How do I make a resume with mostly medical & veterinary experience appeal more to other types of businesses?

Question

I need to make a 2nd version of my resume so I can go after jobs outside the medical & veterinary fields but I'm not sure how or what skills to show/minimize so that prospective employers look beyond the medical & animal work. Should I not list what I've done at these jobs & just try to come up w/the things that transfer or what?!

I do write the cover letter to suit the job I apply for & I might add am very good at writing them. But I'm missing something because I never get called for interviews anymore! I think I lose them when they see my backround on the resume...

Answer 1

For your second version you will want to list the same employers, because they are real and you don't want to omit them...but when you talk about your tasks and duties, focus more on the administrative, accounting, organizational or other tasks you performed rather than the medical/veterinary aspects.
You don't need to minimize skills on the resume, but you will emphasize your skills and experience at what they are looking for. Job clubs and job search coaches actually encourage you to customize your resume for every job you apply for.
Try sitting down with no judgement or editing and make a list of all the things you've done for your various employers - I mean all of them, big or small, important or not - no judgement, no editing, just write.
Then use those lists when customizing your resume, you can choose what to highlight and focus on.
Good luck and best wishes!

Answer 2

You ask questions I address in my upcoming book entitled "Think Like an Interviewer: Your job-hunting guide to success."

With your resume, you need to identify what we call transferrable skills. Those are ones which are used in different fields and professions. For instance, customer service is customer service! The only difference is the customers to whom you provide that service.

With veterinary, you provide service to pet owners. Well in business, you provide service to clients and business customers. Same goes for scheduling appointments. With viterinary, you schedule check-ups, exams, etc. In business, you schedule appointments, meetings, etc. But calendering and scheduling is basically the same. The only difference is the purpose of the meeting being scheduled.

So what you need to do is look at everything you've done in your work that is somehow related to what you might do elsehere. Those would be your transferrable skills.

In your cover letter, you'd focus primarily on your transferrable skills so an employer knows you've got some experience and knowledge of how business works.

Answer 3

Do only a one page resume. Most employers do not enjoy looking at more than one page. Where you will get their interest, should be in your cover letter. I've gone outside of my legal field, although my resume lists legal employment more than anything else. In my cover letter I wrote " As you will note, most of my experience is in the legal field. However, because of my level of experience and human resource skills, I believe I may be an asset to your organization."

You don't have to word it exactly like that, but I think you should sell yourself in the cover letter so prospective employers don't dismiss your resume.

Good Luck!

Answer 4

Keep what you have, but try to highlight those transferable skills. Also, make sure to submit a cover letter that is tailored to the job description.

Good luck :)