How long do you usually have to work at a job for it to show up as real "experience?"

[Nocturnal]

would 6 months to a year be pretty good? would it look good on my resume? or would it have to be a little longer then a year?

 

[pyonir]

personally, i would say at least a year. A lot of ones i've seen want you to have 2-3 years experience.

 

[NogginBoink]

Stop thinking that experience=time.

If you do one thing, by rote, all day, for 4 years, how much experience does that get you?

If you do multiple complex tasks all day for 6 months learning new skills and new products, how much experience does that get you?

If you're worried about how it will look on a resume, pick up a book on writing resumes to learn how to best present your skills to a prospective employer. The narrative that describes what you did, and therefore what you can do for your next employer, is what counts.

 

[rufruf44]

2-3 years should be pretty good. 5-7 years and you should be solid at that, of course it depends on the job itself.

 

[Nocturnal]

Originally posted by: NogginBoink
Stop thinking that experience=time.

If you do one thing, by rote, all day, for 4 years, how much experience does that get you?

If you do multiple complex tasks all day for 6 months learning new skills and new products, how much experience does that get you?

If you're worried about how it will look on a resume, pick up a book on writing resumes to learn how to best present your skills to a prospective employer. The narrative that describes what you did, and therefore what you can do for your next employer, is what counts.

can anyone recommend a good book on writing resumes?

 

[amnesiac]

As long as you don't have a history of jobhopping every 2-3 months you'll be ok.. but if its for a specialized area minimum 1 year (2-3 is optimal) will count as solid experience.

 

[FeathersMcGraw]

Originally posted by: amnesiac 2.0
As long as you don't have a history of jobhopping every 2-3 months you'll be ok.. but if its for a specialized area minimum 1 year (2-3 is optimal) will count as solid experience.

Lots of short experiences on a resume are not necessarily a detriment, if you can explain them (i.e. contract work, failed startups, etc.) What is most important is that you can illustrate what skills you utilized at those jobs and how you can apply those skills to a new employer's benefit.