Below is a full career change resume example, three summary examples, and a list of transferable skills. A career change resume works best when it puts the skills and projects that fit the new field first, then shows your past roles in the new field's language.
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Career change resume example
This example was written by Resume Studio for this page. The name, schools, employers, and numbers are made up. Use it for structure and wording, then replace every detail with your own.
Example resume: Rachel Kim
Teacher moving into Instructional Design | Denver, CO | rachel.kim@example.com | (555) 010-9025
Summary
Middle school science teacher with 7 years of experience moving into instructional design. Designs lessons around clear learning goals, builds online modules in Articulate Rise, and uses assessment data to improve them. Completed a certificate in instructional design in 2026.
Relevant Skills
- Learning design: learning objectives, storyboards, assessments, ADDIE
- Tools: Articulate Rise, Canva, Google Classroom, Loom
- Data: quiz results, survey feedback, simple Excel reports
Instructional Design Projects
- Built a 4-module onboarding course for a local nonprofit's 30 volunteers in Articulate Rise
- Redesigned a 6-week science unit as self-paced lessons with short videos and checks
Science Teacher, Grades 6 to 8 | Public Middle School | 2019 to Present
- Plans and delivers lessons for 140 students a year across 5 classes
- Created a shared lab safety module that 4 teachers now use
- Trained 6 colleagues on Google Classroom during the move to online learning
Education and credentials
Instructional Design Certificate | Online University Program | 2026
B.S. Biology | State University | 2018
Career change resume summary examples
Pick the one closest to your situation and rewrite it with your own details.
Career change summary into tech
Customer support lead with 5 years of experience moving into a data analyst role. Built SQL reports on ticket trends and a Tableau dashboard the support team uses weekly. Completed a data analytics certificate in 2026.
Career change summary into project management
Restaurant general manager with 8 years of experience running teams of 25 and budgets above $1M, moving into project management. Plans schedules, manages vendors, and keeps work on track under pressure. CAPM certified.
Career change summary into healthcare
Retail manager completing a medical assistant program, with 120 clinical externship hours. Brings calm customer care, scheduling, and cash handling to a front-office role.
How to write a career change resume
- Use a hybrid layout: summary, relevant skills, relevant projects, then work history.
- Name the new role in your summary and say what you bring from the old one.
- Rewrite past bullets in the new field's words, and keep the ones that transfer.
- Add courses, certificates, and side projects that show the new skills.
- Cut details that only matter in your old field.
Career change resume skills and keywords
Only list skills you really have, and use the exact wording from the job post.
Transferable skills
- Project planning and deadlines
- Training and explaining complex topics
- Customer and stakeholder communication
- Budgets, scheduling, and vendor management
- Data and reporting
New field skills to show
- Tools named in the job post that you have used in a course or project
- Certificates you have finished or are close to finishing
- Portfolio pieces or case studies
Keywords that often appear in career change job posts
- transferable skills, cross-functional, adaptable
- stakeholder management, problem solving
- the core tools and methods of the new field
How to tailor this career change resume example
- Use the exact job title from the posting in your summary.
- Put the project closest to the new role right after your skills.
- Keep one or two strong bullets per past job, written for the new field.
- Paste your draft into the free ATS checker on this site for a score and your top 3 fixes. It uses no credit.
Frequently asked questions
How do I write a resume for a career change?
Use a hybrid layout with a summary that names the new role, a relevant skills section, projects or courses in the new field, and then your work history rewritten in the new field's words.
What is the best resume format for a career change?
A hybrid or combination format usually works best. It leads with skills and relevant projects but still lists your jobs with dates, so the reader can see your full work history.
Should I include unrelated jobs on a career change resume?
Yes, but keep them short. List the title, employer, and dates, and keep one or two bullets that show skills the new role needs.
How do I show transferable skills on my resume?
Name the skill in the new field's language, then prove it with a bullet from your past work, such as training staff, managing a budget, or building a report.
Should I write a cover letter for a career change?
Yes. A short cover letter is the best place to explain why you are changing fields and how your past work fits the new role. Resume Studio can draft one from the job post with 1 free credit.
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