How Long Should Your CV Be for Senior Roles in 2024?

Navigating CV Length When You’ve Got Years of Experience

So, you’ve climbed the career ladder, gathered over a decade (or more!) of valuable experience, led teams, managed significant projects, and achieved impressive results. Fantastic! But now you’re updating your CV, and the old advice echoes: “Keep it to one page!” Does that still hold true when you have so much to showcase?

For senior-level professionals like you, the short answer is usually no. Let’s break down why and figure out the optimal CV length for you in 2024.

Ditching the One-Page Myth (for Senior Roles)

The one-page CV rule is often great advice for graduates or those early in their careers. It forces conciseness and focuses on potential. However, when you have 10, 15, or 20+ years of relevant experience, trying to cram it all onto a single page does you a disservice. It can lead to:

• Oversimplification: You might have to cut out crucial details about leadership roles, strategic impact, or significant achievements.
• Readability Issues: Tiny fonts and cramped margins make your CV hard to read.
• Missed Opportunities: Recruiters looking for specific senior-level experience might not see the depth required if it’s overly condensed.

The Sweet Spot: Two Pages (Usually)

For most senior-level roles in 2024, a two-page CV is perfectly acceptable and often expected. This length generally provides enough space to:

• Detail your most relevant and recent roles (typically the last 10-15 years).
• Showcase leadership experience, strategic contributions, and key responsibilities.
• Quantify your major achievements with concrete results.
• Include essential sections like a professional summary, skills, education, and certifications without sacrificing clarity.

Think quality over quantity. Every point on those two pages must earn its place and be relevant to the roles you’re targeting.

When Can You Go to Three Pages?

While two pages is the standard recommendation, a three-page CV can be appropriate in specific circumstances, such as:

• Extensive, Highly Relevant Experience: If you have a long career (20+ years) with numerous high-impact roles directly relevant to the position you’re applying for (e.g., C-suite roles, complex technical fields, project-heavy consultancy).
• Academic or Scientific Roles: These often require listing publications, presentations, research, and grants, naturally extending the length.
• Specific Industry Norms: Some very traditional or technical fields might be more accepting of longer CVs.

Caution: Only go to three pages if all the information is truly essential and adds significant value. Bloating your CV with irrelevant details from decades ago will work against you.

Tips for Senior-Level CVs (Regardless of Length)

1. Prioritise Ruthlessly: Focus on experience and achievements most relevant to the jobs you’re targeting. Your early career roles can often be summarised briefly or omitted if not relevant.
2. Lead with Impact: Start with a powerful professional summary highlighting your key expertise, leadership qualities, and career goals.
3. Quantify Achievements: Use numbers, percentages, and data to demonstrate the impact you made in previous roles (e.g., “Increased market share by 15%,” “Managed a budget of £5M,” “Led a team of 25 engineers”).
4. Focus on Recent History: Dedicate more space to your roles from the last 10-15 years. Summarise earlier experience more concisely.
5. Ensure Readability: Use clear headings, bullet points, and sufficient white space. Choose a professional font and maintain consistent formatting. A well-structured template, like those offered by ThePerfectCV, can make presenting extensive experience much clearer and more professional.
6. ATS Compatibility: Modern Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) can handle multi-page CVs. Focus on using relevant keywords and standard formatting rather than worrying excessively about page breaks.

The Bottom Line

For senior professionals with 10+ years of experience, don’t feel constrained by the outdated one-page rule. A two-page CV is generally the ideal length in 2024, allowing you to showcase the depth and breadth of your expertise effectively. Only extend to three pages if absolutely necessary and every piece of information adds significant value.

Focus on relevance, impact, and clarity. Present your impressive career history in a way that’s easy for recruiters and hiring managers to digest.

Ready to craft a CV that reflects your senior-level experience? Explore ThePerfectCV’s templates designed for experienced professionals and start building yours today!