Art Teacher Resume Examples [+Objective]

While inspiration is crucial for creating a masterpiece, it's not likely to hear the calling from a muse when writing a resume.

You might be tempted to think that your portfolio is the only thing necessary to land the dream job. However, it might not assure a school principal that you can convince a bunch of teenagers to stop sculpting intimate body parts from paper mache during art class.

Just like shadow and light combined reveal shapes and forms on a Caravaggio painting, your work experience and credentials must be carefully placed on your art teacher resume to show why you're the best candidate for the dream job.

This guide will show you: 

• An art teacher resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
• How to write an art teacher resume that will land you more interviews.
• Tips and examples of how to put skills and achievements on an art teacher resume.
• How to describe your experience on a resume for an art teacher to get any job you want

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Check out other related teaching resume guides:

• Teacher Resume
• New Teacher Resume
• Elementary Teacher Resume
• Preschool Teacher Resume
• Music Teacher Resume Sample
• Substitute Teacher Resume
• First Year Teacher Resume
• Teaching Assistant Resume
• Special Education Teacher Resume
• Teacher’s Aide Resume
• Camp Counselor Resume
• High School Teacher Resume
• Education Resume Samples
• Examples of Resumes for All Jobs

Elementary Art Teacher Resume Sample

Now, here’s how to write an art teacher resume:

1. Choose the Best Format for Your Art Teacher Resume

Whether you’re a preschool art teacher or private art teacher, you’ll have lesson plans and structure in place.

It’s the same here—

The ideal resume format keeps everything in order and easy to read.

So, follow these formatting rules:

• Start with your name and address in the heading area.
• Divide your resume into sections with bold, legible headings.
• Use the best resume format, which, in most cases, is the chronological format.
• Choose a great resume typeface to keep it easy to read, and make proper use of white space.
• Save your resume as a PDF so the principal will be able to read it on any device.

Pro Tip: PDFs are the best way to go, unless they conflict with the school's Applicant Tracking System. Check the job listing to be certain.

2. Write an Art Teacher Resume Objective or Summary

An objective or summary on a resume is also called a resume profile.

It’s like a self-portrait—

This brief, 3- or 4-line paragraph gives the school principal a helpful glance at your background, educational skills, art experience, and teaching goals.

Like finding van Gogh’s long-lost Poppy Flowers, it has to grab the principal’s attention from the start.

Choose the professional summary if you have over 2 years of art teaching experience. The summary intro sums up your art skills and teaching experience. It includes a key accomplishment with numbers to prove you’re the top choice.

Choose the professional objective if you have an art teacher resume with no teaching experience (or just a bit). This one states your teaching goals, and it still gives an academic achievement to prove your teaching competence.

Pro Tip: Your resume summary or objective for art teachers goes at the top, but you don’t have to write it first. Instead, save it for last. It’s tough to “sum up” your art resume if you haven’t written it yet!

3. Create the Perfect Art Teacher Job Description for a Resume

Whether you’ll be teaching painting techniques to middle schoolers or boring enriching teen lives with the importance of the Renaissance, get the work experience section right.

So—

Here’s how to ace your art teacher description of the job:

• Start with your current job, then the one before it, and so on.
• Put your job title at the top, dates worked, school name, and up to 6 bullets showcasing your top responsibilities.
• Reduce the number of job description bullet points as you go further back, and include only the most appropriate accomplishments.
• Begin each entry with action words (e.g., instructed, spearheaded, etc.)
• Show off measurable achievements rather than simply standard job duties and tasks.
• Target each resume to the one job. Don’t write a generic resume to be spammed to the entire school district.

Pro Tip: For a general guide on the complete steps to becoming a teacher, including salary, certifications, licensing, and more, see this one: How to Become a Teacher

When making a resume in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional resume template here for free.

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When you’re done, Zety’s resume builder will score your resume and tell you exactly how to make it better.

4. Make Your Art Teacher Resume Education Section Shine

You can see how the education resume section on an art teacher is important, right?

So—

Keep these rules in mind to get it perfect:

• Over 5 years of teaching experience? Add only your degree, major, and college name.
• New to teaching art? Include extra deets, such as academic achievements, extracurricular activities, relevant coursework, or favorite fields of study.
• Don’t add high school. Since you have to complete a degree to get most art teacher jobs, skip the high school entry on your resume.

Pro Tip: Relevant coursework for art teaching jobs include anything to do with artistic styles, artistic movements, media, art history, and methods.

5. Highlight Your Art Teacher Skills

Like those collectible cartes-de-visite, give them a resume they’ll admire and keep.

How?

Add the best art teaching skills to your resume:

Art Teacher Resume Skills

• Color Field Paintings
• Harlem Renaissance
• Cinématographe
• American Scene Painting
• Wiener Werkstätte
• Art History & Critique
• Oil Paintings
• Impressionism
• Choreography
• Minimalism Art
• Geometric Abstraction
• NeoClassicism
• Organizational Skills
• Decision-Making Skills
• Teamwork Skills
• Interpersonal Skills
• Project Management Skills
• Active Listening Skills
• Leadership Skills
• Analytical Skills
• Effective Communication
• Problem-Solving Skills
• Time Management Skills
• Creative Thinking Skills

But—

Don’t just copy-paste this list.

Do this, instead:

• List all the professional skills you have which relate to art and art history, including both soft skills and hard skills.
• Look through the job description where the art teaching position was advertised.
• Highlight artistic abilities and teaching skills from their job requirements. Those are the best resume keywords to choose.
• If one of your highlighted entries matches something on your list, add that to your art educator’s resume!

Pro Tip: As a prospective art teacher, your resume should have an even amount of hard skills (e.g., lesson plans, the Jazz Age) and soft skills (e.g., empathy, compassion, creativity).

6. Add Other Sections to Your Art Education Resume

You’ve created a solid resume for art teachers.

However—

It’s not going to win any competitions.

See, all the other teaching candidates have the same resume sections. To stand out, add some choice extra resume sections as unique and winning as each artistic work you talk about.

Here are some great additions to a resume for art teaching jobs:

• Certifications
• Language skills
• Projects
• Awards
• Licenses
• Memberships
• Hobbies and interests
• Volunteering

7. Attach a Cover Letter to Your Art Teacher Resume

53% of employers say a resume alone won’t cut it.

So—

Don't skip the cover letter!

Here’s how to write an art teacher cover letter critics will love:

• Choose an elegant cover letter format.
• Start the cover letter in a compelling way.
• Show how your art teaching experience benefits them.
• End your cover letter with an offer and a call to action.

Also, we’ve got some great cover letter tips to help you along. Check them out!

Pro Tip: Don’t forget to follow up on your job application. Shooting off a quick email or making a brief call to the principal might be the thing that gets you hired.

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

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See more cover letter templates and start writing.

Got any questions on how to write a resume for art teacher jobs? Not sure how to talk about artistic skills, teaching certifications, or art education achievements? Get at us in the comments below, and thanks for reading!