APS Level 5 Statement of Claim and Professional Resume by Shelley H.

The client worked as a Registered Nurse in hospitals and the Department of Defence for more than 30 years. At the stage in her career where she was looking to transition into a less physically demanding role while still utilising her extensive clinical care skills and knowledge, she was applying for an APS Level 5 role with the Ageing and Aged Care Group. Various roles were available within the Group, comprising similar key responsibilities such as drafting and coordinating a range of documents for the Executive, Minister and stakeholders, supporting effective relationships with key internal and external stakeholders, and assisting with various tasks to support the relevant section to achieve its goals and supporting the development of new policy proposals. To apply for this role, the client was required to provide a statement of claims (maximum one page) outlining their skills and experience and ability to meet the following key capabilities of the role;

• Well-developed written and oral communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate information coherently and concisely to a range of audiences.
• Demonstrated skills in time management and an ability to show initiative and successfully manage competing priorities and projects.
• Demonstrated ability to take personal responsibility to progress work and contribute to team performance, productivity and accountability for outcomes.
• Strong problem-solving skills.

To put together this application, I engaged the client in a discussion about her transferable skills and experience and extracted a specific example that demonstrated each of the requirements. I ensured that she provided me with a clear Situation, Task, Action and Result for each example to enable me to put together the responses using the STAR model. Because of the limit of one page, we decided collaboratively to present the information in short and concise paragraphs that addressed each of the requirements and reflected the APS Work Level Standards. I also used keywords and a similar language and input additional information to show that she was uniquely positioned to add immediate value to the Group through her thorough clinical knowledge.

As a result of my expert guidance during the consultation, the client extended her order to refresh her resume. Focusing on the most transferable skills and experience and highlighting the client’s career-defining achievements, we transformed her 15-page resume into a concise, high-impact three-page professional resume. The final version captured the client’s nursing expertise and capacity to seamlessly transition into her next career phase in a clean, professional design.

As a result, the client secured an interview for the role and felt confident in conveying her fit for the role and public service.