Age Discrimination in the Valley-Too Young AND Too Old

New/Recent College Grads

Networking Through Associations

One answer is to network through the alumni associations and other professional associations in order to meet more senior professionals in a non-threatening setting. The idea is to meet people and collect business cards, not to "interview" anyone. Then you can aggressively follow up afterwards to request a 15 to 20 minute informational meeting. Most professionals will meet with you when this approach is taken.

Informational Meetings...Two-way Learning Experience

Once you meet, recognize the effort they took and express appreciation for their time and help. Share your goals with them. (Make sure you know your goals. If you don't know where you are going, how are you going to get there?) Ask about the industry or function you'd like to enter. Ask for their advice. At the end of your meeting, ask for referrals to other professionals they may know who might help you.

Surf for Resources

In addition, the Internet has some specialty sites particularly aimed at the new and recent grad. You might check them out. They include:

www.thepavement.com

Provides 20-26 year olds transitional information from college to career

www.collegegrad.com

A full service website for new and recent graduates

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1. The hiring manager may feel he or she will have to pay too much for a senior candidate.
2. There may be a question of energy. Can the older candidate maintain the energy level needed in today's work environment?
3. Older candidates may be viewed as "too set" in their ways; i.e. lacking sufficient flexibility in their style.
4. The hiring manager may think that an older candidate's values might cause conflicts with younger employees-or with him/herself.

It's All in the Presentation

Your responsibility is to overcome these issues by your personal impact in the "product presentation" (interview). If you have good health and energy, be sure it shows; discuss your working and management style in depth so the hiring manager can see flexibility and compatibility. Provide examples of successful teamwork and open-mindedness.

If you do an effective interview and are seen as the number one candidate, the issue of compensation will fall in your favor. Most hiring managers do not want to back away from their number one candidate over compensation issues and therefore are much more open to negotiation.

All of the foregoing effort will work in your favor if followed when meeting the hiring manager. However, many candidates over age 45 never even get to the interview stage because they have disclosed their age in their resumes.

How Did I Give My Age Away?

You say you didn't put your age on your resume. How can they tell?

1. If you have 25 years or more years of experience, it is usually listed. This is not necessary on a resume. Your most recent ten to fifteen years of experience is sufficient to establish your level of qualification.
2. Most people list the date of their BA/BS degree and that is a sure tip off of age. Do not include this information on your resume.
3. If required to fill out a job application before the interview, most candidates include not only all their experience, but also the date of their degree, and to top it off, they give their salary history as requested on the form. Don't make these mistakes. Use your most recent 10 to 15 years of experience, don't give degree dates, and do not give most salary history-it can only hurt you later in negotiations and there is no legal requirement to provide that information.