Just curious. Does any of you with several degrees worry about being over-qualified? I see some very long credentials on here.
Another question: Is it unethical to NOT list certain degrees to avoid appearing overqualified for a job?
On my recent job hunt I dropped the master's from my resume initially due to not getting a response on the positions I was applying for, and once I only listed the bachelor's interested picked right up. Incidentally, the job I'm currently in preferred an advanced degree and I think it made a difference. Does the work really require it? No. But in this job market employers can make crazy requests and usually get them filled to some capacity.
During my campaigning, a Harvard graduate came to work for FREE because she couldn't find a job. She said what she found in the job market is that employers see "Harvard" and instantly assume her expectations are too high for their budget. She said her fellow grads were having the same problem. So how about that? Harvard grads can't get jobs today.
I'd probably make that same judgement. Though I would imagine that most Harvard students don't have significant student loans to pay back.
I list mine out entirely, I suppose if I was on hard times and would accept any job I would likely remove some of my education to not look over qualified. Coming out of grad school I applied for some positions where I felt like the advanced degree hurt me, but I never removed it because then I would have a two year gap in unemployment to explain. I think anytime you apply for a job you should tailor your resume to the position. I actually have a four page resume that I use as a template and when I apply for something I edit that down significantly, typically to two pages, but can't recall ever removing any of my education.
Here's my take: There's nothing wrong with tailoring a resume as long as everything on it is true. So if you leave off a degree that's not a big deal. However, every corporation that I've ever worked for also requires you to complete a standard application form. On that form they routinely ask you to list ALL of your academic credentials along with ALL of your employment history and then at the end you have to sign a statement saying that it's ALL true under penalty of dismissal. You can go all the way through the interview process without being required to complete this form but sooner or later you're going to have to tell them all about everything. Maybe at that point the person who's hiring you won't even read the application but maybe they will. If you leave something out initially then you'd better be prepared to explain why and that explanation might need to include something about why you would deliberately mislead your employer. Some employers won't care but some will.
Not that I hire at particularly high levels, but if an applicant's resume heading said "Education Summary" or the like I would not be offended to find later that they had only included the most relevant qualifications. Phillip
Nice to hear. I might have to drop my master's on certain applications with the way the job market is going and with prospects dwindling. (EPHING UNEMPLOYMENT RATE RAISED AGAIN!)
I can't imagine how. The application is to list your qualifications. If something isn't a qualification, you should leave it off. Simple. In the case of Kizmet's employer, you'd have to list everything. But, what's "all" anyway? Only degrees? Certs? CE? Non-credit courses? Professional Development? I think you should use judegment.
It raised because more people entered the job market last month, i.e. People who previously weren't working but weren't actively seeking employment began looking again. If an unemployed person isn't actively seeking employment they aren't included in unemployment statistics. The good news is we added 39,000 jobs, which is still much lower than what was projected. But companies tend to slack off onjiring during Nov.-Dec. so I wasn't shocked at the limited growth in new jobs.
How many jobs need to be added to keep up with new people entering the workforce? I thought companies hired more during the holidays then shaved off the temporary workforce in January.
In retail your observation is true, but even retailers laid off last month. Most companies don't make new hires late in the year because employees are on vacation, scheduling interviews can be tough because people travel. It will pick up in the new year. In regards to your first question, you would have to know how many people began looking for work again before you could calculate that accurately, but it appears that we would have needed to add roughly 300,000 jobs last month just to keep have the rate stay at 9.6 because of the new entrants.
From what I'm reading about this, it seems many economists predicted that the 9.6 rate would hold rather than increase. This is all pretty depressing any way you slice it for those looking for work.
I've been to recruiting events on campus where HR reps flat-out told us that they will not hire anyone with a PhD because they felt they would "want too much money" or "be too theoretical." For that reason, unless I'm applying for a job that requires one, I don't list it.
I have not changed jobs in 10 years but I would not list all my education in my resume. I have a "teaching" resume and another resume template. If I were to look for a job (which I hope I never will) I will leave off the PhD, my MBA and BS from CCU, and my AA from UoP. The resume would have more of a "reasonable" look and be tailored for the position I am applying for.
Exactly. It's shocking, but most people away from our forum only have (hang on) one degree- if they even have a full degree at all; whereas most of us have ...er....well, uh, let's just say more than one (or 9) colleges /degrees. HERE, you don't have to explain why on earth you'd EVER have TWO (or six) degrees- duh. Around these parts, that's street cred baby. I gotta say, The Others find it kinda strange to always be enrolled somewhere taking something. lol Which is why I'm staying here forever....anyway.... Yeah, just list what's relevant. <-- is about to break 250 undergrad credits, and THAT, I usually keep to myself.
Yeah, people snicker when I mention having compiled over 100 credits at a community college. I've stopped listing all of the schools I've attended, which at this point totals 8.
I took my graduate degree off of my resume. Got a job with General Dynamics without it. I also had an interview for a Fed IT job where they remarked "You have a lot of education". I don't list my second AA nor my second BA on my resume so I wonder why they made that remark. In the federal arena I rarely meet anyone with numerous degrees. It's all experience, being in the right place, and who you know. Anyway, being over-qualified is certainly a concern. I think that employers assume that you will move away quickly if you have more education than is required for the job.
