Fantastic Substitute Teacher Resume Examples for You to Use

Highlight your skills and experience as an educator by creating an excellent substitute teacher resume. Follow substitute teacher resume examples found on ResumeHelp.

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Table of Contents

  1. Substitute Teacher Resume Example
  2. How to Write a Resume for a Substitute Teacher
    1. What to Highlight in a Substitute Teacher Resume?
    2. The Structure of a Substitute Teacher Resume Example
    3. Do’s and Don’ts for a Substitute Teacher Resume
  3. FAQ: Substitute Teacher Resumes

Substitute Teacher Resume Example

Substitute Teacher Resume Example RH 1 min

How to Write a Resume for a Substitute Teacher

Substitute teaching is an important role these days and is on the rise. As schools across the U.S. face a shortage of regular teachers, many schools turn to sub teachers to take care of their students needs. Substitute teachers must follow lesson plans, demonstrate classroom management skills and ensure student progress.
 
Whether the role is for a short-term or long-term substitute teacher position, a professional resume will show you have the key competencies to fill in and continue student learning while preserving the ideal learning environment of the school.

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What to Highlight in a Substitute Teacher Resume?

The best substitute teacher resume will impress a  recruiter with the right qualifications. Therefore, you must establish your skills and experience and an awareness of up-to-date learning theory and teaching practices.
 
It is critical to tailor your resume from a substitute teacher resume example. Whether you’re planning to substitute teach at a  high school, middle school or elementary school, teachers need to have multi-faceted skills like providing student engagement across multiple age groups. The perfect resume for a substitute teacher will demonstrate possessing this expertise and many more.

The Structure of a Substitute Teacher Resume Example

In terms of resume format, the sections of your resume stay the same – header, resume summary or resume objective, skills, work experience and education. However, the position of those elements varies among the formats. There are three different formats you can select from. These are the chronological format which emphasizes work history, the functional format which emphasizes skills and the combination format which emphasizes both
 
Header 
 
The header is always at the top of your resume, regardless of format. This is the first thing the hiring manager sees. It should contain your full name and basic contact information including phone number and email address. It is critical to make it as convenient as possible for a hiring manager to contact you for an interview. It is also suggested that in this section, you add links to any of your job networking profiles like LinkedIn.
 
Resume Summary or Objective
 
The resume summary or resume objective is in this section. A resume summary is a short, concise overview of your career background and what you can offer the school. This should be no longer than three sentences. Think of it as a tagline supporting your header, providing an overview while highlighting any specialties.
 
A resume objective is a brief statement that communicates your career goals. If you have less experience as a substitute teacher, then this may be the better option.
 
Skills
 
Being a substitute teacher is a challenging role requiring a broad skillset. Use your resume skills section to highlight the key hard and soft skills that you can use in this role. Hiring managers should see exactly why you will be an asset to the school.
 
Consider featuring these skills on your resume :

  • Classroom management skills
  • Knowledge of relevant learning theory
  • Time management 
  • Specialist knowledge like special education needs
  • Interpersonal and communication skills 
  • Special subject areas like social studies, math, language or sciences
  •  
  • Microsoft Office proficiency
  • Lesson or classroom creativity
  • First aid/CPR
  • Language skills such as English, Spanish, French, German or others

Highlight the skills that will show you have the background knowledge and personality traits to take over the classroom. Schools need to trust that they can take over without compromising teaching quality.

 
Work Experience
 
List your previous relevant experience in reverse chronological order in this  section. Briefly describe your responsibilities. Focus on any roles within education, paying particularly close attention to roles within similar grade levels to the job you are applying for.
 
If you are an entry-level candidate with no previous substitute teaching experience, then list roles with duties that show transferable skills. This may include tutoring or other relatable jobs. Remember, the emphasis is on showing that you have what it takes to  excel in this substitute teaching job.
 
Education
 
Education and training requirements vary from state to state for substitute teachers. In this section, you must show you have the credentials to teach students  in a classroom setting. This may include highlighting a teaching license in addition to your bachelor’s degree. It is your responsibility to know what is required for your state. Many substitute teacher job descriptions will outline what their minimum requirements are for the position.


Do’s and Don’ts for a Substitute Teacher Resume

The best resume will always follow some basic guidelines. Here are some do’s and don’ts:
 
Do:

  • Take care to edit and review your resume. Double-check for punctuation and spelling errors and make sure the formatting makes it easy to read.
  • Customize your resume for the specific job description. Pay attention to the requirements for the role, and make sure your resume ticks the boxes that the hiring manager is looking for.
  • Show an awareness of specialist teaching knowledge. Demonstrate your teaching expertise through the terminology you use. Include anything that may set you apart – if you have experience with special needs children or previously worked as a teacher assistant.

Don’t:

  • Fill out your experience section with non-relevant roles. Only include what can show transferable skills and help the recruiter draw a line between your experience and the advertised substitute teacher role.
  • Falsify any licenses or qualifications. This wastes everybody’s time. Make sure you are eligible to teach before you apply.
  • Write your resume without any help. That’s what the ResumeHelp resume builder is there for.


FAQ: Substitute Teacher Resumes

Q: What does a substitute teacher do?

A good substitute teacher will seamlessly fit into the classroom in the absence of a full-time teacher. The regular teacher provides lesson plans, and it is the substitute’s responsibility to implement these to ensure learning continues and students progress. Therefore, they must maintain an orderly classroom. The substitute teacher may have extra duties depending on their arrangement with the school.

 

Q: What should a substitute teacher include in their cover letter?

First off, always write a cover letter even if it’s not requested. A cover letter can help provide more detail and a more personal touch. Your substitute teacher cover letter should include a brief introduction followed by some expansion on the main sections of your resume. Remember, it’s still just a prelude to an interview, so don’t overshare. Take a look at our advice for an effective cover letter.

Q: How do I change my substitute teacher resume to apply to different jobs?

Check out our helpful guide to writing a targeted resume. One tip is to address the keywords used in the job description; this will vary from school to school. This will help your resume pass reviews from applicant tracking systems (ATS) that hiring managers use to screen resumes. Using keywords to describe your skills and work experience will also help your resume to stand out to the hiring manager.

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