resume length

[William Swallow <William -dot- Swallow -at- aptissoftware -dot- com>]

Disengaging unintentional lurk mode here...

Call me crazy, but shouldn't the length of the resume depend on the position
you are applying for and the company you are applying with? If I listed
everything I've done in the last five years, I'd have a 10 page resume. So,
if I was to apply for a technical content writing position, I'd leave off
greater detail of my Web authoring, Help development and graphic design
experience. I wouldn't omit that info, but I'd strip it down to perhaps one
or two lines each, just to let the interviewer know I have skills beyond the
requirements. 

When interviewers are skimming resumes, they are first looking for the
applicants who immediately fit the requirements for the position. Then,
after that initial comb is done, they usually peruse the stack of
possibilities in greater detail to determine who'd be the best fit (or who
the best 5 would be to invite for an interview).

By putting a lot of info on your resume, you are actually hurting your
chances of getting the job, as the interviewer may not find what she is
looking for right away, or perhaps think that you may be "overqualified".

In any case, as Don Le Vie mentioned in his article in the April 2000
Intercom, you should be custom-tailoring your resume and cover letter for
each position with each employer. After all, if you take the time to meet or
exceed their expectations before you get the job, you have a better chance
of nailing the opportunity to meet or exceed their expectations ON the job.

My opinion and mine alone... so nyaaahh!  ;-)

Bill Swallow
Technical Writer II
Aptis
a subsidiary of Billing Concepts
8 Southwoods Boulevard
Albany NY 12211
voice: 518.433.7698
fax: 5518.433.7680
mailto:william -dot- swallow -at- aptissoftware -dot- com
http://www.aptissoftware.com