Teacher resume example and writing guide

A principal or head of department reads a teaching resume with a few specific questions in mind. What subjects and age groups can you teach? Which curriculum do you know? Do you hold a teaching qualification? And is there evidence that your students learn and that you contribute beyond the classroom?

Your resume should answer those questions in the first few lines. A generic statement about loving children or being passionate about education doesn’t help them decide; your subjects, levels, curriculum and results do.

• Subjects and levels, stated plainly — for example “Chemistry and Science, Years 7 to 11”.
• Curriculum experience, such as KSSM and SPM, Cambridge IGCSE and A Level, the English National Curriculum or the IB programmes.
• Teaching qualifications, such as a Bachelor of Education, a postgraduate teaching diploma or a PGCE.
• Evidence of student progress, from exam results to improvements in a class you took over.
• Co-curricular work, pastoral care and how you work with parents.

This example is for a secondary science teacher with about seven years of experience who wants to move into an international school. The names, schools and figures are invented — replace them with your own.

Name and title line: “Tan Mei Ling — Secondary Science and Chemistry Teacher (IGCSE, KSSM) · Johor Bahru, Johor · 016-234 5678 · meiling.tan@example.com.”

Summary: “Science teacher with seven years of experience teaching Chemistry and Science to students aged 12 to 17, including four years preparing IGCSE Chemistry classes. Bachelor of Education (Chemistry) with a focus on practical, inquiry-based lessons. Seeking a Chemistry role in an international school.”

Experience, role 1: “Chemistry and Science Teacher — Bukit Teratai International School, Johor Bahru · January 2022 to present.”

• Teach Cambridge Lower Secondary Science to Years 7 to 9 and IGCSE Chemistry to Years 10 and 11, across five classes of around 22 students.
• Rewrote the Year 10 practical scheme of work so that every required practical is completed and recorded before mock exams.
• Raised the proportion of my IGCSE Chemistry students achieving grades A* to B from 58% to 74% over two exam cycles.
• Run the school’s Science Club and coached a team of four students to the national finals of a regional science competition.
• Hold termly progress meetings with parents and send short written updates for students who are falling behind.

Experience, role 2: “Science and Chemistry Tutor — Cerdas Learning Centre, Johor Bahru · March 2019 to December 2021.”

• Taught SPM Chemistry and Science to groups of up to 15 students in Form 4 and Form 5, in English and Malay.
• Prepared topical worksheets and past-year question sets that the centre adopted for all of its Chemistry classes.
• Tracked each student’s monthly test scores and gave parents a short report after every test.

• Education: “Bachelor of Education (Chemistry), 2018.” Use the full degree name and university exactly as they appear on your scroll.
• Professional development: “Cambridge IGCSE Chemistry training, 2022 · Workshop on assessment for learning, 2023.” List courses that relate to the role, with years.
• Teaching tools: “Google Classroom · Microsoft Teams · Interactive whiteboards · Data loggers for practical work.”
• Languages: “English (fluent) · Malay (fluent) · Mandarin (native).”

• New graduate: “Bachelor of Education (TESL) graduate with a teaching practicum in a secondary school, teaching English to Form 1 and Form 2 classes. Comfortable with mixed-ability classes and keen to teach lower secondary English.”
• Experienced: “Primary teacher with six years of experience teaching Mathematics and English to Years 3 to 6, using the English National Curriculum. Experienced with differentiated lessons and phonics intervention groups.”
• Senior: “Head of Mathematics with eleven years of experience across KSSM, IGCSE and A Level, leading a team of six teachers. Looking for a head of department or curriculum coordinator role.”

Choose the ones that fit your work and rewrite them with your own details. The figures are examples only.

• Subjects and levels: “Taught Additional Mathematics and Mathematics to Form 4 and Form 5 classes of 30 to 35 students.”
• Subjects and levels: “Taught IB Diploma Biology at Standard and Higher Level and supervised Extended Essays in the sciences.”
• Curriculum: “Planned KSSM-aligned lessons and classroom-based assessments for Form 1 to Form 3 History.”
• Curriculum: “Helped the department move to the new IGCSE English syllabus, rewriting schemes of work for Years 10 and 11.”
• Results: “Took over a Form 5 Physics class mid-year and lifted its average trial exam score from 48% to 63% before SPM.”
• Results: “Ran weekly reading intervention groups for Year 3 pupils, with most reaching their expected reading level by the end of the year.”
• Co-curricular: “Advised the debate club and organised an inter-school English debate for six schools.”
• Co-curricular: “Led a Year 8 field trip to a mangrove reserve, including the risk assessment and parent consent process.”
• Parent communication: “Introduced fortnightly class newsletters for parents, cutting routine queries and improving homework completion.”
• Pastoral care: “Served as form tutor for 24 students, monitoring attendance and wellbeing and referring concerns to the school counsellor.”
• Leadership: “Mentored two newly qualified teachers through their first year, including lesson observations and feedback.”

International schools usually ask for a degree plus a recognised teaching qualification, such as a Bachelor of Education, a PGCE or a PGCE (International), and experience with the curriculum they teach. Private schools and tuition centres vary more, so read each advertisement closely and mirror the requirements it lists.

List your qualifications with the full title, institution and year. If your degree is in your subject rather than in education, put your teaching qualification on its own line so it is easy to spot. Teachers in private and international schools in Malaysia also need a teaching permit from the education authorities, which your school will usually help arrange.

Government schools follow a separate route: teachers are typically trained through an Institut Pendidikan Guru or a university education degree and appointed through the Education Service Commission (Suruhanjaya Perkhidmatan Pendidikan). If that is your aim, follow the commission’s official announcements rather than a private-sector resume format.

Exam results are strong evidence, but use them carefully. Compare like with like — the same class, cohort or subject over time — and only quote figures you can back up from school records. If you teach younger students or subjects without public exams, describe progress in reading levels, internal assessments or work you can show at interview.

Note that UPSR and PT3 have been discontinued, so if you mention them, frame them as past experience rather than current exam preparation.

• Leaving out the curriculum, so an IGCSE school can’t tell whether you have taught it.
• Listing duties every teacher has, such as “prepared lesson plans” and “marked homework”, without any outcome.
• Long statements about your teaching philosophy at the top — save them for the cover letter or interview.
• Including students’ names or photos of students in your resume or portfolio.
• Forgetting co-curricular and pastoral work, which many schools weigh heavily.

Change your title line and summary to match the role, such as “IGCSE Chemistry Teacher” or “SPM Mathematics Tutor”. Then move the most relevant curriculum experience to the top of each job entry.

For international schools, stress curriculum knowledge, English fluency and co-curricular contributions. For tuition centres, stress exam preparation, results and how you keep parents informed. Your experience is the same; what you lead with changes.