A resume is the most crucial element of your job search because employers get an idea about your skills and qualities from the resume. A good resume can help you to make an excellent first impression and increase your chance of getting calls for an interview. But to do so, your resume must stand out from the crowd first. How to do it then? The best possible way of doing it is by highlighting your skills, experience and qualities. However, many candidates feel confused about which skills they should include on their resumes. Especially when someone applies for the position of a teacher, they do not understand what skills they should put on their resume. This blog will shed light on the list of skills to put on the resume for a teacher. You can also read “Job Interview FAQs: 15 Common Interview Questions and Answers“.
Skills to Put on Resume for a Teacher (List + Example)
Most job seekers make the common mistake of sending the same resume for all kinds of jobs. As a job seeker, you must keep in mind that different jobs require different sets of skills. So, while applying for a job, you should read the Job Description (JD) first and customize your resume according to the requirements of that particular position. For example, when you are applying for a teacher, you must put some teaching-related skills on your resume. If you do not know what kind of skills you should put on your resume for teaching, this blog will help you. Here are the top 13 skills to put on the resume for a teacher.
Technology Skills
Nowadays, technology skills are the most essential even for a teacher. Technology is an important component of society in today’s world. As a result, you should highlight your knowledge of technology on your resume and your ability to incorporate it into your lesson plans. You can mention your proficiency in five basic technological skills on your resume as a teacher.
i) Learning Management System (LMS)
Online learning trend is becoming popular more and more, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. As the trend of online learning grows, so does the need for Learning Management System (LMS). Therefore, if you want to prove yourself more competent than others as a teacher, you must have the skills of LMS.
ii) Presentation Software
A teacher should be prudent in making presentation slides and presenting them in the class. There are several presentation-making software. Probably Microsoft PowerPoint is the most popular one. Besides MS PowerPoint, Google Slide, Visme, Prezi, Keynote, Canva, Ludus, Slidebean, Zoho Show, Beautiful.ai, Genially, FlowVella, Haiku Deck, Microsoft Sway, etc. are also popular to the users.
iii) Word Processing Software
A teacher has to create different content, spreadsheets, etc., for his or her students. To do so, they must have the skills of basic word processing software. As a word processing software, Microsoft Word is perhaps the most popular one, but there are others also. Some of the commonly used word processing software are – AbiWord, Apache OpenOffice Writer, Google Docs, Calligra Words, EtherPad, GNU TeXmacs, Groff, KWord, LibreOffice Writer, etc.
iv) Emails
Email is one of the most commonly used tools for formal communication. Teachers use email to communicate with the students, share study materials, circulate announcements, and many other purposes. Therefore, a teacher must have excellent proficiency in creating and sending individual and group emails also organizing their inbox according to their needs.
v) Search engines
A teacher has to have proficiency on search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, Baidu, AOL, Ask.com, Excite, DuckDuckGo, Lycos etc. It will help them to find certain websites download digital files for preparing study materials for the students.
Communication Skills
Good communication skills are mandatory for the teachers. Teachers have to communicate with different people like students, parents, management etc. Various forms of communication as used to communicate with different stakeholders. Therefore, a teacher must have excellent proficiency in all forms of communication, e.g. writing, speaking and listening.
i) Writing
Teachers have to write lesson plans, comments on students assignments/exam papers, and home notes for parents. Therefore, they must possess excellent writing skills. Demonstrating your writing skills on your resume will definitely give you some extra points to be shortlisted for viva. Moreover, you should write your resume in such a way that your CV itself proves your writing skill to your employers.
ii) Speaking
Teachers should possess good verbal communication skills as they speak during the lecture. They also speak with parents during parent meetings. Moreover, they speak with the administrators regarding various matters. So, while sending your CV, you must highlight your excellent verbal communication skills.
iii) Listening
Delivering lectures is not one-way communication. The best teachers always get feedback from their students. A good teacher always encourages questions and have an open-ended discussion during the class. So, it is very essential for a teacher to have good listening skills.
Interpersonal & Soft Skills
The personality of a teacher is very important because the students will follow the behavior of the teacher. Interpersonal skills are the behavioral and emotional excellence of an individual especially when they communicate with others at their workplace. A teacher can put the following interpersonal and soft skills on his or her resume –
i) Patience
Patience is really important, especially when you are teaching kids. Sometimes, children may be obstinate and rude. But you have to deal with the situation with patience because if you are impatient, the situation can be worse.
ii) Leadership
A teacher should possess excellent leadership qualities. They should be an idol for their students and guide the students to be a future leader. Leadership skills will add some extra value to your resume.
iii) Passion
On your resume, you should mention that you really love this job. Without any explicit remarks, your real concern for students and enthusiasm for teaching should show through in your CV.
iv) Continuous Learning
Teaching is a profession of continuous learning. Good teachers do not stop learning and sharing knowledge with their students. Your resume should reflect a dedication to lifelong learning, self-improvement, and a teachable mindset.
v) Cheerfulness
You should enjoy your education. Good teachers are always cheerful in class and help students. Your cheerfulness towards teaching should be reflected on your resume.
Subject Specific Skills
Apart from technological and interpersonal skills, you should mention your subject-specific skills on your resume. For example, if you are a mathematics teacher you should mention your skills and qualifications related to mathematics, if you are a history teacher your knowledge and history should be mentioned on your resume and if you are a programming teacher you should highlight your programming skills on your resume and so on.
Summary: Skills on Resume for Teacher
Over time, the teaching profession will require new skills. Therefore, you have to equip yourself with new skills and update your resume accordingly. For example, the knowledge of Online Learning Management was not necessary in the past, but now especially in post COVID era, it has become one of the essential skills for a teacher. As I mentioned earlier, teaching is a profession of continuous learning. So you have to uplift yourself with new skills and knowledge as time demands and put these newly learned skills on your resume.