During the most recent “coaching carousel” of college basketball, I had the opportunity to work with a few coaches on their resumes. There is one mistake I see on coaching resumes and if you’re has this, you can fix it right now.

The number one mistake I see on resumes – of all professions, not just coaching – is writing the resume as a job description. Your resume IS NOT  a job description. The person reading your resume knows what the duties and responsibilities are of a head coach, an assistant coach, a video coordinator, whatever your role is. The person reading  your resume is looking for one thing. How can this candidate add value to my program AND make us better. To answer that, your resume needs to show quantifiable results of the work you have done.

It’s easy for coaches to make this mistake. You’re probably a candidate for another job because the head coach or athletic director doing the hiring knows you or knows of you and your work. However, there is a very good chance he or she will need to have others review your resume. This could be an athletic director, university president or a search committee. These are people who most likely do not know you. The job of your resume is to speak for you, when you are not in the room.

Four Ways To Fix Your Coaching Resume

  1. Your team’s record for each season
  2. List your team accomplishments and your contribution
  3. Highlight the accomplishments of your players
  4. Quantify the results of your recruiting success

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