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I submitted my 9 page resume (I have 15 yrs exp) to Amazon.com, and have been scheduled for my 1st phone screen with them.

I've been wanting to convert my resume into 2 pages, however since I already got my foot in the door I feel like I should focus my time on preparing for the interview, instead of spending hours writing the 2 pages resume and giving that to the Amazon recruiter.

Is it worth redoing a very long resume after I've already gotten an interview?

Rachel
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FatherFigure
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    You have 1.5 pages of resume for every year of employment? You are either are the most awesome person ever or your resume is waaaay too long. – enderland Apr 15 '13 at 00:10
  • 9 pages = not summarized. – Kermit Apr 15 '13 at 02:49
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    I don't want to be 'that guy' but your experience from 15 years ago is probably not as relevant or important as what you have been doing in the last 2-3 years. It is supposed to be a summary of your skills and experience, not a canonical index of all work over your lifetime –  Apr 15 '13 at 09:50
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    I don't think this is a duplicate of Why is a one to two page résumé recommended?, although that is a very related question. I've edited the question slightly to try and focus on the different question more, and am voting to reopen it :) – Rachel Apr 15 '13 at 13:53
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    And since you only have an interview and don't have the job, I think the answer is obvious. Many hiring officals thow out any resume that long or only read the first two pages. You are doing yourself a disservice with a 9 page resume. I have 2 page resume and over 30 years of experience. It can and should be done. I would certainly spend more time prepping for the interview, but would also take the time to fix the poor resume presentation. – HLGEM Apr 15 '13 at 14:21
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    Another related question that might be worth checking out is How can I reduce the size of a long resume without hiding all my skills and experience? – Rachel Apr 15 '13 at 14:38
  • While 9 pages is way too long, 3-4 page resumes seem to be pretty normal for most software developers nowadays. On the glass half-full side, your resume will certainly get noticed and talked about at being 9 pages long. – Dunk Apr 15 '13 at 21:48
  • Pick two: Prepare for the interview. Update your CV. Debate the question on StackOverflow. – parasietje Aug 02 '16 at 10:21

3 Answers3

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A nine page resume is a sure fire way of annoying your interviewers, even if they do not mind the extra time they must put in.

Most importantly, having a nine page resume shows a total inability to distill information for presentation and lack of effective written communication, which is perhaps one of the most useful non-technical skill.

For the other, it shows a lack of familiarity with industry norms and common sense.

Remember， you are not putting together a legal factum, but a marketing document, only include the recent, relevant, impressive cream-of-the-crops, and you will be much better off.

gnat
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Desmond Zhou
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They will much prefer the 2 page version compared to the 9 page one, and it also shows your ability to summarize and present yourself well. Having said that, if you only have a limited amount of time, and if you still have lots of preparation for the interview then you might just want to do a quick summary for the 9 page interview instead, because it can take a lot of time to compress all that information (remember it is not necessary easier to write less). Think about how much time you have to spare and where you should put your effort into.

Michael Lai
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  • Prepare for the interview question: "Can you summarize your work experience for us?", which you will inevitably get with a 9-page CV. – parasietje Aug 02 '16 at 10:22
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Go through the excercise of updating your resume and focus on tailoring it to this job. Many interviewers will want you to discuss previous projects that are relavent or one you're most proud of, etc. You may have a skill they require, but you haven't used in a long time. Basically, refresh your memory.

I wouldn't spend all your time on it, but it will be helpful in the future.