How to Age-Proof Your Resume: 15 Top Tips

7 min read. Updated on February 01, 2019

Jen David (TR)

15 tips to highlight your skills, not your age

Searching for a new job is challenging, regardless of age. However, if you’re 55 or older, you may face some additional hurdles. According to a study by AARP, 76% 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’re concerned about facing bias during the job search, don't panic. There are many things you can do to type: entry-hyperlink id: h5fwNOMo2pPpLPPF0opDl and experience you've earned during your career. While it goes without saying that your age and date of birth have no place on a resume, there are plenty of other tips and tricks to get the recruiter on your side.

In this article, we share how to age-proof your resume to help you stand out from the competition and land the right job.

1. Focus on your recent experience

The further along you are in your career, the less relevant your earlier work experience becomes. Employers care most about your recent work, not your experience from 15 or more years ago. Give more detail about the positions you've held in the past 10–15 years that are related to your current job search and say less about your earliest jobs.

2. Eliminate older dates

Remove the dates related to work experience, education, and certifications if they fall outside the 15-year window. Similarly, while employers care about your academic qualifications, they don’t need to know how long ago you earned them.

You may choose to remove some roles entirely! There’s no obligation to include details that don’t serve your cause, so go right ahead and delete that babysitting you did in the eighties.

3. Limit your resume to two pages

Most 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 impression, it's important to type: entry-hyperlink id: 6A6Q4Y1jKRJj2Sid9NhpWC. Focus on using this space to highlight your recent work experience and accomplishments that best match your career goals.

4. Avoid the “jack-of-all-trades” approach

Although you may have held numerous roles throughout your career, your resume shouldn't be a laundry list of everything you have ever done. Focus on tailoring your resume's content to support your current career objective, rather than providing a generalized summary of your entire work history.

5. Optimize your resume with keywords

To improve your resume's chances of being found in a recruiter’s database of resumes, make sure your document includes type: entry-hyperlink id: 3GsEbHeDk1Hz19r5L8CpTL. If a word or phrase repeatedly shows up in the job listings you're interested in, incorporate these terms into your resume.

6. Upgrade your email address

Older workers are sometimes seen as lacking technical savvy. Don't 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 – but not your year of birth!

7. List your mobile phone number

If you're still listing your landline on your resume, it's time to mobilize your contact information. Only list your cell phone number on your resume, so you can control the voicemail message and who answers important recruiter calls.

8. Join the LinkedIn bandwagon

LinkedIn is a valuable platform for connecting with others in your industry and uncovering new job opportunities. It's also an important place to advertise your candidacy to prospective employers. If you've avoided using the platform in the past, now's the time to create a type: entry-hyperlink id: 29pPjI5ogL8itOgWPaEMqh that supports your career goals.

The tips in this article apply to your LinkedIn profile as well – the guidelines for how to age-proof your resume and LinkedIn profile are basically the same. The only difference is that you may find that LinkedIn tries to force you to add certain dates. You’ll need to take a call on whether you’re better adding the dates or eliminating the information entirely.

9. Showcase your technical proficiencies

The fact that you know how to use Microsoft 365 is no longer noteworthy (unless your role requires advanced knowledge of Excel). Show employers that you've kept up with the latest tools and platforms related to your field.

If you're in a non-technical profession, create a small section toward the bottom of your resume that lists these proficiencies. If you realize there's a skill or tool outside your wheelhouse that's routinely appearing in the job adverts you're targeting, check out sites such as edX, Coursera, and SkillShare to find free or low-cost online courses.

10. Add one space after each sentence

Nothing 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. 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. Unless you’re typing on an actual typewriter, you should place only one space after a period.

11. Customize each online application

Small tweaks to the content of your resume can make a big difference in determining how far your application progresses. Before you submit another online application, re-evaluate your resume based on the job posting. Then, make small edits to type: entry-hyperlink id: 2hUVWM6owg1AuaLMjRjAGi so that it clearly reflects your qualifications for this specific role.

12. Ditch the objective statement

Avoid using a run-of-the-mill objective statement that's full of fluff and focuses solely on your own wants. Instead, replace it with your “elevator pitch.” In a brief paragraph, explain what you're great at, what you specialize in, and how you can provide value to a prospective employer. In other words, summarize your suitability.

13. Aim for visual balance

If 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 skills

It's not enough to simply state that you're a great manager or possess strong 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 you've used this ability to produce results.

15. Focus on achievements, not tasks

At this point in your career, recruiters are less concerned with the tasks you've completed and more interested in what you've 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 you've achieved and the major contributions you've made that have benefited the organization.

By bullet pointing these details, you're drawing readers' eyes to the information they care most about: your qualifications for the role. Whenever possible, quantify your accomplishments to provide additional context for the recruiter.

Use your age-neutral resume to land your next interview!

Now that you know how to age-proof your resume, you’re all set to submit an application for your ideal role. Remember, a strong resume is as much about what you leave out as what you add in.

Do you need help age-proofing your resume for the job search? Receive a free expert resume review by sending your resume to our experts today.

A version of this article, written by Amanda Augustine, was originally published on AARP.org. It has been updated by Jen David.