A professional coach leads a team by planning, organizing, and running all activities associated with competitive matches, skills development, motivation, and the fitness of players. To be a great coach, you will need in-depth knowledge of the game, strong management skills, and usually playing experience.
To win that great new coaching position, you have to start your game off strong, and that takes an outstanding resume. The example resume for an athletic coach starts with a brief introduction that calls out some relevant skills and experience. It doesn’t pull any punches because it then jumps right into a list of skills that highlights key abilities.
The professional experience section provides concise descriptions of each job you’ve had and includes a bulleted list of achievements, along with a preceding paragraph of job responsibilities. Your accomplishments may include competing in championship games or increasing the coaching staff. These are excellent coaching skills to tout to score points with hiring managers.
If you have many years of experience, include no more than 15 years of related work experience. List your positions with your job title, dates of employment, the organization, and location.
We’ve covered having a game winning introduction, list of skills, and professional experience descriptions on your resume. What else do you need to do to get your resume across a recruiter’s goal line?
The format of your athletic coach’s resume has to be lean and mean, just like you want your athletes to be. Don’t use fancy fonts, colors, or formatting like lines. This makes your resume too busy and can also cause issues with the applicant tracking systems (ATS) that most companies use to manage the hiring process. Use a basic font and a consistent color scheme. There are lots of great resume templates out there. Find one that suits your style and add it to your playbook.
Your resume needs to be brief, one or two pages, at most. The majority of employers spend only a few seconds reviewing a resume before they decide to keep it or cut it. So, each section of your resume has to be on-point. Think of each word as a scoring opportunity, but you only have so much time to score. Don’t include a lot of flowery language or adjectives. Let your accomplishments speak for themselves.
What types of skills do teams or schools look for when hiring a coach? Coaching is a people-oriented career, so many soft skills are applicable. Below are some of the top skills for coaches to have. We also recommend looking at the job description for the position you are applying for to add the skills that match your skill set. This will help your resume line up perfectly with employers’ expectations.
Here are some excellent skills to have on your resume as an athletic coach:
Leadership
Practice management
Training & development
Offensive & defensive strategy
Time management
Gameplay insight
Problem-solving
Injury assessments
Communication
Perseverance & empathy
Summary example
Enthusiastic and accountable coaching professional able to leverage NCAA collegiate athlete experience to boost team effectiveness. Skilled coach and mentor with proven success motivating student athletes. Proficient in athlete recruiting and mastering technologies to enhance team performance. Consistently recognized for resourcefulness and driving team synergies to maximize results.
Employment history example
Coach at the UNIVERSITY OF WEST ALABAMA, Livingston
2012 - 2015
Partnered with Head Coach and football program professionals devoted to accelerated student athlete development. Produced comprehensive game day and social media videos utilizing engaging graphic design elements.
Credited for stellar budget management of time-sensitive recruiting and road trip logistics.
Instrumental in cross-functional collaboration with campus staff to effectively resolve outstanding issues.
Commended for leadership talents on and off the field supporting NCAA Division II Regional Finalist and Gulf South Conference Champion accolades.
Cultivated strong relationships with coaching staff and area high schools to streamline recruiting requirements.
Inspired and mentored five equipment student managers and three film specialists to enhance productivity.
Coach at the UNIVERSITY OF WEST ALABAMA, Livingston
2012 - 2014
Recruited high school seniors to athletic programs leveraging in-depth knowledge of all positions and collegiate athlete experience. Led practices and instituted thought-provoking motivational techniques, supporting athlete performance improvements.
Coached eight specialists, monitored student academic achievements, and prepared in-depth scouting reports.
Trained student athletes how to remain productive in challenging, high-pressure environments.
Meticulously tracked team and individual stats and maintained multiple charts during games.
Coach at WEKIVA HIGH SCHOOL, Orlando
2011 - 2012
Instructed players regarding sports fundamentals. Assisted with workouts to enhance player conditioning. Supervised and positively motivated players during practice and games. Recruited players for team. Managed administrative duties required to maintain an efficient, cost-effective basketball program.
Successfully coached team to earn placement in the District Championship in 2014, 2015, and 2016 as well as the State Championship the 2014; achieved State Championship Runner-Up in 2015.
Education example
Bachelor of Science in History at the University of West Alabama
Scholastic Honors | Student Athlete
Associate of Arts in History at Holmes Community College
Skills example
Operations Leadership
Fan Outreach / Engagement
Collegiate Sports Recruiting
Logistics Execution
Budget Management
Troubleshooting/Issue Resolution