How To Adapt Your CV To Your New Career Choice

You will need to adapt your CV to change your career if you are changing industries or sectors. Changing careers has to be one of the more difficult decisions a person can make; staying in the work environment we are used to can sometimes be easier than having to embrace uncertainty, and having to prove your professional qualifications and credibility in a new workplace.

The decision for change becomes that much more difficult if the new job you want means changing your career. While you will face a challenge in trying to get the job that meets your new career objectives, trying to adapt your CV should not be one of them.

Career Change Resources

On this website alone (your-career-change.com), there are numerous resources for career changers, and the need to adapt your CV appropriately is fully explained below.

To adapt your CV effectively, start with the job description (Google the job title if you haven't any idea) of the job you're interested in, then extract those specific competencies and key strengths of yours, that match. Present these matching strengths at the top of your career change CV.

From helping you decide which career you are best suited for to providing helpful careers advice on how to succeed in your new job, you will find an overwhelming amount of resources to help you in your career change journey. While most of the information you find will be helpful, be careful about how you utilise the information in order to put together the most persuasive CV for your new career choice.

Go and read this page with an example career change CV and covering letter sample.

If you're stuck, go to CV Writing or call me for help to adapt your CV and change your career on +44 1270 881811.

Creating A Career Change CV

There are really two basic elements to successfully creating a CV for a career changer: research and transferable skills. Most people put a lot of thought into changing careers. They consider their families, their living and financial situations, their competitive advantage in the new field, etc. After you convince yourself that changing careers is the right thing to do, you will have to convince your potential employers to give you the job you are seeking. To do so, you have to do your research.

Demonstrate to your employer that you have an extensive knowledge of the industry, even if you don’t have the accompanying experience. Before you begin your new career, make sure that you understand what professional paths are available for you, and determine what your ultimate goal is. This will help you form your own career objectives and you will be more interesting as a job candidate if you know how your new career may progress. In other words, if you know where you're going others will tend to help you to change a career and make it happen.

Do Your Research

Additionally, make sure to do your research on the company you are interested in, as well as their competition (if you are interested in non-profit organisations, make sure to brush up on other organisations with similar missions); if invited for an interview, you will want to appear very knowledgeable not only about their company, but about the industry as a whole.

You will have to convince your potential employer that you the best person for the job, better than the candidates with experience – to do that, you have to showcase not only your enthusiasm for the opportunity, but your eagerness to learn and your knowledge about the field.

One of the most effective ways of finding out the inside story for your career change is to use the technique of conducting an informational interview which will allow you to pinpoint your strengths and requirements for further development in relation to the particular job of interest, while also providing an opportunity to build your confidence and communication skills, both crucial for successful job interviews.

Transferable skills, those skills that can be utilised in numerous fields, are also a key to change a career. Consider your specific skills and experience to date. What experience have you acquired that can be transferred across industries or sectors? Transferable skills include verbal and written communication, people management, customer relations, organisation and project management, development of new processes, generation of new ideas or concepts, amongst many others.

Such skills, which may actually comprise as much as 80% of your total skill-set, can be adapted to all organisations, and you should utilise them adapt your CV to showcase your suitability for the job you are seeking.

For example, if you would like to swap the mundane 9-to-5 desk job for a hectic, unpredictable life of a high school teacher, let your potential employer know that your previous experience in leading by motivation makes you a perfect candidate for the job. Don't hesitate to spell out precisely what the particular ability means to the new job. Making a list of all your professional experiences and the qualifications needed for the job you are seeking will help you in determining which skills are transferable to your new career. Once you define your transferable skills, use a functional CV to assure most (if not all) of the transferable skills needed for the new job are met in your CV.

In addition to your well-written CV, use your cover letter or email to let your potential employer know why you are changing careers, and that your new interest is not a passing one. Make sure that you adapt your CV to reflect your newfound interest in a genuine and professional manner, and you are sure to change your career to the one you want more easily.

You are here: Adapt Your CV

Return to the Career Change page for more information and help.

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