Are you a person who is looking to switch careers? Finding a job from a different field is not an easy task even if you are well educated. Even if you find a job, you will have to wait a long time for it. Sometimes you need to struggle to find a job quickly. But now you don’t need to worry as we are going to give you great tips to make your career even better with a career change cover letter.
Sample Career Change Cover Letter
What is a career change cover letter?
The career change cover letter is very different from a general cover letter. When changing your career, you should specify in the cover letter the reason for changing your job field. Even if the past jobs are not relevant, you need to briefly explain how you were successful there and what you have achieved. Highlighting your existing skills that can be applied to the new job field (transferable skills) is a key point of a career change cover letter.
According to a recent study, 30% of the workforce changes careers or jobs every 12 month.
What to highlight in a cover letter for career change?
If you are writing a cover letter to change your career, you will need to answer most of the questions a recruiter has with the cover letter. Below are some of the issues that arise for recruiters.
- Why are you changing your career path?
- How do you feel about this new job field?
- Why did you choose us?
- What are your Transferable Skills?
If you describe them well, you may end up with a good career change cover letter. Highlight these answers in your cover letter as much as possible.
How to write a career change cover letter?
You have probably already written many types of cover letters. But you still may not find a cover letter that exactly. So let’s see how to write a career change cover letter correctly without further delay.
Introduce yourself
At the beginning of the cover letter, give a brief explanation of who you are and what you are currently doing. Then explain how you are unique from the other candidates. There is no need to tell your whole life story here. Your goal should be to make an impressive introduction about yourself briefly.
Show your excitement about the new field
When writing a career change cover letter, it is imperative that you highlight your desire for the field in which you wish to shift. Even if it is an entry-level job, say that you are very happy and excited about the opportunity. Then briefly describe the mission of the company you wish to join, its values and so on. The recruiter will then appreciate the applicant as an enthusiastic person who has researched them well.
Explain the reasons for your career transition
One of the most frequently asked questions by an employer in an interview is, “why are you changing your career?”. So if you can answer this question in advance in your cover letter, that’s great.
You might change your careers due to various reasons. So employers want to know what are the reasons for you to move on to a new career. Remember that never mention what caused you to quit your previous job. Because they can often be negative reasons such as:
- Being frustrated about your current job.
- Financial problems.
- The industry in which you work is in a downturn.
- Injury or illness.
But you can describe what you brought here instead, such as:
- Having a desire to come to this field.
- Being inspired by doing a side project.
- The existing skills fit into the new field.
Therefore, if you briefly describe the reasons like above, the recruiter can consider you as a future investment and pay special attention to you, even if you do not have the relevant background and experience.
Highlight your prior achievements
It is also important to describe the accomplishments you have made where you have worked before. Describe how you have achieved sales targets and how you have managed employees and the results you have achieved through them. Then the employer will be convinced that you can work for this company even if you have no relevant experience. Try to summarize at least 2-3 of your greatest accomplishments using numbers.
Emphasize your transferable skills
You might have a lot of soft and hard skills. If you have skills that can be transferred to your new role, do not forget to highlight them in your changing-careers cover letter. That’s the main thing a recruiter expects from a carrier changer. For example, if you need the proficiency of a software that can be used in your new role, remember to include it in both your resume and cover letter.
Here are some examples for transferable skills that you should highlight on your cover letter:
- Teamwork
- Leadership
- Organization and time management
- Listening
- Adaptability
- Interpersonal skills
- Written and verbal communication
- Research and analytical skills
- Numeracy skills
- Personal development
- Information technology skills
- Technical writing
- Budget Management
Show your understanding of the company
Hiring managers are always interested in recruiting people who love their company and respect its culture. Therefore it is better to mention the below things when you write your cover letter.
- What are the good things you see in the company?
- What led you to apply to the company?
- What kind of qualities do you like in people who work in the company?
- How your core values match the values of the company.
But if you want to write a cover letter that successfully answers these questions, you must do a good research about the company. For that, you can use LinkedIn profiles, the company’s website, and the social media profiles of the current employees as sources of information.
Sample Career Change Cover Letter Example (Text Version)
[Full Name]
[Address]
[City, State Zip Code]
[Phone Number]
[Email]
[Current date]
[HR Manager’s Name]
[Company Name]
[Company Address]
[City, State Zip Code]
Dear Jessica,
I am writing this letter to express my sincere interest in the position of Digital Marketing Manager at ABC. I have 5+ years of experience as an ERP consultant and would love to switch into a digital marketing role for a renowned company like yours. I have a lot of transferable skills that can be utilized to succeed in this role. I think my passion is more in the field of marketing than coding. So I think I am very suitable for this post.
Although I am a dev guy, I have closely worked with the marketing team in my previous workplace. There I have dealt with a lot of experience that supports digital marketing skills. Working with the marketing team improved my teamwork skills too. As I worked with the digital marketing team, I learned that the speed of a website and its optimization is a critical factor in SEO. By having worked with a number of such projects, I also gained some level of theoretical knowledge about SEO which is an important aspect of digital marketing.
I am a very good coder and a funny character too. Due to those reasons I was able to win the best employee award twice in the company. I’m always popular inside the organization because I used to take the leadership whenever there is a challenge, and I always motivate the team members in such situations.
If you feel that I am a perfect candidate for the position, feel free to contact me at the given contact information. I would be grateful if you suggest a more appropriate or better opportunity recently vacated in your company.
Yours sincerely,
Matthew Grace
Key Takeaway
A common reason for many people to change their careers is because they are not satisfied with their current company or the job they are currently doing. A recent survey found that about 80% of employees are not happy about their job. Not only that, but also there is a gap between what they are good at and what they are currently doing.
So we should always try to get closer to a job that uses our natural abilities and skills. If you can mix your transferable skills and your passion together in your cover letter you will stand out among the applicants, no matter which background you come from.
If you are transitioning your career to a new chapter, don’t forget to start it with an impressive career change cover letter. Feel free to use our sample cover letter above and free cover letter generator to make your cover letter in no time.
Good luck with your job hunting!
