Resume Writing Tips for Career Changers

Resume Writing Tips for Career Changers ShareShare1 Start with a relevant headline. The top of your resume is a valuable spot for a first impression; dont waste it on an empty word like Summary. Lets say youre a salesperson who wants to transition into marketing, and youre applying for a Marketing Coordinator role. Your headline might be something like Sales and Marketing Professional, or simply Marketing Coordinator. In doing this, youre not claiming you are currently a marketing coordinator, but that youre qualified for it and applying for it. Put this headline below your name and contact information. Build a compelling summary (just dont bother labeling it as such). If the first thing employers see under your headline is your Experience section, headed by a job thats very different from the job youre applying for, its easy for the employer to reject you, thinking This person doesnt have the right experience. Instead, focus their attention first and foremost on your most relevant qualifications. Here are some elements you might include in this summary. Targeted introductory paragraph or bullet points: Here is where you summarize your key selling points or unique selling proposition. The bullet points might look like this: BA in Business Administration with Marketing emphasis expected in May 2019. Early experience as Marketing Coordinator, followed by accomplished sales career. Extensive experience collaborating with Marketing as Sales Manager for top (industry) firms including X and Y. Data-driven and highly analytical, as demonstrated by (very briefly mention an achievement or chunk of experience that proves this). Keep this section very short, especially if you use a paragraph instead of bullets. Anything dense here is likely to be ignored. Competencies block: List your skills and areas of knowledge using brief words and phrases such as team leadership, project management, Salesforce, and so on, so employers can see at a glance that you have the know-how. (Tip: A two-column or three-column arrangement saves space compared to a single-column list.) Translate your experience section to show how your skills are transferable. Consider adding to your job title lines. Lets say youre seeking a position as a Human Resources Generalist, and your past job title was Office Manager but half of the job really involved doing the work of a Human Resources Generalist. You can show that you were a de facto HR Generalist without claiming you officially held that title by writing your job title like this: Office Manager (and Human Resources Generalist), Brown Educational Software, Inc. Or if the HR duties were only a small part of the role: Office Manager (including Human Resources responsibilities), Brown Educational Software, Inc. Either way, putting these important keywords in the job title will allow your resume to perform well in applicant tracking systems as well as in the eyes of the reader. (And you can do the same on LinkedIn, by the way.) Emphasize whats relevant. Describe your past job duties in terms familiar to your target field. For example, lets say you used to do social media work and now you want to do grant writing for nonprofits. Some aspects of your previous job may not be transferable, but your ability to write concise, attention-getting content may be relevant and valuable. Your career change resume is a good start, but theres more to do. As important as your resume is, it isnt going to get you into a new career by itself. More than other job seekers, career changers need to network effectively and compete effectively with other candidates who may have more experience. Plan and execute a strategic transition campaign in which your well-targeted career-change resume is one of many strong components. Resume Writing Tips for Career Changers ShareShare1 Start with a relevant headline. The top of your resume is a valuable spot for a first impression; dont waste it on an empty word like Summary. Lets say youre a salesperson who wants to transition into marketing, and youre applying for a Marketing Coordinator role. Your headline might be something like Sales and Marketing Professional, or simply Marketing Coordinator. In doing this, youre not claiming you are currently a marketing coordinator, but that youre qualified for it and applying for it. Put this headline below your name and contact information. Build a compelling summary (just dont bother labeling it as such). If the first thing employers see under your headline is your Experience section, headed by a job thats very different from the job youre applying for, its easy for the employer to reject you, thinking This person doesnt have the right experience. Instead, focus their attention first and foremost on your most relevant qualifications. Here are some elements you might include in this summary. Targeted introductory paragraph or bullet points: Here is where you summarize your key selling points or unique selling proposition. The bullet points might look like this: BA in Business Administration with Marketing emphasis expected in May 2019. Early experience as Marketing Coordinator, followed by accomplished sales career. Extensive experience collaborating with Marketing as Sales Manager for top (industry) firms including X and Y. Data-driven and highly analytical, as demonstrated by (very briefly mention an achievement or chunk of experience that proves this). Keep this section very short, especially if you use a paragraph instead of bullets. Anything dense here is likely to be ignored. Competencies block: List your skills and areas of knowledge using brief words and phrases such as team leadership, project management, Salesforce, and so on, so employers can see at a glance that you have the know-how. (Tip: A two-column or three-column arrangement saves space compared to a single-column list.) Translate your experience section to show how your skills are transferable. Consider adding to your job title lines. Lets say youre seeking a position as a Human Resources Generalist, and your past job title was Office Manager but half of the job really involved doing the work of a Human Resources Generalist. You can show that you were a de facto HR Generalist without claiming you officially held that title by writing your job title like this: Office Manager (and Human Resources Generalist), Brown Educational Software, Inc. Or if the HR duties were only a small part of the role: Office Manager (including Human Resources responsibilities), Brown Educational Software, Inc. Either way, putting these important keywords in the job title will allow your resume to perform well in applicant tracking systems as well as in the eyes of the reader. (And you can do the same on LinkedIn, by the way.) Emphasize whats relevant. Describe your past job duties in terms familiar to your target field. For example, lets say you used to do social media work and now you want to do grant writing for nonprofits. Some aspects of your previous job may not be transferable, but your ability to write concise, attention-getting content may be relevant and valuable. Your career change resume is a good start, but theres more to do. As important as your resume is, it isnt going to get you into a new career by itself. More than other job seekers, career changers need to network effectively and compete effectively with other candidates who may have more experience. Plan and execute a strategic transition campaign in which your well-targeted career-change resume is one of many strong components.