David M. Dunn ⋅ Temecula , CA Lockheed Martin ⋅ 37 years experience

Jamell, Loretta is correct. Each resume needs to be focused on a specific job type. You can have one resume for a career field and another for a different career field. The length of your resume is really dependent upon the amount of experience you have and what you are trying to get across to the potential hiring company. If your background is just the 5 years of military service plus maybe some employment prior to your service, you probably only need one page. Several keys to the resume. One it is not about you, but what you offer to the hiring company. Two it is about what you accomplished/achieved and did for your previous employers not about your personal accomplishments. Lastly, key words are critical. Many companies nowadays use prescreening software to search for key words in resumes and then flag only those. So you need to know the career field, you need to understand the key words within that field and use them in your resume.

Samantha Keefe ⋅ Boston , MA AVID Technical Resources ⋅ 10 years experience

Jarnell and anybody else who may be reading,

From an IT standpoint, it's ok to spill over beyond 1 page. We sometimes place job candidates with very, very long resumes! Keep it proportional to your experience. If you're interested in speaking with any IT recruiters, we have offices and clients looking to fill IT spots all over the country. Check out our site at www.avidtr.com or contact us at info@avidtr.com. We can help you polish that resume AND get it in front of your dream manager. Good luck in your search!

Janelle Hughley ⋅ Riverdale , GA U.S. Army, Sergeant ⋅ 4 years served

Last Friday, I had the pleasure of attending a resume workshop at Google, where this very topic came up. The human resources representative from Google explained to us your resume shouldn't be more than two pages longs. She said the length of your resume should depend on your job experience and the relevance of your experience to the job you are applying for. For instance there is no need to go back more than ten years for your experience or do you need to list every position you have ever had in the military. Generally there is no exact rule of thumb for either a one-page or two-page resume. Just be sure to include accomplishments that are relevant to the position you are applying for and keep your resume under 3 pages.

What I liked to do is create what I call a master resume and list all my job experiences and accomplishments. When its time for me to apply for a job I pick out the accomplishments that align with the job description and things I think the recruiter may be looking for when recruiting for that position.

I hope that helps some!

Chris Jackson ⋅ Washington , DC UBS ⋅ 22 years experience

I would try to keep the resume to one page. Another issue that drives me crazy...resumes in Word. Nothing worse than receiving a document & having spelling & formatting marks all over the page. Save it as a pdf file before emailing or uploading. Good luck!

Loretta Carter ⋅ Sugar Land , TX HCA ⋅ 9 years experience

Hi Jamell,

One thing you may want to try is to create a template resume that will be a one page document. Each position you apply for should have a custom resume that highlights the experiences that make you a suitable candidate for that position. Don't waste space by explaining skill sets that will not be used for this position. That is the easy way to get the resume down to one page. Tom's advice about the LinkedIn profile is correct. Many people will check out the profiles on LinkedIn to see more about a candidate.

Good luck with your job search.

Loretta

David Gilbertson ⋅ San Antonio , TX Hewlett Packard ⋅ 26 years experience

Jamell,

You have to base that length decision on how much job experience you have and how senior the position is that you are applying for. Certainly an executive with 20 years of experience can't get by with a one page resume. But with 5 years in the military, you’re probably okay with a one page resume unless the job announcement lists extensive qualifications. You will need to make sure you address each of the qualifications. Good example is Government jobs. If your resume does not cover the qualifications and demonstrate you are qualified, you will not make it past the screener.

Good luck

David

Paul Trejo ⋅ Austin , TX University of Texas at Austin ⋅ 40 years experience

Jamell,

My personal opinion is that a 1 page resume is best, but that 1 page should be ultra-strong. Target the resume to the buzzwords in the job requisition whenever possible. Minimize hobbies and outside interests. If you must use 2 pages, then put all your strongest material on the 1st page. If the executives don't resonate with the 1st page, they will not read the 2nd page. Think in terms of an executive summary -- short and strong.

Best wishes,
--Paul

Anton Frishberg ⋅ Las Vegas , NV Unilever ⋅ 6 years experience

Typically when you apply to a job you are going to do it online. Your resume will either be uploaded or copy/pasted into the online application. Either way the formatting and the length will lose all meaning.

It doesn't matter how long your resume is, as long as it flows in a logical order, and all the bullets and positions are targeted towards what you are applying for.

Tom Cal, CFA ⋅ San Francisco , CA Army Veteran, Investment Manager ⋅ 25 years experience

Jamell,
When you are ready, post asking for a review of your resume and LinkedIn profile. I'm confident you'll get several offers of assistance.

Ensure your resume and LinkedIn profile are both high quality. Since LinkedIn profiles are primarily chronological, perhaps first put your resume in chronological format and have it reviewed. Then consider a functional version.

Jamell Culbreath ⋅ Columbus , OH U.S. Army, Sergeant ⋅ 5 years served

Thanks Tom! Trying to make myself more marketable in the business finance sector.

Tom Cal, CFA ⋅ San Francisco , CA Army Veteran, Investment Manager ⋅ 25 years experience

I believe 1 page is the norm. You can begin with a 2 page resume, and then ask for help on this site and elsewhere to get your resume down to 1 page.