13+ Coach Resume Examples That Get Jobs

Mix in a great coach, and you’ve got a recipe for greatness.

The leadership of a coach can make or break any team despite whatever talent they may possess.

While a good coach needs to have technical knowledge of the sport they are coaching, they also need to possess the ability to motivate and encourage individuals to do their best.

Coaching might seem straight forward, but it takes a specific person to have the balanced approach necessary to motivate a team as well as an individual athlete.

The challenge is how to write a coach resume that captures the sometimes unexplainable qualities an exceptional coach possesses.

Don’t worry – we will coach you through it.

Summary

1. Resume Template
2. Formatting
3. Writing Your Resume Summary
4. Areas of Expertise
5. Writing Your Work Experience
6. Writing Your Education Section
7. Additional Sections
8. Resume Points to Remember
9. Resume “Don’ts” to Remember
10. Some Helpful Tools

Let’s begin with a sample coach resume to demonstrate how all the resume pieces fit together. Then we will break each section down to really drill into how to write the best coach resume you possibly can.

Just like in team sports, formation is key.

You can have all the talent on the field or court, but if players aren’t in their correct locations, the play could fall apart.

The format of your coach resume functions a lot like this.

You can have all the necessary skills and qualifications, but if you don’t know how to lay it all out, your entire resume will look off.

When hiring managers only spend 6-seconds on average looking at resumes, you can’t afford those kinds of mistakes.

To put your best foot forward, you will want to list things out in reverse chronological order – this allows your most recent and likely best work to shine.

You will also want to utilize bullet points to help separate details with nice, even spacing and allow easy readability.

If you can master the basics, you are off to a great start.

Now that we’ve gone over some fundamentals, it is time to start your resume off with a summary.

The goal here is to lay out some distinct details about yourself as a coach – you want to be descriptive yet to the point.

It is important to list your best qualities, but not just any of your best.

You want to include qualities that are directly relevant to the position you are applying to.

Let’s take a look at an example of what a good summary vs. a bad summary can look like.

The “Yes!” example includes powerful words to describe the candidate in a way that exemplifies the impact they have on players.

The “No!” example lacks the description necessary to set the candidate apart from any other coach.

PRO TIP: When thinking of what details to include in your summary, try thinking through what the daily tasks of previous coaching jobs have been. If you don’t have experience, think about what characteristics you have that make a good coach, then try to include those skills and traits in your summary.

After you have laid out a paragraph describing yourself as your summary, you will also want to include a list of key accomplishments and skills that make you the best candidate.

You want to list your skills out in bullet points so that the person reading your resume can pick out a few major details at a glance.

If you have specific areas of expertise and knowledge that would separate you from the pack, make sure to list those things here.

If you look at the job post before you write this section, it should give you a good idea of what they are looking for, and therefore help you decide what to include.

Key Accomplishments/Areas of Expertise

• Effective Communication
• Motivation
• Recruitment
• Team-Oriented
• Leadership
• Relationship Building
• Mentorship
• Organization
• Play Techniques
• Conflict-resolution

There are two categories of skills to consider when thinking of things to include in this section.

Hard skills:

• Teachable
• Practicable
• Easy to Quantify
• Technical

Soft skills:

• Personality Traits
• Subjective
• Harder to Quantify
• Innate
• Not necessarily teachable

You’ve probably heard of hard and soft skills referred to as technical skills and people skills, respectively.

To have a well-rounded resume, you will want to list a solid combination of each.

PRO TIP: Reference the job posting you are responding to as you draft your resume. Make sure you are including skills they directly state they are looking for and don’t use synonyms.

(See below for a helpful table of some suggested hard and soft skill ideas to inspire you in writing your skills section.)

With the introduction out of the way, it is now time to start writing out your job history.

Whenever possible, your job history should fortify what you have stated in your summary.

For each previous job, try to describe them in a way that shows off the skills and qualifications you are going to need for the job you are currently trying to obtain.

You will want to lay your previous work out in reverse chronological order so that your most recent work is listed first.

Your most recent jobs come first because they are usually the most impressive.

For each job, list a few bullet points (three to five) that describe your position and anything impressive – as always, be descriptive but don’t ramble on.

Remember to include the name and location of where you worked as well as your job title.

The “Yes!” example uses the job description to show off how the candidate is motivational, organized, well-rounded, and an all-around leader.

The “No!” example reuses words and lists coaching tasks in a way that doesn’t highlight how instrumental the candidate was in implementing them.

PRO TIP: Sometimes, it is hard to recognize what qualities of yours went into your previous work. Start by listing out various tasks you completed at the job you are describing and then go through your list and ask yourself what skills those tasks require. Then you can narrow things down to the things that best describe the job and yourself.

(If you lack work experience, see below for a helpful section.)

A Word About Bots

It is important to note that in some situations, you might not be writing your resume for an actual human.

Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS), or bots, are becoming increasingly common as a part of the hiring process in today’s job market.

These bots are important to keep in mind because they are used to sort through resumes before sending selected ones on to a manager.

Bots work by scanning resumes for specific keywords that are recognized as “good candidate potential,” and if a bot doesn’t flag your resume, it will likely not receive a second look.

To write with bots in mind, some people recommend writing your work history descriptions in paragraph format as opposed to a list of bullet points.

This method is used to try and pack in as many power words as possible to grab the bot’s attention.

Standard Bullet Point Format:

Reed High School | Basketball Coach | Bowie, MD | August 2014- June 2016

• Encouraged & supported players on game days to achieve team goals
• Resolved conflict between players to maintain team-oriented environment
• Implemented effective game strategies to prepare players for each game
• Communicated with parents about player progress and overall development

Paragraph Format:

Reed High School | Basketball Coach | Bowie, MD | August 2014- June 2016
Provided encouragement and support to players during game days in order to achieve team goals, and implemented effective game strategies to prepare players for each game. Resolved conflict between players to ensure a productive and team-oriented environment. Communicated with parents regarding player progress and overall personal and athletic development.

Another option is to combine both methods and list a few key bullet points below your paragraph.

Reed High School | Basketball Coach | Bowie, MD | August 2014- June 2016
Provided encouragement and support to players during game days in order to achieve team goals, and implemented effective game strategies to prepare players for each game. Resolved conflict between players to ensure a productive and team-oriented environment. Communicated with parents regarding player progress and overall personal and athletic development.

• Conflict resolution
• SMART goals

While it is necessary to be prepared to impress a bot, it is also important to impress whoever is in charge of hiring.

That is why at Big Interview, we recommend sticking with a bullet point format while being mindful of including as many keywords as possible.

Your education section will seem quite simple compared to your work history and summary.

This section is generally a straightforward list of any degrees you have in order of impressiveness (associates, bachelor’s, etc.).

However, there is still room for creativity.

In some cases, you will have concentrations and minors to include.

Example:

Bachelor of Arts in Education
University of Maryland, Bowie, MD
May 2013

Or, if you have any additional certifications or workshops to list, you can include them in this section as well.

Example:

• ACA Coaching Certification
• First Aid/CPR Certified

Possible Sections to Include

In addition to your education and work experience, you can always incorporate additional sections in your coach resume.

Some sections to consider including are:

• Awards and honors
• Publications
• Noteworthy Projects
• Social Media Influence
• Speaking Engagements
• Hobbies/Interests
• Volunteer Work

What if You Have No Experience to Include in Your Coach Resume?

It is a common issue for recent graduates and people switching careers to worry about how to fill out a resume when they lack relevant work experience.

If this is the case for you, relax – and don’t count yourself out.

If your work experience section has too little to work with, the first thing you are going to want to do is move your education section directly below your summary.

When your work experience lacks flair, often, your education section is going to be more applicable and easier to work with.

To improve your education section, you will want to consider adding more useful details.

Did you have a high GPA?

Did you graduate with honors or receive any awards?

Add in details that will make you look impressive and keep in mind that you can include a section to list coursework that is specifically relevant as well.

Aside from beefing up your education section, consider adding in other sections to include any volunteer work or internships.

Unpaid work still counts as experience!

Consider the basics

It can be easy to get caught up in all of these resume writing rules and reminders, but don’t allow all that to get in the way of the basics. Always list your name and contact information at the top of your resume. Always double-check that it is there, and it is correct.

Speaking of double-checking

Review your coach resume and then read it to yourself out loud. Don’t let a silly mistake stand in between you and your next job. If you have the option, always get a second opinion.

Be different

When you are describing yourself and your work experience, make sure you are not repeating the same word twice. Use powerful language to explain why you stand out from the crowd.

Don’t say those two little words

“I” and “me” are tempting words to use when writing about yourself. However, refrain from including them on your coach resume.

Stay in formation

Don’t forget that while you want to be unique, your resume format is there so that details can remain organized and easy to read. Stick with legible font and a structured format that is pleasing to the eye.

Stay on one-page

Don’t write more than a one-page resume. Your resume is, in essence, just a list of relevant skills and qualifications. If you hand in a resume that someone is expected to flip the page or turn it over, they won’t. Say what you need to say, but do it quickly.

(See below for a helpful table of some suggested power words.)

Power Words

• Administered
• Adept
• Built
• Created
• Consolidated
• Coordinated
• Developed
• Designed
• Founded
• Formulated
• Implemented
• Improved
• Initiated
• Launched
• Pioneered
• Organized

Skills List