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A Teacher Resume Needs a Strong Targeted Profile

A Teacher Resume Needs a Strong Targeted Profile

Are you aware you need a strong keyword-rich teaching profile?

The key to winning the job search “game” is getting positively noticed by the recipient – and your teacher resume and cover letter are the tools to use.

Center your attention on your top contribution and feel confident about sharing what you can offer the school. To get the potential school’s attention, you have to individualize your resume to a particular school district or organization.

How to Focus a Resume Without an Objective Statement

This means targeting and emphasizing the required teaching skills and achievements you have for that particular job vacancy. A focused resume will address all of the employer’s needs by concentrating on the particular qualifications that the job requires.

It is best to avoid the use of a resume objective to make a truly fantastic resume. Recruiters and school district hiring managers tend not to like them because they focus on the job seeker’s needs instead of the school district’s needs. Remember, it is all about them, not about what you want. At least not at this stage of the job search.

An objective tells potential districts what type of school community you want to work in and what professional goals you hold for yourself. Even though what you state in your objective may be true, it is irrelevant to the reader.

Although employers will want to know that you indeed want to work in this position, the rest of your education resume and cover letter should convey this. Potential employers by and large really don’t care what you want; they are much more interested in what you can offer them.

Another problem with objectives is that they tend to be very vague and do not hold much meaning. When candidates write objective statements, they tend to be short, single phrases like “want to obtain a high school teaching position.”

When used in this way, it ends up being wasted space in a resume, especially when you can use this information much more effectively as a title at the head of your resume before you start the resume profile.

Alternatives to the Resume Objective

The problem with a resume objective is that they tend not to say anything meaningful. If you still want to provide the employer an introduction to your candidacy, there are other options.

Instead of an objective, use a few positioning statements that clearly outline your strengths and what you have to offer. This will allow the school to see what your value would be immediately and the type of position you wish to secure. We call this a teaching profile or summary, which is located at the top of the resume.

Professional Summary

A professional summary can be used as a kind of teaser that encourages those reading your resume to read more. The great thing about a professional summary is that instead of focusing on what you want from a teaching job or assistant principal job, it summarizes what you can do for the school and how you can contribute to student’s academic success. A strong profile will entice the reader to continue reading your resume more closely.

Put your professional summary on a separate piece of paper as you would a cover letter. It should be a few paragraphs, no more than one page. You can use the professional summary as an opportunity to explain any gaps in employment or other questions that may arise when reading your resume.

Begin your statement by briefly discussing why you want the position available. Tie in your relevant skills and accomplishments, and then lead into your past work experience. Consistently refer back to the current job opening’s needs and how your acquired knowledge can help you fulfill them.

Don’t use the professional statement as an opportunity to tell a long, winding story. Keep it concise and to the point, and remember to proofread after you’re done. Proofread again, and then have a friend read it as well.

Formatting the Professional Summary

The professional statement format should match that of your resume and cover letter — consistency is key. Keep the font to something reasonable and professional and avoid any wild colors or graphics.

We hope this article was helpful. If so, please comment and share below! Candace is always available to assist with any aspect of your job search, including crafting any job search document.

We offer many different resume packages to choose from depending on what you need and your budget. No matter which one you choose, it will get you results!