Emily Said:

Question about writing a cover letter for an Odd Career Change...?

We Answered:

Making a career change is never easy, even at "lower" levels of an organization. In this particular case, you're in good luck because the requirements for an Admin position are usually fairly low (not that it's an easy job).

Believe it or not, cover letters are going out of style, since the internet has caused companies to be deluged with resumes. Sometimes hundreds or thousands for a single position. Since this position will likely get many resumes due to the low requirements, you could probably skip the cover letter altogether.

However, if the company is asking for it specifically, I would just be honest about your reasons for change, which sound perfectly legitimate to me. Try something like this:

"I'm applying for the Administrative Assistant position at XYZ company, because I would like to move to ABC industries for the following reasons - [name your reasons].

"While in my position of Account Executive, I was able to develop several skills which will make me a viable candidate: [name your skills]"

Now your Acct Exec job is an asset, not a burden. It's helped you prepare to be an Admin. Of course you will have to elaborate on this with your own words.

I would like to caution you that no one ever moves up "in a couple of months". If you take this position, be prepared to serve in the role for at least 18-24 months before they consider promoting you. Also, Admins can get easily pigeon-holed, so be careful that you don't turn this into a career if you don't want that.