How to Write Career Change Resume: Examples & Tips

How to Write a Career Change Resume

A resume for a career change is your introduction. You’re not arriving without work experiences and professional skills, they just come from an unrelated field. Your career change resume must tell an employer why that is an asset. Each section plays a different role. Let's dive in! 

Compelling Career Change Objective

A resume objective plays an important role in your career change resume. In three to five sentences, it:

• Introduces your strongest skill.
• Presents your career goals.
• Highlights your enthusiasm for the new industry.

To craft a compelling career change resume objective, tailor it to each job application. Clearly state your new career path.

• Identify the skills or experience that make you a great candidate.
• Shows your commitment to the industry change.

Give each sentence a job by following this formula:

[Who you are and where you’re coming from] [Years of experience] [Professional goal within the new industry] [Top qualifications]

For example:

Experienced candidates use a career summary for their resumes. So, why choose a resume objective over a career summary for your professional transition? A career summary, as the name explains, summarizes your career. It works great when you’re seeking to advance in the same industry. But, as a career changer, you want to present yourself as a starter in the industry with the added bonus of experience and transferable skills. 

Highlight Transferable Skills

As an experienced candidate, you have already gained abilities through education and experience. Any skills that can be used in your new career are known as transferable skills.

Transferable skills are mostly soft skills, which are all about your habits, like time management, adaptability and ethical decision-making, and interpersonal skills, which tell an employer how you work with others, like active listening, collaboration and relationship building. 

Yet, hard skills can also be transferable. Think of your technical proficiency, research, graphic design, project management and data analysis, among many others. These skills might be used differently across industries, but you already have the knowledge of how to use them, which makes them a valuable asset for your resume. 

Showcasing Your Achievements and Experience

Make your work history work for your new career by tailoring your quantifiable achievements to the new industry. 

Take a look at this example of a chef seeking to become a food critic:

In this role, the chef also had supervisory responsibilities and inventory management among their achievements. However, those achievements were irrelevant to the career change the candidate was seeking. Instead, they only included achievements showing their transferable skills relevant to the role.

Feature your relevant education 

The education section of a career change resume can help you highlight your interest in a new field, even if your degree is not the norm for the career. In this example, the candidate has a degree in mathematics, with relevant coursework and projects related to data visualization and data analytics. The candidate could be an actuary looking for a new role as a business intelligence analyst. 

If your education is not relevant to the role, include it at the end of the resume and keep it simple: degree, school name and graduation year. 

Include additional optional sections

A career change resume benefits from additional sections that show your interest in the role has been in the works. Plus, you can demonstrate more skills and experience to stand out from other candidates. 

• Certifications relevant to the new industry.
• Volunteer experiences that show additional skills and separate you from other candidates.
• Professional development, like trainings, workshops and other courses. 
• Hobbies, which should only be included if relevant to the particular role. Think of an A.V. teacher who is an avid photographer seeking a photojournalist role. 

Why You Need a Career Change Resume

A resume is a marketing tool for your career. To attract the attention of hiring managers and recruiters, you need to show them what you bring to the table. In addition to networking, a career change resume allows you to formally introduce your qualifications. 

Creating a resume for a career change shows you’ve done your research into this industry and have enough knowledge to not only present yourself but present your skills as an asset to the employer. Plus, a well-written professional resume shows your commitment and willingness to learn as a newcomer in the role you’re seeking. A resume builder provides expert content suggestions, tailored to your industry and career level. You can adapt the builder's suggestions to your personal  and customize the resume for your new career.

Career Change Resume Examples

Here are five examples of career change resumes. Each resume features quantifiable accomplishments from their current role that show they have the skills to make it in a new industry. Plus, each resume objective

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In this accountant resume, the candidate is showcasing their strategic thinking to potential employers through:

• A career objective highlighting financial skills that could benefit employers.
• A skills section showcasing their technical skills and soft skills.
• Quantifiable achievements that present a successful career and experience in business.

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This sales resume example focuses on achievements and skills beyond a successful sales track record for a candidate seeking to switch to human resources. It:

• Highlights their interpersonal skills and collaborative nature.
• Shows the knowledge of recruitment that a human resources candidate must have.
• Presents the related education, which can be a requirement from potential employers.

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This graphic designer resume connects Stephen’s background in graphic design with their newly acquired UX design skills. It:

• Presents a certification in UX design, which shows commitment to learning and interest in the field.
• Highlights technical skills useful for a transition into UX design.
• Focuses on Stephen’s ability to grow and commitment to gain more responsabilities.

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This journalist resume example presents a multifaceted career for Martin. This resume is effective for a candidate seeking to transition into public relations because it:

• Highlights their language skills, useful in the communications field.
• Presents Martin’s professional development in digital marketing and crisis communications.
• Focuses on varied quantifiable achievements, showcasing a candidate that has already dipped their toes in the PR field.

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This engineer resume example can help a candidate seeking to transition to a product management career.  It:

• Showcases Marion’s relevant coursework, which will attract the right employer.
• Highlights their leadership through achievements useful in a career in product management.
• Presents skills that are applicable for a career in engineering as well as product management.

Formatting Tips for a Career Change Resume

Common Mistakes to Avoid in Career Change Resumes

Expert Tips for Writing a Career Change Resume

Key Takeaways