Top Law Schools

Hey everyone, long-time lurker, first-time poster. Have been in contact with two top-ten schools regarding resume requirements, and according to both (one explicitly, one implicitly), for work experience their adcomms wanted EVERYTHING on the resume. We're talking not only full-time post-graduation employment but also part-time, summer, etc., etc. Even after I warned that this would push the resume well over two pages, I was told (implicitly verging on the explicit) that their having access to a complete chronology was more important than an absolute wall at two pages [hopefully not outing myself here, but I don't really have anything to hide... yet].

Comments? I'm inclined to just believe them and give them what they want, but it certainly seems to go against the common knowledge/wisdom here.

Thanks in advance and good luck to all in current application year.

What kind of jobs are you including that make it over 2 pages?
For example if you mowed lawns, babysat, worked at subway, and bagged groceries during high school, you should probably leave those out in the interest of brevity.

If you had decent office jobs, internships, or hands on part time work that helped you develop as a person, even if not directly applicable to law school, then you should probably add those in if you believe they reflect well on your experience and work ethic.

I can't really imagine you can't massage all your jobs into 2 pages. I did have to strip descriptions for jobs 10 years back but I fitted all except the ones that even I don't wish to remember. Most school's application ask for "most significant" work experiences on the actual forms, so I chose the most significant of my career to put on the resume, like my professional resume. I really don't think listing the same job with different companies 5 times is going to make a whole lot of sense. Although, if you really do have a diverse employment history that needs to be told over 2 pages, I guess who am I to tell you to cut it. But I just have a hard time picturing one over 2 pages. CV, with publications and research maybe, not a resume.

Wow. What schools did you call, if you dont mind me asking? I left out a LOT of jobs because they were just part time jobs from years ago when I was in college, but now wondering if I should include them.

I appreciate the comments so far. In response to the first, "unfortunately" I have had substantive work experience in a variety of positions for the last ten years. I'm one of those people who probably many would advise to stay the course in the current profession I am in, but that's another discussion. However, you're right, were I to be considering putting my unpaid cat-sitting positions down, that would be indeed a waste of space. In response to the second, I like your idea of stripping out descriptives, particularly for older positions. One further question, the resumes I have seen usually include publications, yet you imply that they should not be on there. Hmm, one more twist on the situation. I'll see what I can do. I guess what I'm trying to figure out is how to combine your statements, that both jive with my pre-existing notions, with the things I have been hearing from admissions offices (e.g., resume length unimportant, we would like everything).

If you have 10 years work experience then I think more than 2 pages would be acceptable, though I would still shoot for the 2 pages if at all possible.

Thanks for the understanding, ten years is a long time in one profession. Still, using Mr. Philly's suggestions of stripping down, I've managed to add all the stuff I was unsure of and still keep it at two pages. Mission accomplished. But it's still an intriguing question regarding their length expectations, just one I thankfully don't have to experiment with myself anymore.