Long time out of work

[Mikebits]

Advice needed here. I have been out of industry for over 10 yrs. Early retirement you might say. I spent 3 yrs of that time going to school, but money situation now requires me to get back to the 9 to 5 job thing.

What I would like to know is, how do I explain this big time gap in a resume? How can I still make myself marketable?

What sort of resume should I make. A chronological one seems to show the big time gap, so should I take a different approach on my resume?

Thanks

This is my current resume. I have been told it sucks. so any advice here would be good. I tried to keep it short and to 1 page.

Summary of experience
Engineering/production skills

· Worked on projects ranging from high level to low level design. Worked closely with purchasing and production to produce a commercial product. Design projects include: CDMA PCS RF driver module, CDMA base station site alarm monitoring, PCM bus audio monitoring equipment, and Xilinx FPGA to PCI bus design used in ASIC emulation.
· Worked as sustaining engineer, overseeing stable production designs, and implementing design changes to meet part obsolescence over production lifecycle.
· Performed tasks in all phases of product manufacturing including production test technician, engineering technician, and design engineer. This has allowed a broad concept of product development to production.

Communication skills

· Authored science articles for Biology-online.org.
· Completed four semesters of college level composition and journalism classes
· Currently finalizing geology oriented website **broken link removed**.

Design tools/computer skills

· Mentor and Viewlogic design packages
· PSPICE analog simulation
· Synopsis digital simulation
· Standard office tools including: MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
· Very proficient in using Adobe Photoshop, and some knowledge of 3D design software such as Rhino 3D.

Experience
Southwestern College Undergrad student, current GPA 3.8 (2006 to present).
XYZ Inc. Design Engineer (1993 – 2000).
XYZ Inc. Engineering Technician (1990 – 1993)
Some Corporation. Engineering Technician (1985 – 1990)
U.S. Navy. Shipboard Electronic Technician (1979 – 1985)

 

[dknguyen]

I think you're supposed to list accomplishments more than you are supposed to list duties and skills. It's a can be a pain though. I'm hunting for a graduate jobs myself so...

You're supposed to have enough detail, but not too much. I would say you are a litte bit on the "not enough" end.

 

[Mikebits]

Good input. You are right, on the light side, it is hard to keep a 1 page resume and yet convey details.

Thanks

 

[jpanhalt]

I was in academics where Curriculum Vitae are standard instead of resumes, but I have seem some resumes. Are you allowed additional pages (like an executive summary plus a complete description)? Maybe prepare a CV and a resume?

Otherwise, my first impression was like dknguyen's -- I wanted to see more. Specifically, when I saw that someone worked on or with something, I always asked during the interview what it was and what their part was in the project. Be sure you had a significant part to play before listing the item.

Second, you list publications. In a CV, it would be mandatory to give the complete citation for each. Maybe in a resume, you can give at least 3, or attach another a complete list. Community activities, teaching, etc. can also be important to include.

As for the gap and your apparent age, there is no getting around those facts. The more laws that are made to prevent discrimination, the better such discrimination gets hidden or disguised by those who want to do it. On the other hand, a potential employer who wants to give helpful advice is prevented from doing so by the same laws. My advice is to not hide the gap. It will come out anyway. Be prepared and honest, but diplomatic. You might say you were burnt out or you got laid off for business reasons, took time to broaden yourself, and have now reapplied yourself (to wit your current studies) with even more resolve and vigor. Don't overdo it and don't make it sound like you are going back to work only because you need the money. There is a long list on no-no's. Just use common sense. Be careful if your reason for the gap was something personal (e.g., divorce). Everyone faces similar disruptions and problems. However, if it was something more unique, like a child with cancer, then you might indicate the gap was due in part to family health matters. I would not give the specifics in the resume, as it might appear you are trying evoke sympathy.


As for being laid off, if it was a reduction if force, that is likely to be accepted. If it was for poor performance, you may have a problem. In that case, time may be on your side. Things that happened 9 years ago have a dimmed importance today, if you have stayed active.

Good luck.

John

 

[Hero999]

The economy is crap at the moment, especially for engineering, if I were you I'd take whatever job comes my way, even if it's part time shelf stacking at the local supermarket. Once you're working, even if it is a part time low skilled job, you can spend your spare time looking for a popper job.

 

[Pommie]

The economy is crap at the moment, especially for engineering, if I were you I'd take whatever job comes my way, even if it's part time shelf stacking at the local supermarket. Once you're working, even if it is a part time low skilled job, you can spend your spare time looking for a popper job.

Is it really that bad over there?

Mike.

 

[jpanhalt]

@Pommie, If by "over there" you mean the rest of the world, the answer is a qualified yes. USA is almost up to 1930's numbers, and many people suspect actual data are being hidden. Japan is on the brink of even a worse state.

Here is just one example for a town on 80,000 in which IBM is the second largest employer:

...the biggest number of cuts were among software engineers within STG. The spreadsheet document shows that 135 of those dismissed were Staff Software Engineers, 65 were Staff Engineer/Scientist-Dev, 71 were Sr. Engineer/Scientist-Dev. There were 90 in the group with the title Advisory Software Engineer, 83 in Adv Engineer/Scientist-Dev, and 80 more working as a Production Operator. Among those let go were one vice president, seven IBM managers, one IBM Distinguished Engineer, and 270 IBM employees with the word "Senior" in their job title.

An inside source told the NewsCenter on Tuesday the number was as many as 800 in STG and other groups in Rochester. To put the number in perspective, the Rochester Chamber of Commerce says about 4,400 people work inside the sprawling IBM complex along U.S. 52 in northwest Rochester.

That is the second reduction in force in about a year.

John

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Is it really that bad over there?

Lot's of companies are going bust and shutting down, others are laying off workers - it's pretty well a global problem.

 

[audioguru]

Keep in touch with people (including your bosses) you worked with. They can tell you when their company has a job opening and can vouch for you.

 

[Leftyretro]

Go into politics, they seem to have no problems finding money and spending it.

Lefty

 

[Video Warrior]

Mikebits, I abandoned the idea of the one-pager several years ago. When you have twenty (or more) years of Job Experience (or, Accomplishments) to cover, I don't think it is realistic or practical to try to squeeze that much onto just one page. I never heard one word of negative feedback about presenting a two-pager to hiring managers. Must've worked; landed an Electrical Engineering gig last September after almost three years as contract gun-for-hire (Allen-Bradley, mostly) in the Milwaukee area.

 

[dknguyen]

That's a good point. One page resumes are only for new graduates.

 

[UTMonkey]

Not being in the electronics\development industry I may be a little off-beam here, but may I suggest that this tells me little about you as a person.

Bear in mind the employer will be making a decision based not just on your (obvious) technical experiences, but on other facets as well.

How well do you work in a team?

• Can you see someone elses point of view?
• can you work through conflict?
• Can you work in an environment of mutual support?

Scrap the title "Communication" and replace it with "Professional Contribution (or authorship)", its not that the substance is wrong - its pretty damn impressive, but it isnt that kind of communication that the employer is looking for:-

• How are your documentation skills?
• Can you give examples of clear communication from previous experience?
• Do you understand which appropiate communication methods to use?

I hope this helps.

All the best.

Mark

 

[BeeBop]

Mikebits,

I think you would do well to somehow turn things around by including a mission statement. IE: 'I wish to serve my company by employing the skills I have acquired over a lifetime of experience in the electronics industry.' (That is just an idea, you have to figure out what buzz words etc. to include.)
I think many companies now use 'human resource professionals,' most of whom do not have enough experience with the position they are hiring for, so just look for certain buzz words, and time on a nearly identical job. (I have even seen job postings asking for five to seven years experience with Ruby on Rails; I don't think that language has been around more than two years.) My point: think carefully about the position, and use lingo which is suitable.
If I had Navy experience, I would play that for all it is worth; I would think many people have a high degree of respect for the discipline which is gained from such experience.
The gap you speak of could be filled with consulting... or 'attempted to start my own business,' or ...

Good luck, hope to hear good new from you soon.

Keep in touch with people (including your bosses) you worked with. They can tell you when their company has a job opening and can vouch for you.

Audio Guru, I think that comment applies, especially here in Canada, where it seems you need to know people to get gainfully employed. (I can imagine 'old boy clubs' are strong in other places, but here I know they exist.) It is one thing I hate about my country. I'm having a difficult time because I was out of the country for five years, and lost touch with most everyone I knew. (I'm considering returning to Asia, if things don't start to improve here..)

 

[audioguru]

I was fairly happy with a company for 15 years (but looking for a change) when a former salesman said I should look at the new company he joined.
It was big, new and rising fast so I left my old job and joined the new company.
I bought into its profit sharing stocks plan and made a fortune. Then the company was bought by a huge company. The stock prices (and my shares) skyrocketed.
I had to sell my stocks or exchange them for stocks in the new company.
I sold my stocks at a very high price then when the new management made mistakes I left and the company went bankrupt. I took my money and ran away laughing.

 

[BeeBop]

Knowing when to turn and run is just as important as knowing when to stay. Good for you, Guru!

 

[Video Warrior]

To expand on BeeBop's thought: yes, you often have to make it through the Human Resources Filter before your resume even has a chance to get to the hands of who is really going to make the decision about hiring you. I find an effective technique (when you know which position you are in fact applying for) is to carefully read the Open Position listing, and make sure your resume includes a few of the same qualities listed there, early on, and loudly. You have to make it easy for 'them' to see that you are the Perfect Candidate for whatever this particular job happens to be. I wound up with different resumes that were all "tuned" slightly to accentuate particular things in my background that were a better match for a given job. Yes, it was a chore to keep track of them all. Good thing digital storage is cheap these days.

 

[ladyt11]

I agree with Video Warrior.

When I look at someone's resume I like to see what skills pertain to the position the person is trying to get.

As the interview continues is when I start to learn about the person. How long out of work and why.

C.

 

[BeeBop]

We were just discussing getting past the (often) bimbo, 22year old girls who work in human resources departments.