Transferable Skills Many people do not realize that they have been acquiring a set of skills all their lives that can be used to their advantage in their job search and their career. These skills become more developed and honed over time as people grow older and gain more and more experience. Many people overlook these important skills when it comes to writing a resume, writing a cover letter and interviewing for a job. What are Transferable Skills? They are skills that you have obtained through activities such as jobs, internships, classes, projects, organizations and athletic activities that are transferable to your future career. They are skills that complement your college degree and make you more desirable to employers. If you are looking for a career in a field that you already have experience in then identifying your transferable skills should be quite easy. However, if you do not have experience in the field you are interested in or you are looking for a career change, identifying and portraying your transferable skills will be extremely important. Examples of Transferable Skills Communication: • Speaking effectively • Writing concisely • Listening attentively • Expressing ideas • Facilitating group discussion • Providing appropriate feedback • Negotiating • Perceiving nonverbal messages • Persuading • Reporting information • Describing feelings • Interviewing • Editing Research and Planning: • Forecasting, predicting • Creating ideas • Identifying problems • Imagining alternatives • Identifying resources • Gathering information • Solving problems • Setting goals • Extracting important information • Defining needs • Analyzing • Developing evaluation strategies Human • • • • • • • • •
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Relations: Developing rapport Being sensitive Listening Conveying feelings Providing support for others Motivating Sharing credit Counseling Cooperating
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Delegating with respect Representing others Perceiving feelings, situations Asserting
Organization, Management and Leadership: • Initiating new ideas • Handling details • Coordinating tasks • Managing groups • Delegating responsibility • Teaching • Coaching • Counseling • Promoting change • Selling ideas or products • Decision making with others • Managing conflict Work Survival: • Implementing decisions • Cooperating • Enforcing policies • Being punctual • Managing time • Attending to detail • Meeting goals • Enlisting help • Accepting responsibility • Setting and meeting deadlines • Organizing • Making decisions (From www.quintcareers.com) Using Transferable Skills in Your Job Search For each experience on your resume think about how you can emphasize your transferable skills and make them relevant to the job you are applying for, even if the experience is unrelated. If you can’t show how a skill supports what you want to do then leave it out. Be sure to do the same thing in your cover letter. Then, when you get the interview, you will continue to highlight your transferable skills. Examples of Showing Transferable Skills in a Resume Portraying a receptionist position as being applicable to the field of finance • Proved ability to deal with a wide range of individuals, including high-net-worth investors and institutional money manager, in a stressful and time-sensitive environment. • Gained knowledge of financial markets and instruments, especially stocks, bonds, futures and options. Portraying a server position as being applicable to the field of marketing • Acted as a "sales representative" for the restaurant, selling add-ons and extras to achieve one of the highest per-ticket and per-night sales averages. • Prioritized and juggled dozens of simultaneous responsibilities. • Built loyal clientele of regulars in addition to tourist trade.
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