According to studies on the topic, biculturals, or people who identify with two or more cultures, are said to play an essential role in economic development by starting new ventures.
Bicultural Latina professionals can deliver a competitive edge with their language skills and cultural knowledge and are valuable members of any team, board, or company. Additionally, bicultural Latina entrepreneurs bring unique perspectives to their ventures and networks.
As you spruce up your resume for the new year, make sure to highlight your bicultural Latina skills. These skills go beyond just language; cultural knowledge is also an important asset.
In her book, Best Careers For Bilingual Latinos, Hispanic career development specialist Graciela Kenig says, “When you work in a company that wants to serve a multicultural market, a different perspective is one of the most important strengths you can bring.”
Below are a few tips for improving your resume to spotlight those bicultural skills and catch the eye of recruiters.
4 Key areas to highlight your bicultural Latina skills on your resume
Of course, adding your bicultural skills to the skills section of your resume is the obvious choice. Still, there are other ways you can highlight your cultural knowledge and language skills throughout your entire resume.
- Resume Profile – Your resume profile is the first impression recruiters get. In this summary, you are hoping to catch their eye at a glance, so you should use this section to leverage your bicultural skills to stand out among other applicants. You can mention your bilingual abilities in your introduction and briefly touch on your cultural knowledge.
- Education Section – If you studied abroad, learned a language in school, or participated in other cultural projects, courses, or clubs, you can use your Education section to highlight your bicultural skills further. Include any pertinent information that speaks to your bicultural identity and assets you can offer to your future employer.
- Work Experience Section – Like the previous section, past work experience that utilized your bicultural Latina skills will help you get ahead of the competition. Use this section to spotlight specific projects, past positions, or work experiences where your bicultural identity shined.
- Skills / Language Section – Finally, the Additional Skills and Language sections of your resume are the areas where most will expect to find your bicultural skills. Including them here is vital for recruiters who may only glance at your resume. Quickly spotting your bicultural skills will help when you may be one of many applicants, and standing out fast is necessary.
In this section, include your language proficiency, and you may even wish to have your country of heritage to drive that cultural edge further. Your language section may look like this: Spanish —native (Argentina); English — US (fluent). By including your country of heritage, you also highlight your cultural background, which companies may be interested in when approaching multicultural markets.
Depending on the job description, you might also like to add your citizenship status and years living in the US or your country of origin -if you are a first-generation immigrant. Otherwise, make sure you specify if you are second or third generation and have lived in any other country around the world for more than three months. Experiences of living abroad are well-considered, mainly when you apply for global companies, and it makes sure you position yourself for international promotion opportunities.
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