Some employers will seek less seasoned professional because they perceive older professionals as being inflexible or too expensive. It is critical that you prepare your application and resume materials in such a manner as to reduce the possibility that you will be screened out as ‘over-trained.’

There are several tricks of the trade that we use to overcome age discrimination. These methods subtly allow you to show yourself as a competent professional without drawing attention to how long you have been in the workforce.

High School or College Graduation Dates – If you graduated more than 5 years ago, you will generally want to leave your graduation date off of your resume. Every hiring manager is guilty of looking for clues as to the age of a candidate. One of the first places that is searched is your education section. Listing your high school graduation date is just as good as providing your date of birth. Graduation dates are useful for individuals who are recent graduates, but should be used with caution for everyone else.

Years of Experience – In most cases, you should be listing experience held within the past 10 years. If you are performing at a managerial level, 15 years of professional experience is usually substantial. Experience that is older than these benchmarks should, in most cases, remain absent from your resume or should be listed without employment dates. (Such listings are generally added in an alternative format from your primary experience. Headings like “Other Work Experience” or “Other Positions Held” can sometimes be used if a compelling reason exists to add these positions to your resume.) There are exceptions to this rule for individuals who are reentering the workforce after a period away.

Strive to list only highly-relevant material in your resume. Including positions held 20 years ago in high school really does not help move your resume to the interview stage of the hiring process. The space on your resume is very valuable. Make it work for you, not against you!

Tricks of the Trade is a monthly newsletter provided by OMP Consulting Group LLC. The professionals at OMPCG provide the highest quality organization, management, and productivity consultation services. We give our clients full attention, and seek to create amazing application materials and tools that can help you locate meaningful employment. Call us at (703) 424-6573 for a free consultation.