Teaching Assistant Resume Job Description and Sample
The teaching assistant resume examples and writing guide on this page will show you how to highlight your education, certifications, skills and experience in your resume.
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Teaching assistant resume example
Use this teaching assistant resume sample and the key writing tips on this page to make your own strong resume.
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Teaching assistant job description and responsibilities
A teaching assistant provides support to the head teacher to present lesson plans in a nurturing learning environment in addition to providing academic, motivational and emotional support to the students. While each position role will be tailored to the needs of the specific age group or course, there are typical responsibilities that teaching assistants may be expected to perform.
Responsibilities may include:
- Helping teachers with lesson preparation and instruction.
- Supporting students with lessons in an individual or group setting.
- Supervising students in class, during recess periods and on field trips.
- Grading tests, assignments and projects.
- Managing classroom behavior and procedures.
Four keys to a strong teaching assistant resume
A teacher assistant job candidate needs a resume that demonstrates the ability to provide classroom support to a lead teacher while effectively interacting with students. To write a resume that shows you’re the best candidate for the teacher assistant position, follow these four keys to make your resume more professional:
Match your skills and specialties to the job description
When applying to your dream teaching assistant job, it’s important for you to tailor your resume to the job description stated in the job advertisement. This will ensure that you include the keywords that demonstrate you have the right teacher assistant skills and experience to handle the specific job responsibilities. Keywords determine whether your resume makes it past applicant tracking systems (ATS) programmed by hiring managers to select qualified job candidates. For example, if the teaching assistant resume description requires candidates to “possess a Child Development Associate (CDA) certification” then be sure to highlight that certification (if you have it) in your resume.
Give specific examples of major responsibilities and successes
Since most assistant teachers will possess similar qualifications in a resume summary, skills and work history sections of a resume, you need to feature your most impressive teaching achievements and unique teaching qualities. Word your information in measurable accomplishments like saying, “Assisted music teacher in conducting daily activities for three first grade classes of 20+ students.” Look at the teacher assistant resume examples on this page for how other teachers provide impressive examples of teaching accomplishments.
Show you have the right mix of hard and soft skills
All teachers, whether assistant teachers, student teachers or lead teachers, are required to bring specific hard skills to the classroom like planning and presenting lessons, disciplinary actions and using technology tools to provide effective instruction. However, soft skills like strong communication, presentation, critical thinking, multitasking skills, organization and leadership are also critical. Soft skills (personal qualities) demonstrate how your demeanor and work ethic shapes your teaching style and how well you’ll relate to the students and work with faculty members.
Show off any extra training and credentials you have
Teacher assistants of all levels will be required to have certain teaching certifications (i.e., Level I Teaching Assistant certificate) and qualifications which you’ll need to clearly state on your resume. Read the job postings to see if your extra training (CPR, ESL, foreign language) will help you stand out from other job candidates. Extra training demonstrates your motivation to continue learning in addition to your passion for teaching. Meeting the job requirements is good but showing you exceed the necessary qualifications could impress the prospective school administrator and land you a job interview.
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Action words for a compelling teaching assistant resume
A busy school hiring manager reads many resumes for one open teaching role. While a typical teaching assistant resume will mention work experience as a list of routine, unexciting tasks, the use of action words can energize your accomplishments, skills and experience. The reader of your resume will quickly take note of your action-packed resume summary and work experience sections. For example, “Assisted in developing, planning and presenting appropriate educational activities for 20 three-to-five year-old preschoolers.”).
Take a look at this list of teaching-related action verbs and then read our action words article for more information:
- Taught
- Instructed
- Lectured
- Supervised
- Mentored
- Moderated
- Tutored
- Trained
- Prepared
- Planned
- Motivated
- Personalized
- Reviewed
- Administered
- Supported
- Monitored
- Organized
- Maintained
- Provided
- Introduced
Choose the right format for your resume
The structure of your resume for teaching assistant will depend on the format you choose. There are three resume formats you can choose from so the teacher assistant resume format below that best fits your situation:
Chronological resume format
The chronological resume format is best for an experienced assistant teacher with many years of experience or multiple relevant jobs as it emphasizes the work experience section making career history stand out.
Functional resume format
The functional resume format is best for entry-level teacher assistants and job candidates with less than two years of experience. Unlike the chronological format, this format focuses on teaching skills and education rather than work history, quickly demonstrating your qualifications.
Combination resume format
The combination resume format combines the chronological and functional formats, making it the best choice for teacher assistants with more than three years of experience. This format emphasizes work history and relevant skills.
20 key skills for your teaching assistant resume
Every teaching assistant job role will require a specific set of hard skills and soft skills. Look at the specific teaching assistant job description for the required skills and include those on your resume. Here are skills teaching assistants may want to include in a resume:
- Communication skills
- Problem-solving skills
- Individualized Education Plans (IEPs)
- Lesson/activity planning
- Presentation skills
- Multitasking
- Classroom management skills
- Early childhood development
- Educational technology
- Leadership skills
- Decision-making skills
- Student performance assessments/progress monitoring
- Student safety
- Organizational skills
- Interpersonal skills
- Disciplinary actions
- Small group instruction
- Special education
- Time management
- Tutoring and mentoring
Need help with listing teaching assistant job description resume skills on your own resume? Use our Resume Builder and you’ll get auto-populated teaching-specific skills and wording suggestions added to your resume.
Build my resumeHow to write a teaching assistant resume
Whether you’re writing an entry-level teaching assistant resume, a student teacher assistant resume or lead teacher resume, add these sections to your resume and customize with your information:Resume header
A resume header goes at the very top of the resume so a hiring manager can quickly see your name and contact information. It typically includes your full name, phone number, email address, location and links to your networking profiles such as your LinkedIn profile.
Resume summary or objective
The next section is your resume summary or resume objective, which will go up at the top of your resume regardless of your format. A summary provides a brief overview of your top skills and most impressive achievements, while an objective focuses on your career goals and skills.
Resume summary example:
Here’s an example of how a good objective in a resume should be:
Resume skills
The skills section on your teaching assistant resume needs to emphasize your hard skills and soft skills that you hope to use through your instructional work. Here are a few of the bullet points you can include:
- Special education
- Writing lesson plans
- Classroom management
- First Aid/CPR
- Excellent communication skills
- Child care knowledge
- Interpersonal relationship development
- Plan group activities and field trips
- Assess student progress
- Problem-solving skills
- Child development
Remember to tailor your skill set to the type of teaching and age of students. For example, if you’re looking to work at an elementary school, mention experience with early childhood development/education. If you’re applying to work with high school students, mention any specific subject knowledge, college preparation skills and managing special activities such as summer school programs.
Resume work history
In the work experience section, list your previous jobs along with concise, bullet point job descriptions featuring top responsibilities and achievements that relate to teaching. If you lack direct assistant teaching work history, then incorporate other types of relevant experience, like academic projects, volunteer experiences and student-teacher-type internships.
Example:
Education
List your top academic credentials here, as well as any specialized training related to the assistant teaching job you want. Depending on the role, it’s common to have an associate’s degree, bachelor’s degree or even a master’s degree. You can also include teaching certifications, like your state certification, in your education section.
Example:
Do’s and don’ts for a teaching assistant resume
- Look at a teacher assistant resume example before you write your own. The more you read other teacher’s experiences, the better you’ll be at showcasing your own.
- Use active language in the form of action words in your resume summary and work experience resume sections to catch the hiring manager's attention (e.g., “Managed” instead of “Was tasked with”).
- Include relevant professional certifications like state teaching certifications, that show you’re qualified and add value to your resume.
- Include pronouns like “I” or “my” in your resume. Instead, use concise, verb-centered phrases and bullet points. “I mentored” or “I taught” doesn’t sound as professional as “Mentored” or “Taught.”
- Shy away from using our resume generator. A resume builder is a great way for you to merge your current resume with job-specific auto-populated wording suggestions from our experts.
- Submit a resume for teacher specialist positions if you don’t have the right training. Typically, for example, special education teachers need specific knowledge.
More resume and cover letter resources
FAQ: Teaching assistant resume
Have questions? We’re here to help.
What is a good objective for a teacher assistant resume?
Here is a good resume objective that clearly focuses on a teacher assistant’s career goals and skills.
Compassionate teacher assistant dedicated to motivating elementary school children to learn and explore, seeking a full-time assistant role in the Bentley School District to gain professional development. Skilled at working with ESL students who are academically challenged to help improve their confidence and performance on state tests. Bilingual: English and Spanish.”
The teaching assistant description resume objective above specifically mentions “elementary” education, “full-time” role wanted, the intended “school district” and a specialty in “ESL” helped by “bilingual skills.” A hiring manager would be pleased to see this candidate’s qualifications should they match the job role.
What are the skills of a teaching assistant?
A teaching assistant will be asked to support the lead teacher with lesson plans, activities, grading papers and monitoring recess. In addition to great communication and presentation skills, a teaching assistant will need to demonstrate a pleasant demeanor to motivate students and the leadership skills to maintain classroom discipline. Technical skills like Google Classroom, Edmodo and other education software will help with instructing as well as subject knowledge in mathematics, language arts, science and social studies. ResumeHelp has lots of professional resume examples you can use as a foundation to build an undergraduate teaching assistant resume, graduate teaching assistant resume, preschool teacher assistant resume and more.
Does being a teaching assistant look good on a resume?
Yes, a teaching assistant looks good on a resume because a teaching assistant plays a vital role in the education and well-being of students. An assistant provides needed and appreciated support to the lead teacher to successfully present new learning opportunities throughout the busy school day. On a resume, you will need to show that they meet the requirements specified in the teaching assistant resume description such as an associate’s degree and state certification. Many teaching assistants are actually in the process of obtaining their bachelor’s degree so the teaching assistant role provides valuable relevant work experience.
What are the most important qualities of a TA?
The most important qualities of a teaching assistant will be the ability to plan, create and present engaging educational lessons that provide subject knowledge to students. However, equally important is the ability to show compassion, have patience and be an effective leader whether nurturing, classroom management or disciplining. A good teaching assistant will also think out of the box and come up with creative activities and nontraditional teaching methods to meet the learning needs of students.
Do I need to include a cover letter for a teaching assistant application?
Yes, it’s best to include cover letters along with your strong teacher assistant resumes for all job applications. A cover letter is another opportunity to connect with an employer, and further explain your qualifications and how you can benefit an organization. It also gives you a glimpse into your personality and includes a bold call to action for a job interview. Use our teaching assistant cover letter example at ResumeHelp for inspiration.
How do I write a resume for a teaching assistant with no experience?
If you’re an undergraduate teaching assistant or a recent graduate and lack experience in the field, cite academic experience and specialized training, student teaching, internship experience and volunteer experience. These are all relevant experiences, even though they’re not strictly professional experiences. Look at our undergraduate teaching assistant resumes or other resume examples in the education field for wording suggestions.
How do I change my teaching assistant resume to apply to different jobs?
Every job application should have a slightly different assistant resume. Look over each teaching assistant job description for resume to identify the keywords that spell out the skills and requirements for the job, and address these keywords in your resume. With resume keywords, you’re able to create the best resume for each individual job posting, not just a single generic resume that won’t reflect what each job needs. For example, if you’re applying to help special needs students or early childhood development, then employers will want to know you have the right mix of educational and personal skills and knowledge for the position. Model your resume to a teaching assistant sample resume on this page and customize to match each job role you apply for.
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