Federal Careers

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While we all know that age discrimination is illegal and experience can offer real value to employers, older jobseekers can face real and perceived challenges that younger jobseekers do not. Here are some resume ideas to help you overcome those challenges:

1. Limit your earlier work experience to the past 10-12 years. Earlier work experience is of less interest to most employers.

2. If you want to include some older experience, create a category a category called “other work experience” or “ previous work experience” and summarize your titles, organizations, and an achievement or two—without dates.

3. Do not include things like “27 years’ experience” in your summary.

4. Remove references to technology that is no longer used: DOS, WindowsXP, Word Perfect. However, if a position is focused on legacy applications (check the posting), of course you’ll want to include this information.

5. Demonstrate that you’re up to date; customize your LinkedIn URL and do not use AOL, Hotmail, or Yahoo email addresses on your resume.

6. Eliminate references to events that will date you: Y2K, Hurricane Katrina, 9/11, and other well-known events that will immediately draw attention to your age.

7. Do not include graduation dates.

8. Make sure that your resume uses modern format.

9. Have a professional online presence.

10. Put your education at the end of your resume; you’re “selling” your experience.

Getting a new job as an older worker is definitely doable. Opportunities exist for professionals at all levels. And some industries, like the federal government, hire a lot of older workers. With the above tips and a strong job search strategy, you will find the right job for the next phase of your career.


Nancy H. Segal is a federal job search expert. Following her own senior-level federal HR career, she founded Solutions for the Workplace LLC to provide a HR management perspective to astute applicants to U.S. government positions.