It’s always extremely difficult to switch industries. Once you get there, you most likely have to learn new skills, develop a different mindset, and work with people who are dissimilar to those you may have worked with in the past. However, actually landing that job and getting your foot in the door might be the toughest part. After all, why should a company hire someone new to the industry when they might have more experienced and qualified candidates in the application pool? Well, it’s tricky, but here’s how to write a resume for switching industries and giving yourself the best chance to land an interview.
Build a Targeted Summary + Skills Sections
The most important step in writing a resume for shifting industries is to do research. Look up job descriptions and postings for the industry and field you’re targeting, and find the keywords and key phrases that are being asked for frequently. Then, construct a professional summary followed by a core skills section at the top of the resume that integrates as many of these keyterms as possible. Obviously, you shouldn’t lie about qualities you don’t possess or experience you don’t have, but if you’re seeing “strong communication skills”, “good team player”, and “ability to meet deadlines”, and if you’re capable or have proven all of those things, including those terms will help you both pass through Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and impress human readers. The reason why a summary is so important for industry switchers is that it’s not tied to specific work that you’ve done, but more so skills and abilities, and that’s really where you can home in on what your new industry is looking for.
Include Relevant Information
Normally, it’s not a good idea to include “additional interests” on the resume, and volunteerism is usually only slightly more impactful. However, if you have non-professional experience that is highly relevant to the industry that you’re targeting, it’s definitely a good idea to include it. For example, if you’re trying to transition to a sports organization, and have never worked in sports before, but have played in sports, or coached youth leagues, including that information will be valuable! This is a great opportunity to show that you have some knowledge of the industry, even if it’s non-professional, and that you possess the skills requisite to be successful in it.
Focus on Transferable Skills + Accomplishments
It’s also important to include transferrable skills in areas outside the summary and areas of expertise. Even if all your professional experience is in a completely different industry or role, but there’s probably at least some minimal overlap in duties, tasks, or skills – and those should be focused on. Keep that content close to the top of your different roles, and move less relevant information down below. Also, be sure to sprinkle in lots of keywords and key phrases regarding those transferrable skills throughout the content to help your resume perform better in ATS systems. Even if you haven’t actually worked in an industry, if your job has interfaced with that industry at all, or impacted that industry, such work should be mentioned as well. In general, try to tie as many of your bullet points as possible to your desired industry and role, whether through content or transferable abilities.
Highlight Unique Outlook/Experiences
However, while you want to target your resume for the new industry, you can also demonstrate how your perspective as an outsider might be of benefit. If you feel that something from your prior line of work will be very impactful or beneficial to your desired field, expand upon that to the best of your abilities in the summary or experience sections. Even if this is usually better explained in an interview or even cover letter, you can still discuss why such a non-industry point of view could be valuable.