How much work experience should I mention
Currently I am working as Senior Software Engineer at Microsoft for the past 2 years and looking for change. I have close to 10 years of work experience.
In that period I have worked in 5 companies (including Microsoft).
In the resume, should I mention my entire work experience of 5 years or should I mention only my latest work experience of last 5-6 years (last 2-3 companies) since only the latest experience might be relevant to the companies?
Discussion
(2 comments)- 019 days agoTech Lead/Manager at Meta, Pinterest, Kosei
What are the 5 companies you've worked at? If there's an older company that is well-recognized, I'd include it, even if it was a while ago.
As I mention in the video about Recruiter Rejection Reasons, pedigree matters a lot. So working on a very strong team or company will help you a lot. Microsoft is already a famous brand, but having multiple can only help you.
Two things you want to avoid:
- Appearing like a job hopper. So if you have multiple stints that were < 1 year, I'd omit them (show a max of 1 job where you were there for less than a year).
- An appearance of stagnation. If you have 3 jobs in a row where you were mid-level, it may appear that you aren't growing fast enough.
So the answer to your question is, it depends, but I probably would prioritize the more recent companies where you did more impressive work.
The resume is the most important document where recruiters and hiring managers will make a snap judgment about you, so get it reviewed by someone after you create it. Make sure you go through Get More Interviews: Write A Stellar Resume As A Software Engineer.
- 019 days agoSenior Software Engineer [OP]Microsoft
Thanks for your reply Rahul. I will also go through the resources that you shared.
My 5 companies are as follows (in order of recency)-
Microsoft - 2 years
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Expedia - 1 year 8 month
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Amazon - 1 year 5 month
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DEShaw - 2 years 1 month
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Indian e-commerce company - 3 years.
I have had 5 companies in 10 years. My primary concern is that by adding all 5 companies - will I appear as a Job hopper? In the past, I have also been asked by few hiring managers that they see a pattern of (2 years) in my work-experience.
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