Blog Post: What Should the Scope of your Job Search Be? Clarifying Transferable vs. Specialized Skills

If you’re in the middle of a job search or you’re thinking about launching one once the economy starts to rebound a bit, you might be struggling to figure out how wide to “cast the net.”

Flexibility, and the ability to identify your transferable skills, is important when you start to plan the scope of your job search – especially in this tough economy. For example, if you were laid off from a financial services position, but you’re only looking for a new financial services position, you may end up looking for a while. It may be time to cast a wider net.

That’s when your transferable skills become very relevant. You may have worked successfully in financial services because you were able to listen attentively, provide effective feedback, accurately perceive nonverbal messages, negotiate, and persuade. All of these transferable skills could be very useful in a position in health care, education, or sales.

There is a 'but' in all this. Clarifying your transferable skills can give you a better sense of what fields you would enjoy working within, but some high-growth fields – health care and the growing green industry are both great examples – do require you have some specialized knowledge to get your foot in the door.

That’s why the programs over at SDSU’s College of Extended Studies focus on the industry-specific knowledge you’ll need to go along with the transferable skills you already have.

For example, starting Sept. 1, you can enroll in their online programs in Medical Transcription + Medical Terminology, Medical Billing and Coding + Medical Terminology, ICD-10 Medical Coding: Preparation and Instruction for Implementation, Emergency Management Training for First Responders, and Administrative Medical Specialist with Medical Billing and Coding + Medical Terminology. They also offer programs to teach you the skills you need to become an Administrative Dental Assistant, Administrative Veterinary Assistant, Certified National Pharmaceutical Representative, or Pharmacy Technician.

These programs focus on specific knowledge you need to enter the heath care field. Pair these with your transferable skills – like gathering information, identifying resources, imagining alternatives, or solving problems – and you might just fond a career you’ll enjoy that also has great growth potential in this, and any, economy. 

All of these programs are approved for Workforce Partnership and Military Spouse funding, so make sure you check whether you’re eligible to receive FREE training.