RESUMES: 1 Page or 2?

A flurry of questions I get asked often (usually in one breath) is, “How many pages should my résumé be?
Shouldn’t I stick to one? Won’t employers put pass my résumé over if it is more than one page?”

There used to be a time not so long ago when a one-page résumé was the only way you would get noticed by a
hiring manager. The general thought was that the employer didn’t have enough time to look to the next page. So, the goal was get all of your relevant information on one-page—while trying to create a résumé that would “Wow!” the employer—a not-so-easy feat.

What changed things? Employers and hiring managers started to realize that they were overlooking possible
“perfect” candidates. In the movement to squeeze all relevant information onto one-page, candidates were leaving out some of their best accomplishments and strengths that simply wouldn’t fit onto one page. They weren’t getting noticed and they weren’t getting hired.

At the same time, some hiring managers were having a difficult time finding the right fit for open positions.
Candidates who they had thought met all the qualifications were lacking strengths in other areas necessary for the role.

Very slowly, the “rules” started to change and people were hesitantly adding a second page to their résumés,
with great results. They were getting hired!

So, when is the right time to add a second or third page? When the situation warrants it. I might say, for
example, that a college student might want to stick to one page. However, I’ve written some résumés for students and new graduates that had phenomenal experience in college, i.e. education abroad, involvement in campus groups, internship projects, community outreach, etc. If it is relevant to the job you are trying to get, add it to the résumé! It would be a good idea to go over the information you want to add and really streamline it. Make sure it is relevant to the job you want.

My professional and executive clients almost always have more than one page. In our hard-working society, people are doing more, working more, accomplishing more. There is always enough value-added experience to warrant a second page, even a third. Leaving out information for the sake of page amounts would be a mistake.