How to frame and highlight transferable skills during a career change
When you want to change careers, a resume with your old skills won’t help you at all. It’s essential to frame your past experiences in a way that highlights transferable skills and showcases your adaptability and relevance to the new target role.
As long as you’re armed with the right resume, your transition can be a piece of cake.
When framing and highlighting transferable skills during a career change, follow these steps:
Step 1 – Identify relevant skills from your previous experience that are transferable to the new career. Focus on both technical/ hard and soft skills that are valued in the new role.
Step 2- Study job descriptions for positions in your target role/industry. Note the key skills and qualifications sought by employers.
Step 3- Use a skills-based or combination resume format to highlight transferable skills relevant to the new role in your resume.
Step 4- Use strategic action verbs and descriptive language to showcase your transferable skills & instead of simply listing skills, provide specific examples of how you’ve applied them in previous roles.
Step 5 – Whenever possible, quantify your accomplishments to demonstrate the impact of your transferable skills. Numbers and metrics add credibility to your claims.
Step 6: Include a summary section at the top of your resume to highlight your transferrable skills and showcase skills that align with your new career choice.
Step 7- Use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method to structure your examples of achievements.
Step 8- Use a cover letter to emphasize your ability to adapt to new environments and learn quickly. Explain how your previous experiences have prepared you to excel in the new career.
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