once again the answer is "it depends". Every agency I've ever worked with (as a W-2 contractor) wants a "complete" resume... which for me comes out to about 6 1/2 pages. Don't ask me why, but that's what they want, no matter how irrelevant, but by the time I get to 15 years, it's just the name of the company, the title I held and the timeframe.
If I'm applying for FTE positions, I focus on the skills/experience relevant to the position and usually get it down to about 3 pages. I've never had anyone turn me down because I couldn't get 25 years experience down to 2 pages. Always seemed a bit arbitrary to me, and I never refused to look at a resume solely on the basis of length when I was a hiring manager. YMMV Connie P. Giordano The Right Words Communications & Information Design (704) 957-8450 (cell) www.therightwords.com "It's kind of fun to do the impossible." - Walt Disney > -------Original Message------- > From: Jones, Donna <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Re: [TCP] How long should a resume be? > Sent: 01 Aug '07 09:48 > > John Posada wrote: > > > > 1. How long is your resume? > > > Five pages > > > For any given job that you might want to apply for, does the hiring > manager really need to know five pages worth of stuff? If you repeat a > lot of the same skills under each job, move them to a bulleted list of > your skills in a heading called something like, "Professional Writing > Skills." > > You don't need to give gory details about each position you've held, > just a summary of each so someone might be interested enough to call you > in for an interview. If I was going to hire someone, I can't say that I > would even skim past a second page. (Ugh. Too tedious. Into the garbage > can with it.) > > Just my semi-professional 2 cents worth, > > Donna > > - CONFIDENTIAL- > This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential, and may also > be legally privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, you may not > review, use, copy, or distribute this message. If you receive this email in > error, please notify the sender immediately by reply email and then delete > this email. > > ______________________________________________ > > Author Help files and create printed documentation with Doc-To-Help. > New release adds Team Authoring Support, enhanced Web-based help > technology and PDF output. Learn more at www.doctohelp.com/tcp. > > > Interactive 3D Documentation > Parts catalogs, animated instructions, and more. www.i3deverywhere.com > _______________________________________________ > > Technical Communication Professionals > > Post a message to the list: email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Subscribe, unsubscribe, archives, account options, list info: > http://techcommpros.com/mailman/listinfo/tcp_techcommpros.com > Subscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Unsubscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Need help? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Get the TCP whole experience! http://www.techcommpros.com > ______________________________________________ Author Help files and create printed documentation with Doc-To-Help. New release adds Team Authoring Support, enhanced Web-based help technology and PDF output. Learn more at www.doctohelp.com/tcp. Interactive 3D Documentation Parts catalogs, animated instructions, and more. www.i3deverywhere.com _______________________________________________ Technical Communication Professionals Post a message to the list: email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, unsubscribe, archives, account options, list info: http://techcommpros.com/mailman/listinfo/tcp_techcommpros.com Subscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Need help? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] Get the TCP whole experience! http://www.techcommpros.com