Another CV question

What's the maximum number of pages considered acceptable for a CV
nowadays? And where (in terms of years) does one draw the line
between "this is the cool stuff I've done" detail and "I was here from
1995 to 1998" line entry?

 

I try for 2. But I'm young...

 

No hard and fast rule AFAIK. I aim to put all the attention grabbing
info on page 1, then if that's done the job people can see my previous
jobs, experience and qualification over 3 following pages, a few of
which are one liners. Never been told it's too much, seems ot have
got me the interviews I wanted.

 

Three at most, two at best.

I'd do the last job in proper detail, the one before in a bit less, the
one before that as a summary and anything before that as not much more
than dates unless it was something special.

 

Similar to mine (which got me the job here) - headline stuff (skill
summaries, personal info and availability on first sheet, more detailed
employment history on 2nd & 3rd sheet, expanded personal info on last
sheet).

Formatting and correct use of English are more important than overall
length I think.

Phil

 

This, of course, becomes more of a problem the older you get.
My tactic was a single page briefly mentioning the last 5 years with
a note that a full and detailed 44 page CV was available on request.
Nobody ever asked.
You just need to get enough silly boxes ticked by HR to get your CV
past their binning process to the real decision makers. Nobody who
makes real decisions has an attention of more than a single page
summary, in my experience they generally do a quick telephone interview
to pick a shortlist of 2 or 3 to call in for a formal interview.

 

The former if it's applicable to the job being applied for, the latter
if it isn't.

 

I have everything you'd find in a traditional CV on one page, then a
list of client project examples on page 2. A little table with
client's company logo on the left (all mine are blue-chip household
names so it looks impressive) with a one-line headline description of
the project followed by a paragraph describing it in more detail
followed by technology & skills acquired/used. It's quite "designery"
because of the logos and table layout. Works really well for me and
recruiters love it from the feedback I've had.

What about an example like this to grab attention
http://theportfolio.ofmichaelanderson.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/resume-infographic.jpg

Also check this out http://www.visualcv.com/

 

Not sure how you can do that! I've got my name, two paragraphs saying
I'm fucking good, and a list of bullet points on what I'm good at, and
that's the first page already. The next page is my last two jobs,
with what I did in some detail, the next page is brief summaries of
the jobs I did before that, and the last page is list of education
establishments and 'about me'. That's four pages, and I struggle to
see how I can shrink it any more than that.

Heh. Might work in media industries, but I doubt it would in mine.

 

Yep, that's exactly how mine works. It's difficult to do it in less
if you've had any kind of varied and broad career experience, or built
up a decent amount of subject expertise.

 

Works for me. The advantage of a layout like that is that the reader
can quickly zoom in and out at will. You need detail but not to have
to wade through text to find it.

 

And for god's sake do it in the first person!

 

Although there's bonus points if you get the job after doing it in the
second person.

"You're reading this CV and thinking here's the kind of person I need
to hire..."

 

Chris disagrees with that statement.

 

I ail at 2 sides, always less than 3. 1/2 page usual bollix, driving
licence, marital status, sexual orientation, top qualification(s) held
and a 1/2 page of current job, 2nd page decreasing detail of last
jobs, and if I feel I need a 3rd page I might slip it in. Never
bother with anything not realated to the job being applied for which
means a 'full' CV is maintained and bastardised for the offer in hand.

Not significantly exceeded a 50% CV to offer rate though

 

Bugger. Has that fashion changed again?

 

"Neal doesn't care much for fashion."

 

heh.

Of course, when one was sending CVs out via agents, it made some
sense.

 

It's your CV, not the agent's.

Though I have seen CVs where the agent had rewritten the whole thing in
the third person without the candidate's knowledge, completely
butchering it in the process.

After all, do you want a CV that reads like an extended Facebook status?

 

They also butchered CVs already written in the third person.