Teacher resume critique:
Dear Sara ~
Because you’re moving from sales into teaching, I substantially changed the formatting of your resume.
Generally speaking, when you’re applying for a teaching position it’s best to use a traditional-looking template, such as the "Professional" format that I used. It employs the Times New Roman font resulting in a document that’s not only elegant, but easy to read.
I began your resume by placing your most important contact information (phone number and email) flush left and flush right, respectively. Now, a hiring manager can easily and quickly access this data. I did not include your fax number. Rarely, if ever, are candidates contacted by fax. Also, the inclusion of another number just makes it harder for the hiring manager to locate the one she or he needs.
In the body of the resume I began with the tag, "Education - Driver & Traffic Safety." Now, there is no doubt as to your objective. In the brief paragraph that follows, I summarized and emphasized everything you included in your email that pertains to your job search, including your memberships in the national and state driver safety associations. Here, I also added your Casualty Insurance Agent data. Because you’re obviously well versed in writing auto policies, you also know the dangers of poor driving. Therefore, I feel hiring managers will look at this as a plus on your part.
In the next section, I listed your Certification, Licensure, and Education. Because hiring managers generally skim resumes, it’s important to get the relevant data out as quickly as possible. In addition, resumes geared towards work in education generally have the academics listed before the Work History.
In the Professional Experience section, I condensed some of the data so that it would fit on one page (an industry standard). I did not include your activities as they do little to enhance your candidacy. In US resumes, interests and activities are rarely included. Most often they’re left to the interview process as a way to "break the ice."
All decisions to modify or exclude data were in keeping with the guidelines and standards set forth by the Professional Association of Resume Writers (PARW).
With this tailored resume, you now have a powerful tool that’s well organized and filled with pertinent data, while also being aesthetically pleasing.
It was a pleasure serving you, Sara. Best of luck with your new career focus.
Resume Edge Editor
Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW)
