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Subject:Re: Resumes and SMEs, Years v. Years' From:cjs10 -at- CORNELL -dot- EDU Date:Wed, 26 Feb 1997 15:22:42 -0500
Melissa & Kevin
You're bringing up an old form which still holds: Two years' experience;
a week's time, an hour's wait, three days' work...
The Chicago Manual of style (among
others) will explain that this is not your garden-variety possessive;
it's based on the genitive case (yeah, English used to have one) which is
the case that governs belonging, or possession.
Joanna
On Wed, 26 Feb 1997, Kevin Montgomery wrote:
> On 2/24 Melissa Hunter-Kilmer said:
> >...I got several resumes from candidates who looked really good but wrote
> >stuff like "two years experience" (should be "two years'
> >experience")...
>
> This caught my attention! I decided against using the possessive "years'"
> in my resume because the experience is mine, it does not belong to the
> time it took to acquire it.
>
> I searched all the references in the office and found no citation
> supporting Melissa's preference for "years'". (Of course, I couldn't find
> direct support for my position either.) So, I dropped my buddy Melissa a
> note. She also could not find a supporting reference. By mutual agreement,
> we are throwing the question out to the list: should it be years' or
> years?
>
> -Kevin Montgomery
> kmontgomery -at- logicon -dot- com
>
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