When it comes to landing a school-based therapy job, your resume is your first impression. A well-crafted resume not only showcases your qualifications but also demonstrates your commitment to helping students thrive in educational environments.
Whether you’re applying for a school-based occupational therapy role, a school psychologist position, or a speech-language pathologist opportunity, your resume needs to reflect your unique skills and experiences in a way that catches the attention of hiring managers.
In this ProCare Therapy guide, explore the essential tips on how to write a resume that will help you land that school-based therapy job, along with some helpful FAQs and resources for popular roles in school therapy.
Tips for Writing a Strong School-Based Therapist Resume
- Highlight Your Relevant Education and Certifications
Make sure to emphasize your educational background and certifications specific to the field of therapy. Include degrees, licenses, and any special certifications that are required for the role, such as a school psychologist license.
- Showcase Your Commitment to Professional Development
Demonstrating your commitment to ongoing learning is important in any therapy role. Be sure to include any continuing education courses, certifications, workshops, or training you’ve completed, especially those that are relevant to school therapy.
For example, you might list any child development, school-based therapy techniques, or special education-related programs you’ve completed. This shows your dedication to staying current in your field and adapting to the specific needs of a school environment.
- Tailor Your Resume to the Job Description
One of the best ways to get your resume noticed is to align it with the job description. Pay close attention to the keywords and responsibilities mentioned in the job posting and mirror those terms in your resume. This helps your resume get noticed by applicant tracking systems that schools may use for initial screening.
- Highlight Your Experience the Right Way
Don’t just list previous jobs—highlight your responsibilities and achievements in a way that speaks to the school-based therapy role you’re applying for. Whether you’ve worked in pediatric settings, managed IEPs, or implemented therapy techniques in a school, show how your experience directly relates to what the school is seeking.
If you don’t have much experience in school settings, highlight how your clinical background can contribute to supporting students in a school environment, especially with respect to therapy goals, treatment plans, and progress monitoring.
- Include Your Soft Skills
School-based therapists need strong interpersonal skills. Be sure to highlight qualities like communication, empathy, patience, and teamwork. These are especially important in a school setting where you’ll be interacting with students, teachers, and parents.
You can also include examples of how you’ve used these skills in your past roles. For example, you might mention how you’ve collaborated with teachers or how your communication with parents helped improve student outcomes. You can incorporate these skills into your work experience section or add a dedicated skills section on your resume.
- Use Action Verbs and Quantify Your Achievements
Action verbs like “developed,” “implemented,” “assessed,” and “collaborated” demonstrate your proactive approach. If possible, quantify your achievements with numbers or percentages, such as the number of students you’ve helped, any improvements in student outcomes, or the size of the caseload you managed.
- Have an Employed Professional or Mentor Review It
Before submitting your resume, ask a colleague or mentor to review it. A fresh set of eyes can spot errors or suggest improvements that you might have missed.
Tips and Resume Templates for Specific School Therapy Roles
Click on the job titles below to explore further guidance on making your applications stand out for specific school-based therapy roles, including resume tips, requirements to highlight, and key skills that districts are looking for:
School-Based Therapist Resume FAQs
Explore some frequently asked questions about tailoring your resume for school-based therapist roles:
1. What do I put on my resume if I don’t have much experience in the school setting?
If you’re new to school-based therapy, here are some helpful tips on translating how your professional experience is valuable in education settings:
- Highlight transferable skills from other settings, such as hospitals, clinics, or private practice.
- Emphasize your experience working with children or individuals with similar needs.
- Showcase relevant certifications or coursework that pertains to school-based therapy.
- Include any volunteer work or internships in educational settings.
- Consider including skills like classroom management or collaboration with teachers.
- Highlight experience working with interdisciplinary teams, which are highly valued in school environments.
2. Should I include my clinical experience if it’s not directly related to schools?
Yes, you should! Even if your clinical experience doesn’t directly align with school-based therapy, it can still be highly relevant. For example, if you’ve worked with children in a hospital or outpatient setting, your experience in pediatric therapy, working with multidisciplinary teams, or helping patients with similar issues will be valuable.
3. What if I don’t have experience with IEPs (Individualized Education Plans)?
If you don’t have experience directly working with IEPs, consider mentioning any related skills or experiences, such as collaborating with teachers, assessing student needs, developing treatment plans, or even coursework related to IEPs. It’s also a good idea to show your willingness and ability to learn these processes quickly.
4. How do I format my school therapist resume if I have limited work experience?
If you’re early in your career or transitioning to school therapy, consider using a functional resume format rather than a chronological one. This format allows you to emphasize your skills and qualifications at the top of your resume, followed by your experience in a way that highlights relevant strengths. You can also include a summary or objective at the beginning of your resume to explain your enthusiasm for transitioning into school therapy and how your background prepares you for the role.
5. Should I include volunteer or unpaid work on my resume?
Absolutely! Volunteer work or unpaid internships are valuable experiences, especially if they are in educational or therapeutic settings. These experiences can demonstrate your commitment to helping others and your ability to work in a school or therapy-related environment. Be sure to list any volunteer roles that involve children, education, therapy, or social work, as these will be highly relevant.
Find Your Perfect Therapy Role Today
Ready to send in that resume and land the school therapy role of your dreams? ProCare Therapy has a variety of openings for school therapy professionals nationwide. Explore our opportunities and start helping kids in a new and exciting role today!
Looking for more information about school-based roles? Browse ProCare’s collection of career guides here for everything you need to know about the state of different school therapy and educator roles in schools today, including requirements, job outlook, current demand, and more.