If you are looking to change careers—for example, from engineering to project management—you need to refresh your resume. The resume you used to move up in your engineering career will not impress hiring managers and recruiters who are looking for a project manager. Here are five steps you can take to make sure your resume supports your career change.
First, research your new career carefully so that you understand the requirements and expectations. Your resume should contain the keywords that future employers will look for among your skills, accomplishments and education.
Second, make sure the summary at the top of your resume mentions the transferrable skills, accomplishments and education that relate to the career you want. Companies are not in the business of guessing at your suitability; you must tell them.
Third, you may want to lead your resume with a list of “Major Accomplishments” during your past career chosen specifically because they illustrate your readiness for your new career. You can ignore chronology in this section. To continue with the engineer-to-project-manager example: you would select accomplishments demonstrating your leadership, planning and strategic skills regardless of when they occurred in your career.
Fourth, courses, certifications or a degree related to your new career are invaluable. Make sure your educational preparation is featured on your resume. If you are sending out your resume before your education is complete, you should mention the anticipated date of graduation or certification.
Fifth, ask for testimonials from fellow professionals who can testify to your qualifications for the new position (including soft skills). The opinion of a co-worker, customer, vendor or manager counts highly when a hiring manager or recruiter is reviewing your resume.
At Robin’s Resumes®, we help job applicants make the transition from one successful career to another with resumes that give companies what they are looking for, highlight transferrable skills, emphasize related accomplishments and feature strong testimonials. Let us help you.