How to Not Appear OLD on Your Resume

How to Not Appear OLD on Your Resume Now that you have decided to rework your resume and start applying for new positions, it’s important to set-up your resume correctly so that you don’t appear old and out-of-date in today’s job market. And, yes, I agree that age shouldn’t be a factor and experience counts for a lot. However, we all know that age discrimination can and does happen in today’s world. Whether you are 40-years-old or 65-years old, there are some ways to list dates on your document so that you don’t hinder your job search with your age. Tip #1 â€" Only go back 10-15 years with your job history. Frankly, anything prior to that is most likely not relevant and if you start detailing your work history all the way back to 1982, people will start to calculate your age. The most recent work history tends to be the most relevant to your future roles. Tip #2 â€" List only the month and the year or the years only in your work experiences. You don’t have to list exact dates. And, more importantly, if you have changed jobs extremely frequently in the past few years, you can also choose to just list the years only. It’s a way to be concise and also allows you to eliminate the look of a ‘job-hopper.’ Tip #3 â€" Don’t put dates on education. Whether you graduated last year or three years ago, it doesn’t matter. And, if you start to list that you graduated in 1990, you begin to date yourself and your experiences. The ONLY time that I put the dates with education is when someone hasn’t graduated yet and has an anticipated graduation date. Tip #4 â€" Don’t list old technical skills. If you decide to include a technical section on your document, choose only those programs that are aligned with today’s workplace. Don’t mention that you are proficient in AOL (yes, that does happen) or Lotus Notes. Instead, focus on the programs that are used at the target company and software that is utilized NOW. Tip #5 â€" Include volunteerism and community engagement from TODAY. That’s great that you were the football team captain and participated in 4-H during the 1990s. If you don’t have any community engagement since that time, then eliminate that section. And, again, things from 20 years ago are most likely no longer relevant to your job search. Do you still have questions about your resume and what to do with dates? Or, are you concerned about looking OLD on your resume? Contact me today for a free resume review!