Changing Careers? Solve Your Resume Quandary

Changing Careers? Solve Your Resume Quandary

If you are looking to change your career field, you already know that it is going to be a challenging task to convince any employer to consider you without any experience in the new field.

Before you begin, remember this is a completely new field and requires a different approach, so do away with your old resume, and start afresh.

Next, imagine the most probable question you will be asked, why you should be hired? Then go about finding the best answer.

You should gain a full understanding of the field you want to enter. Find out what kind of jobs are available, and what qualifications or skills are expected by the employers. If you know anyone working in that field, be sure to speak to them for insights and guidance. Since you do not have experience in the new field, list out your skills or certain qualifications that are suitable for this job, and highlight it on your resume.

Hybrid Resume: Also known as combination resume, this is the most ideal if you are bringing certain skills from your older work field. Start with the objective, and state clearly that you are looking for a job in a new field. If this is not brought out beforehand it will be assumed that you are merely looking for a job change within your older field. Continue with a qualification summary, where you will bring out your skills and qualifications to show that you are suitable for the new job you are applying for. Follow this up with your experience in the previous field by stressing on the achievements that are significant for this new job too.

Functional Resume: This resume underlines your skills and keeps your experience in the background. A functional resume is a good choice if your old and new careers are diverse. Have an objective in place and highlight your relevant skills in the qualification summary. At the end put down your past experience in brief, without giving details for anything that is not relevant to the new career field.

Resume Letter: This is simply a cover letter in place of your resume, think of it as a resume written in a narrative style. Firstly, bring out why you want to enter this new field, and include any skills to justify your career switch. Also focus on how you can be an asset to the employer, should you be hired. While changing you career, a resume letter can very effective in grabbing the attention of the employer.

Choose a resume style that works best to emphasize your talent and earlier work experience if applicable to increase your chances of being noticed by the employer, and getting an opportunity to enter the new career field of your choice. If you are still unsure of how to go about writing your new resume check out samples online there are plenty of resources like monster and resumeindex.