Why I’ll Never Put My Address On My Resume
When college and post-grad women send me their resume hoping for advice the first thing I tell them is to take their address off of their resume. Over the weekend I was watching ABC’s “20/20,” where former Fox anchor Gretchen Carlson was talking about her sexual harassment case. She walked through the various times in her career where she was sexually harassed by men in power offering her a journalism opportunity. Her words really resonated with me because it’s the main reason why I’ll never put my address on my resume.
There’s many reasons why I think it’s pointless to put where you live on your resume. I’m going to go over my top reasons today.
IT’S OLD SCHOOL AND LIMITS YOUR OPPORTUNITIES
When I was applying for different jobs many companies assumed I lived in NYC (I do not.) I truly believe I would not have gotten some interviews if I had put my address on my resume. At the end of the day if a company wants to hire you, they will expect you to move. I’ve learned that many do not want to pay moving expenses so they only look at candidates in their area. By removing your address, you are expanding your job opportunities. If you get further in the application process, the recruiter will ask where you are located. Let them ask you.
SEXUAL HARASSMENT IS REAL EVEN BEFORE YOU START THE JOB
Would you put your address on Twitter or Facebook? Hopefully not. When your address is on your resume you never know where it ends up. I’ve known of young women who have been sent flowers from a potential (creepy) boss. Your address is where you lay your head at night and only the people who absolutely need to know where you live, should. Of course your address is in your public records, but you need to do everything you can to protect your safety and privacy.
IT TAKES UP UNNECESSARY ROOM
Everything on your resume should be intentional and something you can defend. A basic resume should only be one-page and you need to make all the room on it count. Instead of using one or two lines dedicated to your address, maybe include your social media handles or a unique tagline.
Not having my address on my resume has never hurt me and I landed my dream job straight out of college. If you really think it’s important to include where you live, think about just including your city and state. I truly don’t believe anyone needs to know your exact street address except the post office. Feel free to ask me your career questions on my Ask.fm page.
Stay driven.
