Professor Resume Example

This complete guide to a professor resume will equip you with the tools you need to compete in your applications. You'll find useful insights on constructing a resume that makes the most of your unique skills, experience and strengths. You'll also learn how to tailor your resume according to the job description, and depending on your experience levels. Read on to access expert insights from Jobseeker that will help you create a winning professor resume.

Main elements of a professor resume

Most resumes contain similar key sections, with a professor resume being no different.

While the content and format of your resume may vary depending on your experience levels, it's important to always include the following sections:

Resume Header with Contact Details

In your professor resume header, list your name, email address, phone number and address or location. You can also add your LinkedIn, if you have one, to help employers better understand your work history and skills. While in some countries, you might include additional personal information or a photo, these aren't necessary. Be aware of the amount of space your resume header takes up. You don't want your contact details to take space away from the main content of your resume, so keep this section as brief as possible.

Make sure the email address you list in your header is professional-looking and doesn't contain any inappropriate content such as nicknames or unsuitable language. Opt for an email address based on your name or profession, or a combination of both. Finally, check your contact details before sending your resume, to ensure everything's up-to-date.

Resume Profile

Your resume personal profile is a short, concise paragraph to highlight two or three key skills and achievements in professor roles. You may also see this section named as 'resume summary' or 'resume objective'. Resume summaries tend to focus on your career experience, while resume objectives cover your ambitions and plans for the future. However, make sure you keep your resume summary short and snappy, and focused on the skills and experience listed in the job description.

Alternatively, use this summary to introduce your personal career ambitions and explain why professor roles are a good fit for you at this stage of your career.

A good resume summary reflects the job description and highlights some of the key skills required for professor roles, while leaving the reader with an impression of your unique qualities and strengths. The most effective resume summaries also provide evidence to back up the claims made in them. Take a look at some strong examples of how to approach a professor resume summary in the graphic below.

Conversely, an ineffective resume summary would include generic, unspecific information on your skills and experience, while failing to provide any useful information on what makes you a unique and interesting candidate. The graphic above shows some of the pitfalls to avoid when creating your resume summary.

Employment History

Your resume work experience section is the chance to show your relevant previous jobs and career achievements as a professor. Include any relevant jobs you've held in reverse-chronological order. Start with your current or most recent roles and work back through previous roles. For each job, list your title, the name of the company, its location and the dates you worked there.

Add some bullet points under each job entry, explaining your achievements in the role, so the reader can see how you contributed towards success for the company. Provide evidence of your impact and make sure each point addresses a requirement listed in the job description.

The best resume work experience sections focus only on the most relevant previous jobs, and link each bullet point back to a skill or experience listed in the job description. It's also critical to provide evidence that shows the value you added to each role in a quantifiable way, such as project outcomes, key performance indicators or feedback from customers, colleagues or managers. Take a look at the examples below for some guidance on what works best for your work experience section.

The example above can give you some idea of what not to include in your resume work experience section. A poor resume work experience section would typically use vague descriptions of activities in previous jobs, while focusing too much on responsibilities rather than achievements. Failing to focus on the skills and experience that match the job description is likely to harm your chances of success.

Education

The education section provides space to list your highest and most recent academic achievements that are relevant to working as a professor.

If you're applying for professor positions you'll typically need to have a degree. A Bachelor of Arts in English Literature will usually help your chances of success. You could also list any qualifications that demonstrate your publications in journals or subject matter knowledge.

List every relevant qualification, including the name and level of the course, the name of the school, college or university, its location and your graduation date. If you have space, include some bullet points outlining any specialist areas of study, awards or high grades, so the employer can learn more about your unique skill set and knowledge.

Membership or leadership of any societies, clubs or causes while studying can also make a positive impression on hiring managers. Consider adding these to your education section for more insight into how you used your time as a student.

Projects and Publications

For professor resume, it's important to include sections outlining key projects and publications. For academic disciplines, these are valuable as they show your standing and reputation within your chosen field of expertise. Include a list of major academic projects you've been involved in, as well as a list of key publications that add to the knowledge base of your discipline. These could include books, chapters, journal articles, magazine articles or newspaper articles.

The two most popular citation styles for publications on a resume are the Modern Language Association (MLA) and the American Psychological Association (APA). MLA is more widely used for humanities, with APA used more commonly for science and engineering. Both citation styles include the same basic information, such as author name, year of publication, article title (if necessary), publication name, volume, issue, page numbers and publisher. Below you will find an (APA-style) example of a publication that's suitable for a professor resume.

Skills

Adding a list of your key skills provides a quick reference for the reader of what you can bring to a professor role. Skills such as data analysis expertise or communication skills are particularly useful for professor jobs. Again, refer to the job description and make sure you include skills that the employer has listed as essential or desirable for employment as a professor.

Listing hard skills on your professor resume

Hard skills are the key technical skills required for professor positions. They include specific industry knowledge and abilities that you could learn on the job, or through a specialist qualification. Furthermore, it's important to show these skills in a professor resume as they provide a strong indication of your experience in the sector. If possible, add four or five hard skills that reflect the requirements of the job description. These will boost your chances of success in your applications.

Your resume hard skills list should reflect your unique and specific industry expertise and experience, while also fulfilling the requirements listed in the job description. See the examples below for an idea of what an effective professor resume hard skills list looks like.

Showcasing your best soft skills

Soft skills are your transferable skills and personal qualities that make you a good match for a professor position and the organization. Soft skills tend to be more universal than hard skills, and can often apply to multiple jobs and industries. In fact, you can develop soft skills throughout your career, and they tend to be suitable for various roles and professions. Think of your best soft skills and add up to five that match the requirements of the job description.

Your soft skills section should make the most of your unique personal qualities and strengths, while also reflecting the requirements laid out in the job description. See below for some examples of useful soft skills for a professor resume.

Certifications and Training

Your certifications section is the place to mention any relevant professional professor certifications, licenses or qualifications. You could list accreditations for certain professional roles or licenses for certain activities that help to make you a strong candidate. Therefore, add any necessary licenses and certifications in this section, along with valid dates so employers can see you're still qualified for the job.

Below you can find several examples of certifications for a professor resume:

Optional Sections

In addition to the core sections of a professor resume, there are several optional sections you could include to enhance your chances. Choose any optional sections that showcase essential or desirable skills or experience for professor jobs.

Personal Hobbies and Interests

Hobbies and interests can be a useful way of showing your skills and experience beyond your work and education. These are particularly useful for your resume if you're short of work experience and need to showcase a particular skill or experience. Just make sure any hobbies and interests you include in your resume add genuine insight into your personality, in ways other sections of the resume can't.

Volunteer Work

Voluntary work can help you develop useful skills, so it's a valuable addition to your professor resume. Include the title of your volunteer role, who you volunteered for, as well as the dates you carried out the work. Provide brief details of your responsibilities and the impact you made.

References

It's not typical to include references in a professor resume, but some employers might ask for them. Don't add references unless requested by the employer. Be sure to prepare your referees in advance, so they've agreed to provide a reference and are ready to be contacted.

Best action words for your professor resume

Add strong verbs to your work experience section to show the hiring manager the impact you made in your previous roles. The suggested action verbs below will help the reader to understand your key qualities and the impact you made on the organization.

If you want to create a resume that stands out from the crowd, use Jobseeker's expert-designed resume templates. You can also find cover letter templates that work to get you noticed by employers.

Sample resume for professor positions

Now that you know everything that needs to go into your professor resume, let's review an example resume that you can use as a guide when creating your own:

How to make your resume ATS compliant

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) are one of the key ways recruiters and employers manage the hiring process. The systems can screen candidates by scanning and ranking resumes based on each candidate's likely suitability for the vacancy. When writing your professor resume, a few simple tips can help you pass the ATS stage with a higher-ranking resume, giving you a better chance of success with your applications.

Create an ATS-optimized resume by following these quick tips:

• Choose a resume structure that matches the traditional, reverse-chronological layout or alternatively, the functional resume structure. This should make your resume more readable for ATS applications.
• Include keywords throughout your resume that align with the job description. ATS software tends to compare your resume to the job description for points of similarity, so careful, considered use of keywords should help your chances of success.
• Add each section with clear headings that match the established resume conventions, so ATS software can easily identify each part of your resume.
• Adopt a clean, unfussy design that gives your content enough white space to breathe. Use professional, readable fonts and subtle use of color and other design elements.
• Use simple, concise language to keep your resume to a maximum of one to two pages in length. This will make it easier for ATS software to read.

Key takeaways for your professor resume

The key to a strong resume is to showcase your relevant skills and achievements through your work experience and other activities. Pick a resume format that matches your experience levels, and tailor the content of your resume to reflect the details of the job description.

Remember, Jobseeker resume templates and other tools make it easy to create a resume and cover letter that leaves a positive impression on hiring managers. Sign up now to start building your perfect resume. Whatever job you're applying for, a professional cover letter can make all the difference to your chances. Use Jobseeker's HR-approved tools and cover letter examples to inspire your applications.

Sources:

(1) Resumes & Cover Letters for PhD Students, Hardvard University: https://careerservices.fas.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/161/2024/08/2024-GSAS_phd_resume_cover_letters-1.pdf

(2) Guide to Résumés and Curricula Vitae, National Institutes of Health: https://www.training.nih.gov/documents/16/Guide_to_Resumes_and_Curricula_Vitae.pdf