It’s no wonder why even simple questions like“How far back should a resume go?”or“Does a resume have to include all the jobs?”can be challenging to answer nowadays.
Our world is vastly different than it was just 20 years ago, with advances in technology have rendered many jobs obsolete and people switching companies atnearly twice the rate.
We’ll go over these questions in detail and give you tips on how to complement your work experience, regardless of whether you’re a student, a fresh graduate, or an experienced professional.
How far back should your resume go in 2024?
The common advice is to keep thework experience in a resumebetween 10 to 15 years. Doing so will give your hiring manager a general outline of your start, your growth, and where you find yourself now. However, this rule is not set in stone, and the answer can vary depending on a few factors, such as:
Generally, if a job you’ve had has provided you with valuable experience and skills that align with your job target, then you want to add it to your resume.
Student or recent graduate work experience (0 – 2 years of experience)
As a student or recent graduate, you’re probably not concerned about how far back your resume should go.
You might be concerned about the opposite. Do you even have enough years of experience on your resume?
All we have to say to this is — don’t worry. It’s expected for you to have minimal experience when entering the workforce. Besides, you’ll realize in a bit that you’re more qualified than you think.
You don’t need years of experience on your resume to show your employer you’re the right candidate for the job.
You can do so by highlighting your:
Just make sure that what you jot down in your resume is relevant to the job at hand and reflects the truth of your character, as most employers are quick to notice when a resume is full of fluff.
Also, just because you were not paid as an intern and/or volunteer doesn’t mean what you did wasn’t work. You can still write them down as work experience, for example:
Entry-level work experience (2 – 5 years of experience)
If you’re someone with entry-level work experience, it’s time to minimize the importance of your college experience.
That means removing your college courses, awards, school projects, andGPA from your resume.
Instead, your main focus should be on your post-graduation experience, paid work experience, internships, or volunteering.
Because you’re still fresh into the workforce, you might find that your resume’s job history is lacking.
In such cases, apart from including a work experience section, you can complement it with otherresume sections, such as:
Skills: Adding this section will show your potential employer that you have the skills and abilities required for the position.
Strengths: Stand out from the rest by picking a few quality strengths you possess, such as being good at communication, adaptable, and reliable. Make sure not to go overboard with them and include only those you feel strongly about. Quality beats quantity.
Projects: Including personal projects that align with your job prospect is a great way to show a hiring manager your dedication and internal motivation to succeed in your career.
Mid-level and experienced professionals (more than 5 years of experience)
If you’ve been in theworkforce for 5 to 10 years, you’re still not up to the point where you should be worried about how far back you should go on a resume.
However, it’s still advised not to write every single job you’ve had. Instead, list only the jobs related to the opportunity you want.
For those who haveworked for more than ten years, it’s time to start implementing the 10 to 15-year rule.
By implementing the 10 to 15-year rule you’re making sure your resume is:
Also, by not going further than 15 years in your work history, youlessen the probability of age discrimination.
If, however, you find yourself with older experience that is still relevant to the job at hand. You could always showcase the skills gained at that job in yourprofessional summary.
How many jobs should I put on my resume?
This question depends on the type of career you have. If, for example, you have a government job or work in academia, then you might have to provide an extensive and oftentimes complete work history.
However, such cases are not the norm, and the general advice is to addbetween 3 to 7 job listings.
Adding more than that will only serve to distract the recruiter.
Also, as a rule of thumb, you only need togo into detail in your last two to three jobs. Then, decrease the level of detail the further back you go until, eventually, your older job listing should be only the dates of employment, your role, and the company’s name.
When to remove old jobs from a resume?
Ideally, you want to tailor your resume so that the jobs you list on your work history are no older than 15 years and are relevant to the job you’re applying for.
That means that if you have a mid-level to experienced role, there is rarely a need to add that summer job you had in high school.
If you’re still having difficulty deciding which jobs to remove or add to your resume, remember that the same advice you’ve applied when learninghow to write a resume applies here. You want to keep your job listing relevant, clear, and concise.
All in all, there will rarely be a need for you to jot down your entire job history on a resume. It’s a marketing document, not a legal one.
Avoid going beyond 20+ years of experience unless required. Tailor, trim, cut, and whatever is left, is the right length.
