How to Translate Job Experience Across Countries and Industries
The biggest fear about moving abroad is FAKE
If you've lived and worked abroad before, or you've not done it yet but are planning on it, knowing how to translate your work skills across industries and countries is important.
I know something that holds some people back from making a big move abroad is the worry that job experience abroad won’t be accepted back in your home country or in another country that you move to in the future.
This is one of the biggest misconceptions about moving and working abroad.
I have found that it's the exact opposite. People tend to be captivated and interested at international work experience. They can see value beyond even the work part, and in the personality and persistence that living abroad requires.
How do I translate my work and life abroad to future employers?
So let’s say you’re like me and you spent two years being an English teaching assistant in Spain and after that you move to Australia and are applying for office jobs. How is it possible to make my teaching experience seem relevant to office jobs in Australia? Don’t fret, not only is it possible, but you can make your resume stand out.
Using mine as an example I’ll go through my key responsibilities in Spain first:
Preparing lesson plans in English to teach cultural and grammatical lessons to kids ranging from age 5-13
Coordinating with teachers to decide on lesson plans, tests, and student progress
Working with students on their grammar and speaking skills
You may think, ok that’s all fine and dandy for teaching jobs, but how can I translate that to another role in another country?
Focus on the universal skills that you learned in your position
Organization, preparing presentations, communication across language barriers, Microsoft suite skills, etc.
Emphasize how international work improved your skills
Working across language or cultural barriers is such a great personal development tool. I learned how to communicate clearly, ask the right questions to get to the root of issues, make bonds across language and culture, and so much more. The positives are abundant and if communicated clearly, will make you as a candidate much stronger.
Pick the right verbs to put in your resume and CV
Choose strong verbs to describe your experience and skills.
Understand your international value and don’t be afraid to apply for jobs that your aren’t fully qualified for
Living and working abroad is such a big test. I believe that if you can do that somewhat successfully, you can do most things. You can learn on the job, your learned how to find a doctor in [insert foreign county]! Trust your skills and go BIG. You never know what you maybe be capable of.
SO now let’s take my skills from teaching English in Spain and translate them to office jobs working in social media or marketing in Australia.
Pre:
Preparing lesson plans in English to teach cultural and grammatical lessons to kids ranging from age 5-13
Post:
Developed and executed engaging lesson plans for different audiences, ensuring clarity and cultural relevance.
Pre:
Coordinating with teachers to decide on lesson plans, tests, and student progress
Post:
Coordinated with team members to align on weekly plans and execute successfully on long term goals.
Pre:
Working with students on their grammar and speaking skills
Post:
Enhanced community engagement through personalized support and effective communication.
This can be apple for your experience and given that I indeed landed a role in Australia, with that experience and my other freelancing experiences, you can definitely do it also.
Beyond translating your skills abroad, I also suggest pursuing a side hustle in a skill that you can add to your resume and keep no matter where you move. For me, I have worked as a podcast producer and manager and been able to develop that skill and pull upon it when applying for full time positions.
So if you have been contemplating moving abroad, but scared of the implications it would have on your career, don’t let that stop you because you will gain so many unique and powerful skills from moving and working abroad.
