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Marketing Your Language Skills and International Credentials as a Military Spouse
Many spouses come to military life wanting to work, but they often face difficulty selling companies on their skills and background. The bilingual or multilingual military spouse with international credentials and experience can be a great asset to the right company. Here are some steps to take to effectively market yourself and your skills to land the right job for you.
Target organizations that value diversity. The reality is some organizations and businesses value diversity more than others do. Researching and targeting those organizations can improve your job search outcomes. Often internationally-oriented businesses put a premium on diversity and look to hire employees with a variety of experiences and backgrounds. So, unless you really want to work for a particular company, make a priority of finding organizations that value diversity.
Target organizations that NEED bilingual employees. The 2011 United States Census found that 60.6 million people (21% of the population) speak a language other than English in the home. To meet the needs of those 60.6 million, plenty of career fields NEED employees who speak and write in another language. Education, Government, Business, Law, and Social Services often need individuals who can translate information for their constituents. If your primary and secondary language skills are exceptional, you may be able to leverage them to find employment.
Combine your language background with additional skills to increase your options. Many military spouses come to their new duty station with lots of previous experience and education that can be combined with their knowledge of a language other than English in order to create an excellent candidate for many positions. Someone who is fluent in Spanish and has an accounting background will have a good chance of finding work with a company that does business in Latin America.
Get your credentials evaluated. Some jobs, like teaching, require that a foreign credential evaluation service evaluates degrees and credentials earned outside of the United States. If you received training outside of the United States and your field requires it, make sure to complete this important step.
Translate your experience. All applicants have to talk the talk of the hiring company. On a very simple level, this means submitting an American resume and writing a succinct cover letter. On a more complex level, that means making sure your cover letter, resume, and interview match the expectations of an American audience with attention to language, formalities, and conventions. (MSCCN can help you complete all of these tasks!)
Finding the right position is about finding a match between your goals and talents and the needs of a company. Make your skills work for you so that you can work for the right company!