A resume is very important when it comes to getting hired for jobs. Your resume should always be up to date and precise which gives accurate information to your hiring manager about your application for a particular job role. There are different formats of resumes which one chooses in accordance to their level of expertise to draft their apt resume showcasing their skills, experience and highlighting their areas of expertise. One can also approach resume writing freelancers for better guidance, and professional resume writing services in India are also available. Below are some tips to update your resume for a career change.
Thoughts On Career Change
At some point in our careers, we all require a change or might want to switch careers to progress to a new job role or upgrade and try something new! Sometimes you might catch yourself coming up with new interests or expectations and might be looking forward to a job that aligns well with your lifestyle.
It’s no surprise that switching careers can be exciting and a little daunting as well. You will have to upskill yourself and add new certifications and skills to yourself for what the new career demands. Updating your resume may be a little tedious and we must ensure the resume is relevant and interesting so the recruiter will want to meet you.
Tips To Update Your Resume On Career Change
1. Research your new field
If you want to make a breakthrough into a new career and job role you must research your new field thoroughly. You need to do some deep diving and research more to get deeper knowledge into the know-hows of your new career. As you are entering a totally new sector you may not have deep knowledge about it. This in turn has an impact on your resume. You should be adept with all the information and skills required to jot down on your resume while applying for a career switch so the recruiter looks forward to interviewing you after going through your resume.
Thus doing some research is necessary. You can try to contact people who occupy the position you are interested in and enquire which are the most in-demand skills, qualifications that one must include on their resume for that particular job role.
2. Choose the best resume format
Many resume formats are available to draft your resume. Choosing the right format and highlighting the right information on your resume can boost your career switch and leave a good impression on your recruiter, enhancing your further chances of being hired for the new job role and making a breakthrough into a new career. This helps in career advancement. There are arrays of resume formats you can pick and choose from. The most popular format for this purpose is a combination resume format. This is also called a hybrid format.
Emphasising your skills and achievements is important as you will not have past experience. You must include your prior work experience even though it was for a different career. It is important that your recruiter must know about your past work history. For all, you may know they might be willing and open to inviting and onboarding fresh perspectives from diverse backgrounds into their companies. One can find many templates available on the internet or avail of resume writing services in India. (if applying to jobs in India).
3. Identify your transferrable skills
When you are looking forward to changing your career, you might not have previous work experience relevant to your new job role. So rather than building your resume on the experience one can add and highlight their skills, certifications, relevant courses taken, and other such factors to their resume. You must highlight transferable skills, that is, how your skills from your past career and job will benefit you in the new role you are seeking to apply for. So, identify and levy focus on your transferable skills, for example, organisational skills, problem-solving, leadership, communication, teamwork, and so on. This will certainly add weight to your resume while switching careers.
4. Include a mission or a summary line
This is the top statement found on one’s resume. It is a short description of your resume. The resume purpose or summary or mission refers to a section, usually located at the top, aimed at explaining who you are through your skills, interest, achievements. It is similar to the LinkedIn statement. This is an important element of your resume as it can catch the eye and interest of the recruiter. This especially works well in cases when you do not have much experience.
When writing this down, ensure to connect everything your previous career has given you to benefit your new career. This section is very important as it can make or break your chances of being hired and contacted by the recruiter.
5. Avoid unnecessary information
Avoid writing out an excessively lengthy resume description. Keep it precise and to the point. Add only relevant skills, education, and information that is applicable to your new career. Highlight your educational background if it helps you demonstrate your knowledge of the industry. Do not scare off the recruiter as they have to go through numerous resumes for a single position to search for the ideal candidate.
You must avoid giving lengthy experience descriptions and avoid writing too much irrelevant information. Keep it simple and concise, to the point. Only highlight valid points to prove your application for a career change. Only include highlights of each of your jobs as you can elaborate furthermore during the one-to-one interview.
Conclusion
A resume plays a very important role while shuffling careers. Above a few tips have been mentioned while updating resumes for a career change. There are professional resume writing services (in India) also available for those who want customised resumes to stand out and help in the recruitment process. Even at the end of the day, it is just a resume that will be read for a few seconds before a decision is struck whether to hire you or not. The underlying message of this article is to give you support as you progress, up-skill and transition into a new career.
This post first appeared on the getsetResumes.com Blog
