Student Teachers: Gain Experience in an Education Support Role with this CV Template

Hello student teachers of Australia! First of all, kudos to you on your decision to enter the wild world of education. While there’s no doubt being a teacher can be a hard slog at times, it’s also one of the most impactful careers you can choose and truly has the potential to help shape future generations. While there are opportunities baked into your education degree to help you experience life in the classroom, the sooner you can start to gain experience in front of a real-life classroom the better.  

One great way to gain experience is by seeking out education support roles that don’t require a completed education degree. Not only will these roles give you a front row seat to the classroom environment, but they will also effectively allow you to shadow a teacher and learn directly from them.  

Before you start gaining this experience, it can be tricky figuring out what to include on your CV. Never fear, we have reached out to principals to find out what they want to see on the resume of a student teacher applying for an education support role.  

Before you read on—Have you set up your profile on ClassCover? 

Here’s what to include in your student teacher CV 

One of the biggest battles you will face as a student teacher is figuring out what to put on your CV when it feels like you don’t have a lot of relevant experience. Yes, those 3 months you spent manning an espresso cart in the CBD taught you a lot about dealing with impatient customers but how does it relate to education?  

The first thing you need to know is that no student teacher resume will be perfect for every job. While some things like good grades and diverse experience are likely to be viewed favourably by many schools, some aspects of a teacher CV—particularly a student teacher CV—are subjective. While one school may look at yours and see you as the perfect fit for their needs, another school is just as likely to need someone else entirely.  

With that said, we have summarised the things you need on your resume and the best ways to present it to give you the best chance of snagging that new job.  

Basic information  

Details like your name, phone number, email address, registration number (if applicable), and any qualifications should go at the very top of your CV. Nine times out of ten, the principal or whoever is tasked with finding candidates is time poor, so they are looking to find this crucial information immediately. Make it easy for them to find and don’t risk your resume being tossed to the side. 

Street address  

While this isn’t always standard on most CVs, it can be helpful to help a school judge how long it will take you to get to school and help give you an extra edge if it comes down to you and another candidate.  

Work history 

When you don’t have any work experience in the education space it’s easy to feel like any experience you do have is irrelevant and doesn’t belong on your CV. Part time jobs for example may not seem applicable to an education support role, however what they do demonstrate is your trustworthiness and ability to hold down a job. For schools grappling with staff shortages, that’s priceless.  

Even before you have graduated and can legally work as a teacher, it is possible to gain experience in the education space. Working as a tutor or in OOSH is great to have on your resume. You can also gain experience in education support as an SLSO / teacher assistant – these are all great ways to gain experience and have your application stand out before you gain your qualifications.  

When it comes to order, chronological isn’t always best. To keep your CV scannable, put the most relevant experience (like university prac placements) at the top, and any other work experience at the bottom. 

Volunteer work 

Just like your paid work history can tell a school about your work ethic, showing that you have made an effort and dedicated time to volunteer says a lot about you as a person. Don’t get too hung up on whether your volunteer experience is directly related to education, if you have done it, it’s a great way to add a little oomph to your CV.  

Professional development 

Include all recent and relevant professional development on your CV. If you’ve done a lot, just the highlights are fine. Important information to include is the name of the course, the presenter, as well as a summary of what you learned. 

Top tip: ClassCover Learn offers are large library of online teacher professional development courses, which you can access through your ClassCover teacher profile. Check it out here

Referees  

Typically, references go at the very end of your CV, even on the back page if you aren’t able to condense it to one page. Limit your referees to three. You should aim for a mix of education industry referees (like supervisors from prac and university lecturers) and previous managers you have had.  

Student teacher resume template  

We’ve made it even easier for you to get started with this student teacher resume template. Click below to download, add your details and away you go.