Kerry West ⋅ Herndon, VA Accenture ⋅ 13 years experience

Colonel Kuilan:

In the civilian world what we look for is agility and ability to relate to the common man. Unfortunately, Many folks see PhD and they think of slow, thoughtful and non-realistic corporate ability. (Please do not shoot the messenger).

With that stated, I would suggest somehow linking your academic expertise to non academic ventures, such as commercial clients or military commands will beef up their confidence in your agility. This will reflect absolute ability to work outside of academia. Someplace else you may wish to consider are consulting firms who appreciate your strategic and academic insite and expertise. Sometomes it is easier to make the leap from academia to consulting and then to business.

Best regards,
Kerry A. West
Talent and Organization
Accenture Federal Services
CAPT Kerry A. West, USN
kerry.a.west@accenturefederal.com

Sherry Finkel Murphy, MS, RICP ⋅ Saratoga Springs, NY Northwestern Mutual ⋅ 25 years experience

Hi Susie,

First answer: Do NOT eliminate the PhD or any other hard earned credential. And please do NOT be anything other than who you are...no dumbing down. Very old or irrelevant jobs may be omitted; but resumes and LinkedIn profiles must match and contain verifiable info.

There are two things I'd like you to consider: First, rework your LinkedIn summary to include, not only what you have done, but a statement of what you *can do* for a prospective employer. Second, on your resume summary, indicate what your superior educational credentials can offer an organization--in other words, how they can position it to their benefit to hire a doctoral-caliber employee. You can sell them on your ability to do the role required AND to use your background to develop better solutions to problems etc.

Please remember that credentials give you confidence and confidence gets you a job. You don't have to "fit" a job description. You can create a job description that suits your capabilities and market *that* to employers. It's the best way to get both a position *and* do something at which you both excel and enjoy.

Best regards,
Sherry Finkel Murphy
Business Unit Executive, NA Channels
IBM Business Analytics
www.linkedin.com/pub/sherry-finkel-murphy/1/778/807/

Kevin Wiley ⋅ Kingston, WA Ameriprise Financial ⋅ 4 years experience

Colonel Kuilan,

I think dumb-down is not quite the term but more over tayloring to the position in which you are applying, each job posting has a description and every company has terms that would be more appropriate for them. If you would like to send me what you have I would be glad to look as well.

Kevin Wiley
Financial Advisor

Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
2011 NW Myhre Road, Suite 301
Silverdale WA 98383
Office 360 613 1975
Fax 360 613 1992
TF 800 447 6021
Kevin.wiley@morganstanley.com

Bill Nobles ⋅ Basking Ridge, NJ Exxon ⋅ 30 years experience

Susie, I wonder whether you are asking the right question. The employment transition you seek into the private sector is unusual in many ways, so your resume must be carefully prepared to grab the reader's attention quickly. It needs to start with an "elevator speech" as to why Susie Kuilan is an ideal candidate for the position for which you are applying. Only if your educational credentials specially qualify you for that position should those be mentioned in the opening. The website https://h2h.jobs provides some good advice on resume preparation as well as examples.

As to salary your Wal-Mart contact may be hinting that your PHD adds financial value to very few corporate positions outside the research field. Corporate salary levels are determined by the market not education level—i.e. the salary level required to attract and retain qualified individuals.

If you can use a sounding board to help think through these issues I will be happy to chat; just email me at billnobles@optonline.net to agree on a convenient time.

Good luck, Bill

Andy Lewis ⋅ Denver, CO Hewlett Packard ⋅ 20 years experience

I always list my education as the last item on my resume. I try to make my degree reflect who I am, so mine says "Graduated 2 semesters early while working and playing varsity sports." The message I'm trying to send is 1) I've got a strong work-ethic, 2) I didn't goof off while achieving the degree, and 3) I can deliver good results early despite multiple competing demands.
If you were doing something else while earning your degrees, even if it was volunteer work, consider how you can incorporate that into the message you're trying to send.
Another thought is to transition by starting to teach at a commercial college such as the U of Phoenix. Someplace that emphasises experience and doesn't have tenure.
Good luck!

Jeanne Mosher ⋅ Louisville, CO Hewlett Packard ⋅ 15 years experience

Hi Susie, I think you have a lot of good perspectives represented here, but let me share mine as well. I too have a Ph.D. and a masters. My degrees are in Sociology but about 15 years ago, I moved into a corporate job which I got through a temp. agency. In that position I was doing something simple I knew how to do, web design, and in that temp hiring process my academic backround didn't come up. When I decided to stay in the corporate world, I was able to get a permanent position from the manager with whom I had been working. But, when I tried to advance within the company, I found that Ph.D. kept causing me problems. It really intimidated hiring managers and other employees. They didn't know what to do with me, and they were sure I was "too smart" for whatever job I was applying for. I did remove my Ph.D. from my resume at that time, and I found that made a big difference and I was able to show people my skill and passion for project management once they didn't have that barrier to taking a really good look at who I was.

Labels are innevitable in this process, and in some ways having that level of educational attainment is a label that can lead to a perception that you don't want. But, do remember that taking your Ph.D. and/or masters degrees off your resume doesn't diminish you or your accomplishments. And later on, you can add them back in, once you have the time in a corporate job where people have a lot of other experiences with you and won't find it so unusual or off-putting. I added my Ph.D. back to my resume after about 5 years in the corporate world. I'll admit I was glad to feel secure enough in my reputation here to do that.

I know I'm contradicting some of the others in this thread, and they have good points. Taking that off your resume, even just for one job, is not a good feeling. But, if you keep feeling or hearing feadback that it's putting hiring managers off, then consider trying an application or two without it and see if there is a difference in reception.

Margot Sechler ⋅ Houston, TX Hewlett Packard ⋅ 22 years experience

Hi Susie - do not minimize your value. By 'dumbing-down' your resume that is what you do. So - I suggest to look at sample resume's that are available on line, understand how your past experiences can be legeraged to move into different professions (dependant what you are looking for) and tailor your resume dependant on the postion. Use proactive words like: developed, created, implemented, etc. But you have great experience - use it! Good luck, Margot

Lin Stin ⋅ Herndon, VA ⋅ 1 years experience

Hi there,

Don't defeat yourself by dumbing down anything. What I have learned is to create resumes that are specific to an industry in order to get better responses. Sometimes you may need more than one type of resume to break into a type of industry.

My background is a librarian (public, academic, corporate etc) so when I was looking for librarian jobs I did not send a generic resume. After many rejections and half-baked responses from potential employers, I learned through trial and error and networking, that I needed to craft my resume accordingly. So if I wanted to work in a public l ibrary I would craft it so that my experience showed all of my public experience up front and then non-public at the end. Sometimes I would leave off non-public experiences all together, depending on the nature of the job.

Other times, I wanted to break out of library science and set into market research for a corporation so I learned to use, sparingly, my library degree and experiences, and called out more market research type of work that I performed in library/non-library settings. It takes some work but it is worth crafting and adjusting several resumes. Most hiring managers will appreciate that you are able to leverage your past into their current needs. You have to be able to show that you are flexible, adaptable in the work environment. Remember not to embellish your experiences but learn to use the proper industry terms that reflect what you've done in your past. They can always leverage your own appropriate experiences, background whenever possible, into the industry you want to get into. Just be patient and really zero in on keywords that are appropriate for your particular industry.

Good luck

Julie Mouganis ⋅ Nokesville, VA Hewlett Packard ⋅ 30 years experience

I am a firm believer in recomposing your resume for the position you are interviewing for. If the position you are applying for specifically requires certain talents or experience, highlight whatever you can that is a prerequisite in the mind of the employer, and understate anything that is less critical to the job at hand.

Denise Reed Lamoreaux ⋅ Rochester, NY Hewlett Packard ⋅ 26 years experience

My advice: keep the information on your resume. Take a look at whether the experiences you highlight accurately reflect those of the position you're applying for. In other words, if you're applying for a position as an underwater basket weaver, your experiences need to be related to that job, not to a job as cheif cook and bottle washer, as experiences are what an interviewer actually looks at when reviewing resumes.

James Voss ⋅ Kingston, NH General Electric ⋅ 44 years experience

Col Kuilan,
It is my opinion to not 'dumb-it-down'.
While you are most likely writing the resume to show your particular set of skills you have for the position, that is the information you will want to bring to the interview. What HR (todays world) does is use a 'search engine'. Now, of course I cannot know what "buzz" words they may be looking for, each business is different, but the facts are- that's what they do. They don't have to know anything about the position, but their job is to compile a few of the "most Qualified" candidates who will be notified to come for the interview. No matter HOW qualified you are, if you do not get past the electronic search engine- you won't hear a thing.
COPY the job description and PLUG it in your cover letter. Don't leave it like that. But that should be the starting point to meet the inquiry for the search engine. For each of the job requirements, briefly tell them how or why you are qualified. When you get the interview, the Resume you have is what the hiring manager will want to talk to you about.
All the Best
James Voss
Colonel (Army National Guard (Ret)

Scott Lackey ⋅ New York, NY Jugular ⋅ 25 years experience

Susie:

You've received a number of excellent suggestions above which you should put into motion.

I'll add one thing. I have an MA and ABD in English and some years of teaching experience. I successfully moved into a corporate writing position, then advertising agency management positions because my education background was seen as relevant and useful.

I'd identify companies where one or more of your three degrees will be seen as valuable to the company.

Make sure, on individual resumes and cover letters, to do enough research to relate your education to their company with the type of detail that shows that you understand their business and exactly how you could make a contribution.

Any questions or ideas, please check back in.

Good luck,
Scott Lackey

Bob Borek ⋅ North Reading, MA General Electric ⋅ 44 years experience

Colonel Kuilan,
I've not been in HR but have many years as a hiring manager. Don't drop any academic achievements you've done the work, deserve the credit. Do focus on your skills and abilities and how they would benefit a potential employer...Team building, problem solving, etc. Be prepared to discuss your contributions to particular activities that display your skills. Lot's of good thoughts in previous notes.

Bob Borek