You forgot to mention the drink problem ;-)

I'll let them figure that one out after they hire me. ;)

I would offer some constructive criticism but honestly, I just don't think it's going to get through to you ;P

(it sounds good to me!)

It should definitely fit on one page, but I also think you should include your paralegal experience. So knock the font size down a notch (no smaller than 10 point) and increase the margins until it fits.

Don't say "longterm" paralegal. Just say "paralegal" and "contract paralegal."

Separate the firm names with semi-colons, not commas. When you are listing things that contain commas in them (like Sidley, Austin, Brown & Wood), they should be separated by semi-colons to avoid confusion.

Managed busy telephones and made judgment calls about whether to interrupt
a partner on the other line.

I would leave that out or rephrase it.

Performed heavy document production in preparation for a meeting of the
Board of Directors.

You have that listed twice.

Also, I think the format is odd in that your experience isn't listed below the relevant firm in which you attained the experience (for example, if I were a potential employer, I'd like to know which Bd. of Directors you're referring to), but maybe that's how some people do it. Also, I'd really want to know how long you worked at each of the listed firms and the dates, in order to assess whether there are large gaps in your employement history. I recommend you google "sample resumes" to see a whole bunch of them.

Objective: to obtain a position in the legal or financial industries

"Industry" should be singular.

My $.02 cents, as a former paralegal/current lawyer/former jobseeker. YMMV.

I personally am not a big fan of the "objective" line on resumes, unless it is really, really specifically tailored to the industry or job position. Yours is not, and I don't know that I've ever seen one that says anything that doesn't boil down to "I want to get a job". I would remove that part.

Objective: to obtain a position in the legal or financial industries

Also, I'd say "attain," I think, not "obtain."

Yeah, and I agree with TPS. That will also make it easier to fit it all on one page.

Nthing ditch the objective. I don't know how those things ever managed to catch on.

I would split up the experience block, either by firm or by skillset.

Also, I think the format is odd in that your experience isn't listed below the relevant firm in which you attained the experience (for example, if I were a potential employer, I'd like to know which Bd. of Directors you're referring to), but maybe that's how some people do it. Also, I'd really want to know how long you worked at each of the listed firms and the dates, in order to assess whether there are large gaps in your employement history.

Yeah, that's the classic chronological format, which most employers prefer. But I think that chron resumes highlight the temporary nature of my work history -- three months here, six months there -- and for that reason, aren't particularly helpful.

In other words, yes, I know that many employers won't like this format. But they definitely won't like my chron resume.

I'll post it on google docs in a few minutes, just to show you what I mean.

Don't say "longterm" paralegal. Just say "paralegal" and "contract paralegal."

Separate the firm names with semi-colons, not commas.

Got it.

You have that listed twice.

Thanks. I'll delete it.

I would leave that out or rephrase it.

Yeah, the phrasing is a little awkward. I'll change it.

I personally am not a big fan of the "objective" line on resumes, unless it is really, really specifically tailored to the industry or job position.

Yeah, it's redundant. Objective: "to get a job." Well, of course you want to get a job. Otherwise, why would you be sending a resume? Good point. Deleting that one.


I would split up the experience block, either by firm or by skillset.

That's a good idea. I'll try that in the next draft.

Thanks, guys!

Just to show you what I mean,

Here is a copy of my resume in the traditional chron format.

It should definitely fit on one page

Do all of you think this is still important? I certainly adhered to that until I turned 30, but at this point, it's impossible. It's rare in my field to have a single-pager from an experienced candidate for a full-time museum position. We want to see their entire work history in the field, and it usually won't fit on one page after you've been around 10 years or so.

I agree that the objective line is usually unecessary.

Also, did you see this "Give your resume a facelift" link that someone here recently posted?

Jason - I'm a legal recruiter. I'll help you as much or as little as you would like. Email me at lolagrayson@gmail.com

I'm at a firm now but I spent five years in an agency before going in-house. Anyway, I have some suggestions. The first being a chronological resume but not listing the firms independently.

i.e., Independent Contractor - Legal Secretary (Dates)
Assignments include:

Bullet duties.

We always want bullets. No one wants to read block paragraphs and if we don't want to take the time to read it. We don't.

I really don't think the functional does you justice - it looks blocky and monolithic and is very hard to scan for major points.

I suggest a combination (which is what I use) -- At the top, list "highlights of qualifications" or just "highlights" and bullet-point 5 or 6 items that are your most valuable skills.

Then, underneath that, put your "experience" section in reverse chronological order.

That shows that you have identified your skills and know what you have to offer, while the work history provides details. To be quite honest, if I were evaluating the functional examples you gave, I'd think they looked a little shady. Where the heck did this guy work?

I know you're worried about the temp thing, but it's something to be upfront about and spin as a positive. Tell 'em you were writing a book or something (maybe you were) and preferred the flexibility...there must be some good ways to spin it. Have you posted an AskMe about the challenge of marketing yourself as a temp who wants permanent work? I bet you'd get some great answers. A lot of people have been/are in that position.

Never mind - listen to Lola G!

Here's the thing. Your resume in chrono is not going to get you in a door.

The why is this:

Why haven't you been hired on permanently? Most temp jobs are temp to perm - you haven't seemed to translate these opportunities into a perm gig. Assumptions will be made.

In the event these weren't temp to perm and you were filling in - add that.

Otherwise, you come off as "job hoppy". No one likes hiring. No one likes hiring a person whose work history indicates that they will be hiring again in six months.

Also, most firms these days hire exclusively through agencies. The necessary evil. If you want perm, you need to find a perm recruiter who will work with you. Find a good one who is not only connected but is going to plead your case.

Lastly, never underestimate the value of a strongly worded email or cover letter.

Do all of you think this is still important?

Well, when I was looking for a job last year, I asked my former career services counselor at my former law school to review my resume, and she told me that under no circumstances should it be more than one page long at that point (one year out of law school) in my career. I asked her if that was still the case even though I had a whole career as a paralegal prior to law school (I started law school at age 27), unlike many of the other grads who had little job experience. She said yes. So, that's what I went by. But I don't know at what point in one's career it becomes okay to extend it to two pages, or if it makes a difference what the career is. Lola can probably say more about this.

I can see how your pre-law-degree experience wouldn't belong on a law resume, sort of. But I do think there definitely comes a career point, in most fields, where 2 pages is normal and expected. And then academic CVs -- we get some of those, and yeesh. There's no limit.

But I do think there definitely comes a career point, in most fields, where 2 pages is normal and expected.

I have definitely heard that. And I ended up pushing mine out to two pages because I wanted to include my published books and articles and such, since I was looking for writing jobs; at this point it's kind of a weird hybrid between a resume and a CV. I also have a shorter one I can use, but I noticed that I got more attention from the types of places I wanted to work at with the two-pager.

(And now that I'm in the midst of a career shift, I'm a bit stuck about what to do with any of it. Sigh. That's tonight's project.)

Also, did you see this "Give your resume a facelift" link that someone here recently posted?

Yes. Essexjan e-mailed it to me yesterday. Thanks for the heads-up.

Jason - I'm a legal recruiter. I'll help you as much or as little as you would like. Email me at lolagrayson@gmail.com

Awesome! Thank you very much. I will definitely e-mail you.

To be quite honest, if I were evaluating the functional examples you gave, I'd think they looked a little shady. Where the heck did this guy work?

So if I try to de-emphasize the choppy work history, it looks shady. But if I am honest about this choppy work history:

Your resume in chrono is not going to get you in a door.

The why is this:

Why haven't you been hired on permanently? Most temp jobs are temp to perm - you haven't seemed to translate these opportunities into a perm gig. Assumptions will be made.

In the event these weren't temp to perm and you were filling in - add that.

Otherwise, you come off as "job hoppy". No one likes hiring. No one likes hiring a person whose work history indicates that they will be hiring again in six months.


So there really isn't much I can do to improve my current resume. The only way I'm going to get in the door is through a connection or a good recruiter.

Thanks, everyone.

I have 8 professional positions over 23 years, and yes, I keep my resume to one page, especially if sending hardcopies.

I like the traditional chrono format best, Jason. In the other versions, the "EXPERIENCE" comes across as the minutiae of day-to-day office work instead of a list of accomplishments, starting with the first one: "Improvised effective solutions to word processing and administrative problems by myself in absence of support network." Okay, so you had a bad day with IT and still got the job done. That's a good talking point for an interview, but I don't think it should be Number 1 in your Experience list. Even if you feel that is important to put in, I would prioritize the Experience list to put the most impressive stuff at the top because, after all, only the first 3-4 bullets will be read before a potential hiring manager makes a decision on you. For instance, "Provided administrative and word processing support for two senior attorneys in the Office of the Corporate Secretary." sounds more like a Number 1 to me.

Bear in mind that I am an engineer, and what comes across to me as minutiae may be important to lawyers... I dunno.

Here's another one: "Managed busy telephones and made judgment calls about whether to interrupt a partner on the other line." I think this could be more impressively worded as "Managed and independently prioritized incoming call traffic to maximize effectiveness of partners' time resources." Or some such.

I think the overall picture is one of someone who can handle the high pressure and long hours of a law office, but it comes across as too many trees and not enough forest.

Also, to address a previous comment: I had a job-hoppy period early in my career. So-called "permanent" positions lasted three years, three years, two years, two years, six months, nine months. The trend wasn't good. Yet, as it worked out, the next position lasted 10+ years. One thing you may consider to minimize the job-hoppy-ness is, if you used the same temp agency for several positions in a row, put that company as your employer, list the firms you were placed with, then summarize the duties you performed over that period of time:

MetaChat Temporary Services 12/05-08/07
Legal Secretarial services for:
. Kramer, Levin, Naftalis & Frankel
. Jenner & Block
. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
. New York Life Insurance

(and then tell what you did for all of them in one summary)

That way, you look like a guy that was easily placed by MetaChat temps when you needed to be.

"Improvised effective solutions to word processing and administrative problems by myself in absence of support network." Okay, so you had a bad day with IT and still got the job done.

Hmmm . . . well, the thing is, I was on my own on the night shift and had to improvise solutions a lot of the time. It wasn't just one bad day. BUT if it is coming across as a one-off, just a single "bad day" then I do need to rewrite that.


Even if you feel that is important to put in, I would prioritize the Experience list to put the most impressive stuff at the top because, after all, only the first 3-4 bullets will be read before a potential hiring manager makes a decision on you.

VERY good point. I forgot the ten second rule and tried to cram in as much as I could. Thank you very much.

I think this could be more impressively worded as "Managed and independently prioritized incoming call traffic to maximize effectiveness of partners' time resources."

Beautiful! Will do.

One thing you may consider to minimize the job-hoppy-ness is, if you used the same temp agency for several positions in a row, put that company as your employer, list the firms you were placed with, then summarize the duties you performed over that period of time:

That way, you look like a guy that was easily placed by MetaChat temps when you needed to be.

I think I will go with that because . . . well, the temp background is going to come out at some point anyway, so I might as well be up-front about it and present it in a way that minimizes the appearance of job-hopping. And I was, in fact, easily placed. When an assignment ended, my agency usually had another assignment waiting for me by the next business day.

Thank you very much, Doohickie! Lots of good advice here.

(And thanks again to everyone who helped me!)

if you used the same temp agency for several positions in a row, put that company as your employer..

I think that is an elegant solution that will get you the best case result.

Boy am I glad you took my comments in the right spirit. I thought maybe I was a little abrupt and maybe would have turned you off, Jason. I think you have a lot to offer, and with a little polishing of the resume you'll have no problem landing a good position.

Go Jason! :-)

Boy am I glad you took my comments in the right spirit. I thought maybe I was a little abrupt and maybe would have turned you off, Jason.

No, no, no. Not at all. You weren't abrupt.

Thanks for the advice and encouragement.