number of pages. I've seen resumes where someone squeezes what should have been on three pages onto a single page. Since our HR group forwards most of the resumes as word attachments, I review most of them on screen, and therefore I don't really care if I have to hit page down one extra time.

To me the resume needs to tell me enough about the person, do they have the experience and the skills that I'm looking to hire, so that I can decide if I want to spend the time to interview them.

Poster99

CV is the first item that a potential employer encounters regarding the job seeker, and therefore a large amount of importance is often ascribed to it, therefor you should not tired the person you want to impress with unnecessary info.

Thomasmrph

Sometimes I wonder, if a job is such that the HR professional handling the task of filling it is so overwhelmed that he or she doesn't have time to read an extra page, is it really worth it?

It's not like these things are dense, novel-esque pieces of literature here. Bullet points and highlights at best, and if that takes forever (even if there's 100 or so) then so be it.

Of course, I say this from the perspective of somebody who isn't an HR guy, but if that's your job then I think that all that resume tossing that goes on it just laziness, if you ask me.

Mav

@daybringer: QFT. I do that.

formatc

The first page of your resume should be complete in and of itself. That is to say, it should be a convenient splash page that summarizes your skills and desirability.

After that first page, feel free to append as much supporting documentation as you like.

That's always been my approach.

t3knomanser

Yes you can write a 2 page resume, but I know a few people that do interviews and they just throw away all the ones that are more than 1 page long because they don't have time to read all of that extra stuff, but I guess its your choice if you are wanting to be considered for the job or not.

daybringer

In IT 3-4 pages is pretty standard. Usually half is job history and the other half is education, skills, certifications, etc.

dronezero

For me, a resume (or CV where I come from) should be exactly that : a brief overview of the person's qualifications, experience and skill set. Two pages max for most people. I've been given the job of wading through hundreds of applications to find suitable applicants, and being able to pick out the key requirements is a bonus. Bullet points are good. Lists of relevant skills and previous positions are good. If you have to use more than two pages, you'd better be describing a 15 year+ career. Extreme details about your first job as an intern or whatever, is probably not going to be read anyway.

dannywalk

Concur: one-page double-sided (on high quality paper) is the way to go.

astrochimp

As a guy interviewing candidates for my department, I will say that:

- a 1 page resume is best, double-sided is okay. More pages is highly likely to be padded crap in many cases, or a good sign of poor organizational and/or communication skills.
- if you have to write extra, include a line description of your position and dates, then provide detailed descriptions of the positions, duties, accomplishments, etc on the additional pages.
- embellishing a resume helps me know faster that you're full of shit, and that there may be trust issues in hiring you...
- ...however, it's not embellishing if you can provide evidence to your accomplishments. I received a resume that mentioned being an "award-winning " without mentioning what the award was.
- *do* tailor your resume for the job you're looking for; generic giveaway resumes don't have the punch you'll want them to have to leave a good impression *before* the interview.
- *do* include all of your work experience too though - you'd be surprised at how experience at some crappy job you had in high school may apply to a job down the road
- have someone else look at your resume for spelling and grammar errors - they look very unprofessional and hurt your image before being able to give an impression during an interview.

Chef

I've had a 2 page resume since I graduated and have yet to have a problem finding a job.

DanPinto

We are trapped by tradition.
The use of the word page shows that we are still thinking about paper based resumes. People now have multi-dimensional interests and careers so candidates should use their web presence and not a sheet of paper. mikefitzgerald.me.uk is a pioneering attempt to do this. Recruiters just want to search on relevant skills so they can produce manageable short lists before even reading a resume

Mike fitzGerald

My resume is two pages... but I have been working in my field for 8 years at 4 different companies in slightly different roles. My resume includes my Goals, Skill Summary, Job History, Skill Specifics (Certifications, Achievements, Experience Levels), Educational History, and References (two from each job Leader/Co-Worker combination).

Lew

Keep one cv with all the information, just for yourself. Keep it up to date. When you go for a job, create a new cv. Use the big one to reference facts and dates, but only put in the relevant information. If you don't know what's relevant, do some research. Calling the company and asking the person recruiting for advice is actually a healthy exercise.

xenobyte72

My current work is hiring for a new position and I can tell you that the entire search committee prefers 2 page resumes.

I also had no problem getting noticed right now with a 2 page resume. so I think the whole thing is a myth that was born out of reality of not to long ago.

mrosedal

Myth. Mine is 19 pages long. However, I have a "summary" page at the front, with all the key details, and the second page is a table of contents to enable the reader to navigate to the relevant information quickly.

In addition, I organize the whole thing as a table (no grid-lines obviously), in which the left column (1.5" of the page) is a title (e.g. previous positions, publications, teaching experience) in bold capitals, and then the relevant info' is on the right. This way the reader jsut navigates down the left side of the page to the right part. It sacrifices a bit of space, but is a lot easier on the eye. It also gives the reader space to write comments - nobody in HR likes a page that is so packed to the brim there's no room for notes.

virgilstar

For what it's worth, my brother used to be a CIO at Circuit City. His comment to me was "if I get a resume with more than one page, it better have the words 'Nobel Prize' on it somewhere."

ShobhitaKlilyn

I try to keep everything about me on one page and then put my references on the second page.

Brett

Anyone seeking a technical position with a one-page resume had better be looking for entry-level pay, because that's all you'll get. But what do I know about it, I'm only 57 years old.

Deadhacker

@Mav:
Try being the HR guy....tell me if you will be overwhelmed by 1 extra page on each of 1,200 resumes you will be sifting through. Should I chastise you for being lazy if you don't feel like reading an extra 1,200 pages on your 12.50/hr job without being paid overtime?

net_addict

As is obvious from the replies, the question is problematic. If you asked this question 20 years ago, it would make more sense.

The historical context of the one-page rule should be considered. It came out of the early days of word processing when people could first easily create and maintain their own resumes. Prior to that, you had to either type it up on a typewriter or have it done professionally.

What happened when it became easily to do your own resume is that people started padding resumes, adding more and more information to make their experience seem more considerable, because there was no pain to the process--you didn't have to pay someone to do it and changing your resume was easy (you didn't have to retype it again and again).

The one-page rule was also mostly aimed at applicants in the early stages of their careers (beginning with college grads) and in an average, corporate position. It was never intended to apply, for example, to academics with a publication record.

So the purpose of it was to make your resume an effective, mean, lean, interview-obtaining machine, in an era when people were fluffing up resumes with their hobbies and dreams for world peace.

Those days are over and now almost everyone creates their own resume. For many fields and employers, the concept of a page isn't relevant (as stated by mike fitzgerald above). For some fields, one page couldn't possibly contain the necessary information. The role of the freelancer has grown and freelancers apply for jobs require more room to show their experience, whether it be for programming or graphic design. And as some people have noted, when your resume is being machine-read, a paucity of key words can endanger the chances of landing an interview.

So what is applicable today from the lesson of the one-page rule is simply this: don't cram your resume full of irrelevant information; make sure that your experience speaks for you and understand how your resume is going to be processed, either by a human or a computer. While creating custom resumes for multiple positions is time-consuming, it can also be effective.

kongjie

It depends. Feeling lucky? Break the rules!

fs4138

I'm of the Digital vs. Paper persuasion.

If it's Paper it shouldn't be more than 1 page. If it's Digital it should be as long as needed (2-4 pages)

fourtwoseven

On the topic of religious references on resumes:

As a hiring manager I do not automatically discard resumes for having experience related to religion on them (like graduating from a Parochial School, or working as a missionary).

However, if you've included the cute little "Jesus fish" on your resume (or a cross), or seem to focus on religion being important in the workplace, I will can it in a heartbeat.

I am very well aware that certain people will put religious symbols or references in their resume with the implication that they should be given extra consideration for the position (same reason certain businesses include these symbols in their phone book ads).

I am not looking to do a good deed, I am looking to hire not only a qualified candidate, but the best qualified candidate I can find.

And the same goes for Mason symbols and such. I don't care what group you belong to.

If you flaunt it on a resume, I fully expect you to be completely incapable of keeping your trap shut about it in the office, and in my experience the risk is not worth it.

jglessner

I do technical interviews for my company, assessing the skill of applicants. I cap the reasonable resume at 2 pages. I am frequently handed a 6-7 page resume, listing every acronym the applicant has run across; it makes me sick. I don't mind a two page resume, and a one pager may be too light. My adage (being bombarded with these books that people call resumes) is: "If your resume is longer than 3 pages, it had better have the phrase 'Oval Office' on it." More than two pages, I'm not going to read it. You've wasted your time. Sometimes I'll ask the applicant to re-write their resume into "something more concise" and see what they come up with. I wish I saw more resumes with accomplishments on them instead of lists of protocols and gear.

QuantRagnarok