Updating my CV and, as usual, finding it impossible to fit all my wonderful achievements on 2 pages. I’ve done quite alot of recruitment recently and most of the CVs I reviewed were over 2 pages – didn’t bother me at all?

What do you think? 2 Pages of tiny Calibri 6pt or sod-it and go for 3?

I’m in IT Project Management – the role on page 3 ended 2007 so isn’t really so long ago..

I usually stretch mine to two pages using large writing and two finger spaces.

It gets harder and harder to keep to 2 pages as you spend more time in work but I would still go for 2 pages.

As you know from your own experience, the recruiter will have tens of these things in front of them and they’re trying to make a decision and they don’t want to be reading all day – make it easy for them to pick you.

There’s a good structure of 3 key responsibilities and 3 key achievements for each role – focussing on the most recent and most relevant for the role you’re applying for.

The further you go back in time, the less detail you need.

I generally only look past the second page if they have pictures on them.Naughty pictures. Of you.

Thanks – nice to get another view, like the 3×3 idea.. So critical to get it right these days..

Just prepped one for an IT consultant.
3 pages, cut off at 2001, plus 2 full pages as an inventory of tech and applications in full time use. Calibri 10 or 11 point depending on layout.

Maximum I have seen was 13 pages for the Dean of a University listing all publications, book reviews, papers etc etc. Appropriate for his field of application though.

Lots of pages isn’t an issue if you meet the following:

1) you have enough work history to require it (ie you’r enot fresh off the boat)
2) Page 1 has ALL the important stuff and is attention grabbing
3) You are applying for a job where a long a successful career isn’t enough so you need to provide the details.

In my field, simply putting the name of the companies i have worked for is enough to get a job, as those “sorts” of companies only employ the best sorts of people. Hence the details of what you actually did for those companies 15 years ago is largely irrelevant!

Depends on the job & relevance. I tend to skim mostly looking for a few key things, 2 pages is plenty, and then do more detail on request, or as a 2nd document, if it is something that would be beneficial to your application.

2 pages max. I am 52 and I still get mine on one page. LinkedIn is used a lot by people now, often they look you up there rather than read a CV

I don’t mind more than 2 pages, but page 3 better be pretty damned impressive (and if it is, why isn’t it on page 1?)

All

page 3 better be pretty damned impressive (and if it is, why isn’t it on page 1?)

That about sums it up I think.. I’ll move into slash&burn editing mode.

It’s nonsense. You answered your own question in the OP.

most of the CVs I reviewed were over 2 pages – didn’t bother me at all?

A CV is as long as it needs to be. If you’re a school leaver applying for a job filling shelves at ASDA you’ll probably struggle to fill two pages. If you’re applying to be a Solutions Architect at Google, it’s likely to be a bit longer.

I’ve seen CVs written in Flyspeck 3 with no margins or white space so that they can achieve this legendary “two pages max” holy grail and they just go straight in the bin because they’re unreadable.

Be efficient with your language, state your points without waffling on, and prune anything that’s not relevant. This was whole point of the “two pages” mantra, people won’t read a telephone directory and shrinking down the font doesn’t reduce the amount of text one jot.

If it’s two and a bit pages, I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it. (Mine was four at one point, about 2.5 – 3 these days.)

I’ve known plenty who will bin lengthy CVs without reading them. Two isn’t the rule but you should try to keep to it. Three is okay if it needs to be. Most CVs are way too much waffle. One page with important details at top, key skills and then big sell but brief on the last job, maybe two. Second page is other jobs but keep it brief and if a lot, one line them even.

Highlight things of interest that’s enough to grab attention and yet leaves them with questions to ask in the interview and you have something to talk about. If loads of jobs/contracts you could skip really old stuff but that may leave them wondering, or summarise them without listing them all. Gaps in more recent experience are more of a concern.

Some exceptions, but leave out references generally. If they want them they can ask for them or you can offer them at the interview. Never give references to agents up front. Trim the whole life detail down to name, address and contact details. One liners on education unless you’re a graduate and then the whole content will have to be about what you studied etc.

I’ve known plenty who will bin lengthy CVs without reading them.

Any that you’d want to work for?

Thing is, there’s no cast-iron one-size-fits-all rule. What any prospective employer may or may not be looking for, you’ve no idea. In a role which is going to attract dozens if not hundreds of CVs, an employer has to have some criteria for whittling them down to a manageable level at the outset before taking any seriously and a badly presented CV might well get you rejected without them ever reading a word. A three page CV may be another of course, because ultimately they’ve got to prune based on something. I knew someone who binned 50% of all CVs at random because he didn’t want to employ unlucky people.

A CV is an advert, a sales pitch, nothing more. Does it paint you in a good light, is it a piece of work you’re proud of? Once you’ve secured an interview its work is done. The interview is where you flesh out the detail.

dont mind 3 pages but page 1 better not be waffle and make me want to look at page 2 and 3.
far worse issues than 3 pages
whilst there maybe no rational reason for rejecting 3 pages theres also probably no reason for rejecting someone based on their handshake but ohhh how the limp handshake (if you can call it a handshake) anoys me..maybe just me

Get somebody you trust and respect to read it for you and suggest some edits.

Mine seems to be shrinking fwiw. One and 3/4 pages now.

Sensible answer now. I have no problem looking through CV’s longer than 2 pages. If it’s relevant then it’s all good information. But it MUST be relevant. If the extra room is taken up with stuff that’s not applicable to the role, I’ll get turned off.

That said, I do like to see a little bit of personal stuff too. Couple of lines about hobbies, family, lifestyle.

It should be as long as it needs to be to contain the good stuff with no filler.
I read hundreds of cv’s per month and content is far more important than length.

My own is 4 pages but I have a rather unique skill set and experience so it all need to be there.

The >2 pagers I’ve seen are just indulgent for the most part, and show a lack of editing as they just add to it over the years. What you did 10+ years ago is rarely worth more than a few lines. Highest level of education only unless you have a long academic career. No need for listing referees on a CV, if you get that far then you’ll be asked for them.

As said, a CV isn’t there to give all the details to get you the job. It’s to put across the most relevant stuff to secure you an interview, where you can be asked more about anything they want to know.

I bin any CV over 2 pages – people who waffle.
I bin any CV in 8 point or smaller – people who waffle and deceive.
I bin 50% of the remaining CV’s at random – Don’t want to employ unlucky people.

I love reading the personal spare time bits. “Hobbies – socialising with friends”. Who doesn’t like socialising with friends? And it’s not a bloody hobby.

Mine’s three pages. It’s been 4. I’ve been told a few times that it’s the best CV they’ve seen. By my reckoning, keep it relevant and four pages max and you’ll be ok, at least for anyone worth working for.

Do any of you actually work in recruiting or are you hiring managers ?
If you’re hiring managers what size company do you work for ?

Just interested in knowing how people work.

Hiring manager. Big company.

I’d argue for an IT Project Manager, what’s on your LinkedIn profile is more important than your CV these days. It’s the first thing I’ll go an read when I have a CV in front of me, and usually the CV is ignored in favour of LinkedIn.

In my field, CVs have to be one page. Hard to achieve that but it does lead to keeping it to the relevant details.

In my field, CVs have to be one page. Hard to achieve that but it does lead to keeping it to the relevant details.

even if that is not the norm in your field, a one page CV stands out – and tells me you are someone who knows what is important, how to prioritise information etc. Those are characteristics I usually like in my employees. If you’ve wasted 1/4 of the page with your contact details, and an 1/8th with a monotonous personal statement you probably aren’t getting across your key differentiators!

I think if page one is interesting then a third page won’t be a deal breaker. It is important, however, to not put question marks at the end of sentences which aren’t questions.

If you’re working with a recruitment consultant, a good one Southoe reformat your cv to meet the requirements of the employers they’re working with.

That said you should give them something decent to work with so keep it waffle free.