Writing a resume for a career change can be a very difficult task, mostly because your previous jobs may not be the kind of experience that your new potential employer is looking for. When you are considering a career change, there are certain things that you can do on your resume that will help you stand out from the rest of the pack.
Highlight Your Experience
The first thing that you can do is to highlight all of the transferable “cross industry” skills you already have, which you can use in a new field or industry. These cross industry skills are those that could be applicable to almost any career.
A good example would be managing people. If you’ve been in a position where you have had to manage or supervise people working under you, make sure that you highlight this in the summary of your job skills. Another good example is customer service skills. Almost every industry involves some type of customer service, so make sure to highlight this. The same holds true for many other transferable abilities you have that you can use in any career.
Create a Professional Profile
Another thing that you can do is to create a professional profile to start off your resume. In this professional profile, you can highlight all of your cross-industry skills without having to worry about showing your job experience. This is also a very good idea for someone who is just getting out of college and does not have very much professional experience. A lot of the time, potential employers are looking for people with relevant skills and not necessarily relevant job experience.
Don’t Neglect Volunteer Work and Community Service
You can also look at other things you have done outside of your work experience that may be relevant. Perhaps you have done some kind of community or volunteer work that may be relevant to the job that you are applying for. For instance, if you have been working in banking but are now applying for a job in nursing, besides your education you may want to highlight any volunteer work that you have done in hospitals or nursing homes.
Focus On What You Have, Not What You Lack
Overall, don’t let the lack of the right kind of job experience deter you from seeking a job in a new career field. In addition to your job skills and work experience, you probably have other intangibles that can be an asset for you such as a positive attitude and motivation. Focus on the skills and experience that you have rather than those that you are missing.