School Counselor Resume Example

This complete guide to a school counselor resume will equip you with the tools you need to compete in your applications. You'll learn how to show employers you've got the relevant qualities, skills and experience for the job, all presented in a format that employers prefer to see. The article also includes tips for formatting your resume according to your experience and strengths. Read on to access expert insights from Jobseeker that will help you create a winning school counselor resume.

Key sections for a school counselor resume

It's essential to include a few core sections in your school counselor resume, while there are also a few optional sections you can make use of to strengthen your application. If you're an entry-level candidate without much work experience, that section may be less prominent in your resume. You may focus instead on sections that showcase your skill set, such as education, projects, hobbies and hard and soft skills lists.

You will have some choice over your resume layout and structure, but be sure to include these sections as the core of your document:

Resume Header and Personal Information

The resume header is the place to add your name and contact details, along with your LinkedIn URL if you have a profile, so employers can find more information about your career journey and skills. You don't typically need to add a photo, or any other personal information to this section. Keep your header clear and concise, with only the most necessary information included. Opt for a stylish, professional design that creates a strong first impression.

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 Objective

In your resume summary, write a short paragraph that highlights two or three of your key achievements and skills for school counselor roles. You could also call this section 'resume objective' or 'personal profile'. A resume summary covers your career experience to date, while a resume objective focuses more on your ambitions for the future. Always make sure your summary reflects the job description and highlights some of the key skills required for school counselor roles.

Alternatively, focus on introducing your career ambitions, and why this role is a good fit, both for you and the organization.

A great resume summary should highlight why you're an ideal candidate for school counselor roles by showing key skills and qualities that reflect the job description and provide evidence to support them. It should also introduce your personality and unique qualities to the reader, to help them start to form an opinion about you as a candidate. See below for some great examples of how to approach your school counselor resume.

Conversely, a bad resume summary might be too generic, lacking focus on the specifics of the job description. It will also fail to provide any useful insights on what makes you a unique candidate. See above for some examples of things to avoid when writing your school counselor resume summary.

Skills

Adding a list of your key skills provides a quick reference for the reader of what you can bring to a school counselor role. Skills such as individual counseling techniques or active listening skills are particularly useful for school counselor jobs. Again, include any skills that match those listed in the job description. Focus particularly on technical skills required for school counselor jobs and transferable skills that show your qualities as a school counselor.

How to list hard skills on your school counselor resume

For your hard skills list, include any technical abilities or specific industry knowledge that's essential to working as a school counselor. These could be skills gained through work experience or qualifications. Furthermore, an extensive list of hard skills helps to make a compelling case for your school counselor job applications, as they show employers your understanding of the school counselor role. Aim to include four or five key hard skills. If you have space, explain how and where you've used that skill to create successful outcomes in your career. These skills will demonstrate your credentials and show how you meet the job description.

The best resume hard skills sections focus on specific technical skills necessary for the job, showcasing skills that you have particular expertise in. There are some examples of valuable hard skills for a school counselor resume below.

Soft skills on your school counselor resume

In your list of soft skills, add any personal strengths, qualities or transferable skills that make you a good fit for the job. Soft skills are often less specific to different industries, but that doesn't make them any less important. Indeed, without soft skills, you may struggle to adapt to school counselor roles or meet the standards expected of you. So make sure you include several key soft skills on your resume. In this section, add four of five transferable skills that match the job description.

An effective school counselor resume soft skills section should be targeted to include skills that reflect your personality and unique characteristics, while also matching the job description. The graphic below includes some examples of good resume soft skills.

Education

In your education section, include details of your most relevant school counselor qualifications and educational achievements.

Typically, working as a school counselor requires a university or college degree, which you'll need to list on your resume. If you're working in this sector, it's usually a good idea to highlight your Bachelor of Arts in Psychology degree or other relevant qualifications. Focus on qualifications that showcase your individual counseling techniques or group therapy facilitation.

List your relevant qualifications in reverse-chronological order. Add the name and level of the award, the institution, its location (if this isn't obvious from the name) and your dates of study. You can also add some bullet points outlining any high grades, awards you won or specialist subjects you studied. Adding this information will show the employer your dedication to learning and your areas of specialist knowledge.

If you took part in any volunteering or you were a leader or member of any university societies, you could also mention these in your education section.

Certifications

In your certifications section, list any professional certifications or licenses that are relevant to working as a school counselor. Add any official certifications or accreditations that increase your level of qualification and suitability for working as a school counselor. Therefore, list any official licenses and certifications, along with their dates, so employers can assess whether you've got the necessary qualifications to work as a school counselor.

Review the list below for some suitable certifications for a school counselor resume:

Work Experience

Your resume work experience section is the chance to show your relevant previous jobs and career achievements as a school counselor. List each relevant role in reverse-chronological order starting with your current or most recent role. Add your job title, the organization name, its location and the dates you worked there.

For each job listed in this section, add some bullet points so the employer can understand the skills you developed, and your achievements. Focus on showcasing the impact you made on the organization, and show evidence of how you made a difference.

A good work experience section pulls the reader in with clear examples of where you've put the skills necessary for the job into good use in your career to date. This typically includes evidence of how your skills and activities contributed to positive outcomes for the organization. Take a look at the examples below for some guidance on what works best for your work experience section.

Above, you can see a weaker example of a resume work experience section to best avoid. Ineffective work experience sections tend to focus too much on everyday responsibilities over skills and achievements. If you use vague descriptions of activities and fail to back up your achievements with evidence, you're likely to fail to make an impact on the reader.

Additional Information

To provide further information on your suitability for the role, you could add some optional sections to a school counselor resume. Pick from the optional sections below to help show the employer you have the skills and experience for the job.

Hobbies and Interests

Including your hobbies and interests can be a valuable way of showing your key skills and qualities. They also help to show a different side of your personality, and can help your resume create a more memorable impression on hiring managers. If you're short on real world work experience, hobbies and interests can be a useful way of providing more information about your qualities. If you're thinking about adding hobbies and interests, just make sure they add something unique to your application, and showcase your personality and interests in unique and interesting ways.

Volunteer Experience

Adding voluntary roles can be a useful way of showing relevant experience and skills for school counselor roles beyond your main employment history. List your volunteer job title, the organization you volunteered for, its location and the dates of your involvement, alongside a brief explanation of your responsibilities in the role.

References

References aren't a standard school counselor resume section, but employers do sometimes ask for them. Check the job advert and only include them if requested. Include a maximum of three professional references, being sure to check with your referees before including them in your resume.

Best words to use in a school counselor resume

Using strong action verbs in your work experience bullet points can make a stronger impression on employers and show the value you added to your previous roles. Choose from the list of words below to increase the impact of your work experience section.

If you need help creating a resume that impresses HR managers, take a look at Jobseeker's professional resume templates. You can also access beautiful cover letter templates that help your application stand out.

Sample resume for school counselor positions

Now we've covered the main sections to include in your school counselor resume, let's take a look at how it all comes together in the example below:

How to make your resume ATS compliant

Applicant tracking systems (ATS) help recruiters and employers to manage their hiring process. They can handle some of the more time-consuming and resource-intensive jobs, such as initial screening of resumes. Employers often receive hundreds of applications per vacancy, and ATS software can quickly and accurately scan and rank resumes based on their likely suitability for any role. There are several things you can do when writing your school counselor resume, to give yourself the strongest chance of ranking highly in the ATS stage and progressing through the recruitment process.

Here are a few quick tips for creating an ATS-friendly resume:

• Use a traditional resume layout, such as a reverse-chronological or functional format. This will mean your resume includes all the necessary sections, in the expected order.
• Use keywords throughout your resume that reflect the job description, so ATS resume scanners can recognize a strong connection between your skills, and those in the job description.
• Include clear headings that make it easy to identify each section of your resume. This will help any ATS software navigate your resume during the scanning process.
• Adopt a resume design that uses clear, professional design principles and leaves white space for your content to breathe. Use the most readable fonts and incorporate subtle design elements to enhance the readability of your document.
• Keep your resume as concise as possible, to make it easier to read, and for ATS software to scan.

Takeaways for your school counselor resume

An effective resume is a concise, professional summary of your relevant skills and career achievements, showcased through a chronology of your career history. Pick a resume format that matches your experience levels, and tailor the content of your resume to reflect the details of the job description.

Using the professional resume templates and resources of Jobseeker can help you create a great-looking resume that stands out from other applicants. Sign up today and follow the simple steps to get started. Whether you're a junior or senior candidate, a professional cover letter can help to grab the attention of the employer. Jobseeker's cover letter examples were created by careers experts to provide useful tips and ideas for your cover letter.

Sources:

(1) Writing a Resume, California Department of Human Resources: https://www.calhr.ca.gov/employees/Pages/resume-tips.aspx

(2) Resumes, Cover Letters and Job Applications, New York State Department of Labor: https://dol.ny.gov/resumes-cover-letters-and-job-applications