15 Tips to Help Older Job Seekers Age-Proof Their Resumes

15 Tips to Help Older Job Seekers Age-Proof Their Resumes How to Age-Proof Your Resume15 tips to help older job seekers highlight their skills, not their ages.Searching for a new job is challenging, regardless of how old you are. However, if you are 50 or older, you may face some additional hurdles.According to a recent study by AARP, 76 percent of older workers blame age discrimination for their lack of confidence in finding a new job. Their concern is justified. Government data shows that age 55-plus job seekers typically face substantially longer periods of unemployment compared with those job seekers between 20 and 24.If you are concerned about facing bias during the job search, dont panic. There are many things you can do to showcase the skills and experience youve earned during your career. The following tips will help you age-proof your resume to help you stand out from the competition and land the right job.1. Focus on your recent experienceThe further along you are in your c areer, the less relevant your earlier work experience becomes. Employers care most about your recent work that matters for the roles theyre filling, not your experience from 15 or mora years ago. As a result, give mora detail about the positions youve held in the past 1015 years that are related to your current job search and say less about your earliest jobs.2. Eliminate older datesRemove the dates related to work experience, education, and certifications if they fall outside the 15-year window. While you may want to consolidate older work experience in a separate section or a Career Note, including the dates of employment is unnecessary. Similarly, its important to share your credentials on your resume, but the employer doesnt need to know you earned your MBA 17 years ago.3. Limit your resume to two pagesMost recruiters spend less than 10 seconds reviewing a resume before deciding if the candidate should receive further consideration. With so little time to make the right impressi on, its important to streamline your resume to two pages. Focus on using this space to highlight your recent work experience and accomplishments that best match your current career goals.4. Avoid the jack-of-all-trades approachAlthough you may have held numerous roles throughout your career, your resume shouldnt be a laundry list of everything you have done. Focus on tailoring your resumes content to support your current career objective, rather than providing a generalized summary of your entire work history.5. Optimize your resume with keywordsSeventy-five percent of all verbunden applications will never be seen by human eyes thanks to the hiring bots, which are software programs known as an applicant tracking ordnungsprinzip (ATS). Their job is to collect, scan, and rank an employers inbound applications. To improve your resumes chances of making it past this digital gatekeeper and on to a human for review, make sure your document includes the appropriate keywords. If a word or p hrase repeatedly shows up in the job listings youre interested in, incorporate these terms into your resume.6. Upgrade your email addressOlder workers sometimes are seen as lacking technical savvy. Dont give employers a reason to believe you might fit this stereotype. Ditch your old AOL or Hotmail email account for a free, professional-looking Gmail address that incorporates your name.7. List your mobile phone numberIf youre still listing your landline on your resume, its time to mobilize your contact information. Only list your cell phone number on your resume so you can control the voicemail message, who answers important phone calls from recruiters, and when.8. Join the LinkedIn bandwagonLinkedIn is a valuable platform for connecting with others in your industry and uncovering new job opportunities. Its also an important place to advertise your candidacy to prospective employers. In fact, a study by recruiting software provider Jobvite found that 93 percent of employers admit to reviewing candidates social network profiles regardless of whether the candidates provided that information.If youve avoided using LinkedIn in the past, nows the time to create a profile that supports your career goals. Then, customize your LinkedIn profile URL and add it to the top of your resume to ensure recruiters find the right profile for you.9. Showcase your technical proficienciesThe fact that you know how to use Microsoft Office is no longer noteworthy (unless your role requires advanced knowledge of Excel). Show employers that youve kept up with the latest tools and platforms related to your field. If youre in a non-technical profession, create a small section toward the bottom of your resume that lists these proficiencies. If you realize theres a skill or tool outside your wheelhouse thats routinely appearing in the job descriptions youre targeting, check out sites such as edX, Coursera, and SkillShare to find free or low-cost online courses.10. Add one space after each sentenceNothing screams over-40 like two spaces after a period. The rule of two spaces after each sentence originated back when we used typewriters for regular communication. A typewriter used monospaced typesetting, where every character on the keyboard is given the same amount of space on the paper. The extra space was needed between sentences to make it easier to see the start of a new sentence. However, with the advent of the digital age, this practice is no longer necessary. In fact, it will flag you as an older and less tech-savvy applicant in the process. Unless you are typing on an actual typewriter, you should place only one space after a period.11. Customize each online applicationSmall tweaks to the content of your resume can make a big difference in determining whether your online application reaches a human being for review. Before you submit another online application, re-evaluate your resume based on the job posting. Then, make small edits to customize your resume so that it clearly reflects your qualifications for this specific role.12. Ditch the objective statementAvoid using a run-of-the-mill objective statement thats full of fluff and focuses solely on your wants and needs. Instead, replace it with your elevator pitch. In a brief paragraph, known as a professional summary or executive summary, explain what youre great at, most interested in, and how you can provide value to a prospective employer. In other words, summarize your job goals and qualifications for the reader.13. Aim for visual balanceIf content is king in a resume, then design is queen. How your information is formatted is just as important as the information itself. Focus on leveraging a combination of short blurbs and bullet points to make it easy for the reader to quickly scan your resume and find the most important details that support your candidacy.14. Validate your skillsIts not enough to simply state that youre a great manager or possess a high financial acumen. You need to back up these claims by providing a specific example, figure, or case study in your work experience or education section that illustrates how youve used this ability to produce results.15. Focus on achievements, not tasksAt this point in your career, recruiters are less concerned with the tasks youve completed and more interested in learning what youve accomplished. Separate each job under your work history into a short blurb that describes your role and responsibilities. Then, add a set of bullet points to describe the results youve achieved and the major contributions youve made that have benefited the organization. By bulleting these details, youre drawing readers eyes to the information they care most about your qualifications. Whenever possible, quantify your accomplishments to provide additional context for the recruiter.Do you need help age-proofing your resume for the job search? Receive a free expert resume review today.Editors Note A version of this article was origina lly published on AARP.org.Recommended ReadingHow Older Workers Can Compete (and Win) in Todays Job Market6 Signs of Ageism in the Workplace and How to Best Handle ItHow We Helped This Professional Who welches Stuck In His Toxic JobRelated Articles