Should You Dumb Down Your Resume?

During the job search, job seekers with many years of experience and education may find themselves without a job a lot longer than job seekers that have less tacked on their resume. For experienced job seekers, choosing to dumb down your resume by omitting high level degrees, scaling down on cover letters and re-wording job titles to make them seem less prestigious may grant them the opportunity to interview for jobs they are overqualified for. However, is it all worth it? Here are some things to consider before dumbing down your job application credentials.

It’s true that recruiters are cautious to hire anyone overqualified for a job position for fear that they will leave the company once a better job comes up. Sadly, this leaves experienced job seekers with fewer job opportunities unless they dumb down their resume. Thus, experienced job seekers are willing to dumb down their resume if it means finally having a job despite the cut in pay.

If you are one of these experienced job seekers willing to settle for a less than ideal job, then re-working your resume may be worth it. It’ll give you the opportunity to work and make money in the short term while you continue to look for a job you are better qualified for.

When it comes to re-working your resume to make you appear less overqualified, it’s important to still remain honest. The truth will eventually come out through reference checks. Being dishonest will make employers mistrust you. Avoid making up lies by emphasizing the skills you can bring to the job rather than major accomplishments and degrees. Having transferable skills that you’ve acquired from past job experiences will work in your favor for any job.

Finally, consider your long-term goals. If you’re going to dumb down your resume, you’re not going to get the job you really want. Think about the hard work you put in to earn those accomplishments and credentials! For experienced job seekers that are looking for a long-term job, they should keep their resume as is and wait to find a job that they are truly qualified for, it may take a little longer, but it’ll be worth it.

Have you ever had to dumb down your resume? Tell us about it in the comments below.

IMAGE: Courtesy of Flickr by RyanRWarner