An atypical career path can be a weakness in a CV, or can work to your advantage, as it shows good adaptability. Don't worry, atypical profiles can interest recruiters because they can be synonymous with great wealth. Here's how to make the most of them...
- How a profile can reveal many assets
- How to restore coherence to an eclectic journey
- Examples of CVs to download to present an atypical career path
- Examples of CVs for a career change
- Taking care of the final stretch: your cover letter
An atypical profile can reveal many assets
Having an atypical career path is always more complex to manage than a classic profile. But when you think about it, it is also (and above all) an opportunity for you to stand out from other candidates with valuable assets:
- Determination : Because job searching is more complicated, it requires a strong personality, and one that doesn't give up. Recruiters know this.
- Versatility : your diverse experiences have given you a wide variety of skills and experiences, which allow you to perform numerous tasks.
- Adaptability : you have had many varied missions, and you have always known how to improvise and learn to meet challenges.
It is up to you to demonstrate that the risk that the recruiter will take will be 100% secure on your side. This is why it is necessary to develop and detail your profile more than other candidates.
Atypical career paths take different forms:
- Is your level of qualification too high, or on the contrary insufficient?
- You started your startup but it failed?
- Are your skills inadequate?
- Do you have any original academic training?
- Have you accumulated many but diverse experiences?
- Are you changing careers?
The important thing is to be able to argue your orientations, to give meaning to your career path and to highlight your strengths. Highlight your most formative experiences and the key skills they have allowed you to develop, such as the ability to communicate, adaptability or creativity.
💡 Good to know
If you have an atypical background that is difficult to highlight on your resume, take inspiration from our professional resume templates. Many examples of original resumes are available to you and ready to fill out in a few minutes.
Bringing coherence back to your atypical career path on your CV
When you have an atypical career path , the most important thing is to highlight your experiences as much as possible , even though they are varied. The more you give substance to your CV, the more the recruiter will be able to get an idea of the opportunities that your profile can bring.
Go through a first long phase of questioning before starting to write your CV , this can help you to flesh out your speech and the coherence of your career. Sometimes, mistakes along the way are the best way to have certainties about your career.
If some of your experiences are too far removed from the position you are applying for, you can highlight the skills or interpersonal skills that they have allowed you to develop and which could be useful to you for this new position.
Examples of CVs to present an atypical career path
A very graphic, atypical CV
In this atypical CV template, we love the highlighting of each of the sections. This allows you to tell the candidate's story well and to draw attention to all the elements of the CV without exception. Professional experiences have been reduced in favor of personal experiences and abilities (via hobbies, skills, training). The design has also been carefully designed to attract the eye. This CV template is ideal for turning your weaknesses into a strength!
📥 Download the atypical CV template
The ideal CV to present an eclectic career
The Timeline resume template is suitable for eclectic career paths that combine various professional experiences. Make your diversity an asset! Rather than simply listing your previous jobs, the positions are presented in a graph to show your rise.
A short description is possible for each of them in order to give more details on the missions carried out, but also on your results. Under the timeline, we also find your training and your diplomas. Flags can be added to symbolize the languages you have learned.
This atypical resume focuses only on the essentials: your experience. It leaves out personal information such as hobbies or soft skills. Your technical skills can be integrated into the descriptive part of the profile or as a complement in the information about your professional experiences.
The design of the CV is neat with graphic elements and modern colors, to catch the eye of the recruiter and mark his attention. The header includes your name, a CV photo, the title of the position sought, your contact details and a description in which to talk about your objectives and add a catchy sentence.
📥 Download this sample resume for your eclectic career
A CV template for unusual profiles
Our unusual CV template offers an original format and an atypical layout that will allow you to stand out from the crowd. Enhance your candidate profile with its modern, almost futuristic design! The information contained in the CV is clear, well-organized, for easier-to-read content.
The resume photo is located in the left corner of the document, highlighted by a multi-colored frame whose hues are associated with distinct categories of your resume. Guidelines join the sections of the resume to give a better overview of your strengths and to catch the eye.
The name of the candidate and the title of the position sought are in the center of two lines leading to professional experiences. Above is the "training" section in which we talk about your diplomas. Below, the skills are highlighted by progress bars with stars. The level of spoken languages is shown by a percentage rate and a graph. A "Profile" section is provided in the first part of the CV, to describe you.
📥 Download the Unusual CV template to stand out
A CV for atypical profiles with many skills
Our easy-to-fill CV template is suitable for all types of candidates and any sector of activity thanks to its professional and classic structure. You don't know how to enhance your eclectic profile? Opt for a safe bet with this airy and well-structured document.
Thanks to linear and square blocks, a feeling of rigor is sent to the recruiter. The conventional layout is made slightly more original by the addition of colored titles that allow the different blocks to stand out without overdoing it.
As with any resume, professional experience is therefore found in the main section. It is large and allows you to include as much information as possible on the missions carried out and your results. Technical or soft skills, training and hobbies are added in a separate column on the right.
The header allows the integration of a catchy phrase to attract the recruiter's attention and make a difference. To go further, adding your professional networks or websites is possible at the bottom right (Linkedin, Instagram, etc.).
📥 Download this easy-to-fill resume template
A CV for long atypical careers
The contemporary CV template is ideal for boosting the career path of an atypical profile. What do we particularly remember? Its very modern design, a well-thought-out structure, different blocks to highlight you and the addition of relevant pictograms that air out the document.
This resume offers a customizable header in which to add your resume photo and a background. Under your name and the job title, the email address is highlighted so that the recruiter can contact you more easily. The main block of the resume concerns professional experiences and leaves you space to detail each of the positions held in the form of a bullet point list: your functions, the missions carried out, the results obtained.
In a separate column, we find your assets such as training, skills (soft or technical) or even languages spoken. The footer is dedicated to your hobbies, highlighted by relevant pictograms.
📥 Download this ideal CV template to stand out
Examples of CVs for a career change
The CV in professional retraining
The Reconversion CV template was designed especially for candidates in professional retraining. Past experiences have been reduced to highlight the latest experience, for example an internship in a company for the position you are seeking. The introductory box is well highlighted and allows you to further emphasize your motivations. For the rest, interests have been deliberately forgotten to highlight your skills and personality. This CV template is available in 3 colors.
📥 Download our retraining CV template
An eclectic resume that offers many options
Are you looking for an eclectic CV that will highlight your past experiences for a career change? Our visual CV template adapts to all career paths and sectors. It highlights your experiences and catches the recruiter's eye thanks to numerous graphic elements and well-thought-out colours!
In the main section of the resume, we first have access to your description. Note your objectives, your strengths, your interest in the position and do not hesitate to add a catchy sentence. Just below, we find your experiences from the most recent to the oldest. They can be detailed using bullet points that will bring your different missions and your results. Finally, a quick summary of your training gives an overview of your curriculum.
The right column is illustrated by your CV photo. Pictograms indicate your contact details, including your email address for a faster response and a link to your website. A first brightly colored graph presents your language level. The second is a cloud of keywords of your soft skills. At the bottom of the page, there are dynamic pie charts that give your technical skills.
📥 Download this ideal CV template to convince
The CV for a good professional summary
This effective CV template is very suitable for a career change since it offers a professional summary of your experiences. Its classic, serious and dynamic design conveys a feeling of efficiency that can only convince your recruiter.
The header, very sober, highlights the title of the position sought and your contact details. The central block of the resume gives an overview of your professional experiences, well separated by lines that air out the document. Additional information can be provided in the form of bullet points (missions, tasks, results). The name of the company is highlighted by a colored title and a pictogram indicates the location.
In a second, more compact column, it is possible to integrate a quote that inspires you to convince the recruiter at a glance. A section gives an overview of your detailed technical skills, then a last one is dedicated to your training and diplomas.
📥 Download this effective CV template for your retraining
A CV for a career change
The structured CV template is based on a professional and well-organized layout that is inspired by the best standards on the market. Reassuring for a future employer, it makes it easier to read and search for your information. This modern CV example can convince your recruiter that you stay up to date with the latest news.
The structure of the CV takes the classic codes of the curriculum vitae and brings them up to date. We therefore find a main section for professional experiences to be detailed and training followed. The languages spoken are highlighted by colored pictograms, clearly visible to make you stand out.
In a separate column, contrasted by a play of colors, we find your main information: the traditional CV photo, your name and the title of the position sought, an “about” section in which to give a short description of your profile, contact details and your skills in the form of level bars.
📥 Download this very professional CV template
The CV for a professional retraining (free model)
This free CV template gets straight to the point to convince the recruiter from the first seconds. It presents your entire career in an efficient, structured and very clear way. A real asset to highlight your atypical profile in professional retraining!
The header and footer offer a slight contrast thanks to a modern and professional colored background. Your main information is thus highlighted: the CV photo, your name, the title of the position sought, your main contact details, your location as well as links to your professional networks and/or your website.
In the central and main section of the document, different blocks indicate your background. The first gives a quick description of your profile and your objectives, the second indicates your main skills. Then we find your education and your level of mastery of spoken languages. Professional experiences are brought to the end of the CV, with a short line to detail them.
📥 Download this CV template to land an interview
Take care with your cover letter to tell your professional story
An atypical career path needs to be told. Use your cover letter to explain the transitions, decisions and path of your career.
If the coherence of your career path may seem difficult to perceive on the resume, the recruiter will have every interest in reading your application letter to find out more or to introduce his discovery. So don't hesitate to take advantage of the format to reserve a paragraph on your original career path.
Many cases of professional reconversion put forward very direct cover letters by becoming aware of the originality of their atypical CV.
A step back that the recruiter may not make and which can be an asset to highlight other things such as greater determination, a decision to move in a clear professional direction from now on.
Don't hide the originality of your professional career, it can be a strength!
