As you advance in your career after completing your UNCG degree, it is not uncommon to want to make a transition to a new career path. In order to make a successful career transition, the following steps will be crucial:

Update Your Resume

For your resume to be most effective, you need to revise it to reflect your skills and experience as they relate to the new field you are seeking to enter. We recommend you review 5-10 job postings for your role of interest and notice the common theme of skills and experience that are required. Review your resume and adapt your bulleted statements to highlight the relevant skills you possess. Your resume should be as customized to the field as possible.

Addressing Experience Gaps

In some instances, the transition you seek to make is to a field where you have very little direct experience. In this case, you need to focus on highlighting your transferable skills. These are skills such as analytical, organizational, leadership, and communications. If you have not used a particular software or worked with a specific type of client, your transferable skills can help a potential employer understand how you will be able to leverage these abilities to quickly learn and implement in the new environment.

Build Your Knowledge

It is important that you display a sincere interest in your desired field. While you may be light in relevant experience, this can be balanced by seeking out opportunities to engage in the industry. Joining relevant professional associations, blogging on topics in the field, and even taking on volunteer community projects where you can demonstrate your skills will show your interest and developing skills within the field.

Expand Your Network

Typically your existing network will skew toward your current field of work. It is essential for you to thoughtfully and intentionally expand your network to include contacts in your target industry. Use LinkedIn to research individuals who are in your desired role. Reach out and schedule coffee chats or phone conversations so you can learn more about their work and how they entered the field. The UNCG Groups on LinkedIn are a great resource for finding professionals who are interested in networking.

The first step of any successful job search is to map out where you’re headed. Our Career Roadmap includes all the important milestones to help prepare you to meet your career goals.

Refer to the Career Roadmap for additional suggestions in developing your professional brand.