Post by Coach Campbell on Jun 24, 2022 16:29:18 GMT
Interviewing and Program Building Considerations
By Jerry Campbell
The information provided here should be used as a guide for developing your philosophies for building a successful football program. Included along with this article are several different ideas for preparing for a head or assistant coaching opportunity. The information included here has come from many different experiences and opportunities both as an assistant and as a Head Football Coach. When going into an interview have a plan and procedures for implementing your plan for success.
The following information is a step-by-step procedure or checklist when getting you ready for the interview process when pursuing a Head coaching or assistant’s position.
Preparing Your Resume
Your resume serves as the initial indicator of your organizational skills and professionalism. A poorly prepared resume could convey the wrong message to a interview committee member. A properly constructed resume should have the following contents:
1. A letter of interest, with a brief statement of your teaching and coaching philosophy.
2. Resume of no more than two pages (include picture).
3. Teaching and coaching chronology.
4. Three to five references (always include current and recent principal).
Additional Suggestions For Preparing Your Resume
1. Actively sell your qualifications by focusing on accomplishments and results rather than routine job descriptions.
2. Final hiring decisions are rarely based on resumes alone; however, the resume should be concise, factual and positive listing of your education, experience and accomplishments.
3. Make sure the information you provide (throughout the resume) is relevant to prospective employers, supports your candidacy, and focuses on skills and experiences needed to do the job.
4. Be conscious of the continuity of your history. The reader will be looking for reasons to eliminate as many resumes as possible. Resumes with gaps of unaccountable time often reach the circular file.
5. Weigh your choice of words. Select strong action verbs, concrete nouns and positive modifiers for emphasis. Use concise phrases and clauses rather than complete sentences.
6. Try your resume on another coach that has experience with the interview process or members of faculty that has sit in on the interview process before.
7. Keep a separate list of references and make them available only on request.
8. Always send a cover letter on matching paper with specific reference to the school’s needs and your qualifications for the job. A personal letter is always best, so make an effort to get the name and title of individual making the hiring decision.
9. Remember, your resume is only a door opener. You want a personal interview.
Your resume has only a few seconds to impress - or to end up in the trash.
A strong resume needs a solid foundation, and no amount of trickery can mask poor organization. Start with these basics.
Contact Information: List your contact information at the top of the resume. Include your full name, mailing address, phone number and e-mail address. If you have a personal Web site, include the URL only if the site shows off your skills or applies to your career goals.
Objective: The objectives section gives recruiters an immediate sense of who you are and what you're looking for, without forcing them to wade through the entire resume. If you decide to include an objective, stress what you'll add to the company, not what you're looking to take away.
Experience: List your experience chronologically, with your most recent job first. If your latest experience wasn't the most impressive, arrange your list by importance. Include the company name, location, your title and dates of employment. Also, give a brief description of your accomplishments these tips:
• Emphasize your most important responsibilities even if they weren't your primary duties.
• Use active voice. Strong sentences are those in which a subject performs an action (active voice) as opposed to an action being performed on the subject (passive voice). "I planned an event," creates a stronger impression than "An event was planned by me."
• Impress employers with cause-effect relationships and tangible results. Quantify your achievements with percentages and numbers like "increased enrollment 20 percent" and "supervised three-person staff."
• Use descriptions to highlight your sense of initiative. Paint yourself as a "go-getter" with strong verbs like "proposed," "launched" and "managed."
Skills/Interests: Today's workers are more tech-savvy than ever, so make sure you mention your technical and computer skills. List programming languages, software programs and operating systems you've used as well as certifications you have. Don't forget "soft skills" like foreign languages and public speaking.
Always include memberships in professional organizations, because it shows you're serious about your career. Mentioning your interests is optional. Listing activities and hobbies can portray you as a well- rounded person, but it can raise eyebrows, too. Be careful what you list. (You should probably keep your passion for professional wrestling to yourself.)
Education: List your most recent education first and work backward. State your degree, major, minor, dates of attendance and the school's name and location. You may also want to add your GPA (if 3.0 or higher).
References: Don't waste valuable space on references. Employers assume you'll provide them upon request.
Finishing Touches
• Create several versions of your resume, each tailored to the type of position you're applying for. Writing multiple resumes can be time-consuming, but it's a small price to pay for the job you want.
• If you're applying for a specific job, research the position and company. Pay attention to the job requirements, and highlight your qualifications as they reflect the hiring company's needs.
• Be concise. Stick to one page. Make sure every word is meaningful.
• Choose fonts that are easy-to-read, clean and consistent. Don't use non-traditional or overly creative fonts.
• Read, edit and re-read your resume to make sure it's well written, clear and typo-free. Do it again. Then, ask your friends and family to do the same.
• If you use an online resume, consider saving a text (".txt") version that will look good on any computer. Send your resume as an attached file and also paste the text into the body of the e-mail just to be safe. Online resumes should also include plenty of keywords, since they may be searched.
Those in favor say objectives are the simplest, quickest way to target a specific position. Those against charge that objectives waste valuable space and limit you to just one position when you might be qualified for others.
Whether you are pro- or anti-objective, here are tips for writing a resume that will grab recruiters' attention from the get- Job objectives work best for two types of job seekers:
• Those who know exactly what job they want, and
• Those whose career goal isn't obvious on their resumes.
If you include an objective, place it directly under your name and contact information. An objective typically begins with "to." For example, "Objective: To obtain a position ... "
Your objective should be simple, specific and brief -- no more than two or three lines. It should highlight what you have to offer the company, such as a specific skill or experience. A recruiter is more interested in what you can give the company than what you hope to get from it.
Here's an example of an effective job objective:
Objective: To obtain an entry-level account management position in financial services utilizing my strong analytical and interpersonal skills.
Review your objective each time you send a resume and make sure it fits the job you're applying for. Just as you should have several versions of your resume, you should also have several versions of your job objective.
Summarizing Your Skills
Not 100 percent sure what job you want? Then you may find a summary statement more effective than an objective.
While an objective focuses on the job, a summary statement focuses on the job seeker.
A summary statement is a one- to two-sentence overview that captures the essence of your skills and experience. It highlights what makes you a qualified candidate as well as what makes you different (and better) than other applicants.
Tailor your summary statement to highlight the experience that is most relevant to the job.
You've found your dream job.
You spot the job posting, craft a winning resume and e-mail it to the recruiter. Then the waiting game begins.
After you've sent a resume, it's tempting to sit back and hope the recruiter will call. But -- make no mistake -- you SHOULD follow up. You just need to figure out when and how to do it.
Wait a Week, Recruiters Say. The majority of recruiters (53 percent) say candidates should wait one week before following up, according to a Hot Jobs survey.
Some recruiters prefer you act sooner: Twenty-one percent said candidates should wait less than one week. And others prefer you wait longer: Eight percent said candidates should wait two weeks.
And some even rather that you wait for them to call you. Nineteen percent of recruiters surveyed said they preferred to contact candidates, rather than for candidates to contact them.
Your best bet? Go with the majority opinion and wait a week.
Send a Short E-Mail Message
E-mail is a great follow-up tool because it not only lets you remind the recruiter that you've applied for a job, but it also lets you submit a resume again without seeming too pushy.
A week after you've submitted a resume, send the recruiter an e-mail to follow up.
Use these tips to write your follow-up e-mail:
• Put your full name and the title of the position you've applied for in the subject line.
• Write a professional note that reiterates your qualifications and interest in the job.
• Attached your resume again. (Don't make the recruiter have to dig though old e-mails to look for it.)
• Include your full name in the file name of your resume.
• Don't forget to proofread carefully before you hit "Send"!
Phone With a Friendly Reminder
If you decide to follow up on a resume over the phone, be sure to rehearse what you want to say to the recruiter.
Keep it short and sweet. Introduce yourself and remind the recruiter that you submitted a resume recently. Make sure you state exactly what job you're interested in. You can also ask if they received your resume and if they're still considering candidates for the position.
If you get a recorded message, you may want to call again later. Call a few times in hopes of speaking with a real, live recruiter before resorting to leaving a message.
You also need to know even to put down the phone. Calling recruiters repeatedly isn't going to make them more likely to call you back. It's probably just going to irritate them.
Almost half (47 percent) of recruiters claim that their biggest pet peeve is candidates who keep calling them, according to a HotJobs survey.
Should You Just Resend Your Resume?
Have a few weeks passed since you sent a resume and you still haven't heard from the recruiter? Are you considering simply reapplying for the position?
Don't.
Recruiters usually keep resumes on file, and they'll likely discover that you've already sent one. Worse, they may think that you didn't even realize that you'd already applied for a position.
Only resend your resume to a recruiter when you want to apply for a different position at a company. Otherwise, you should e-mail or call to follow up.
Your Resume Should Address The Following Four Questions
Make Sure You Have The Answers.
1. Answering the following four questions in a fully persuasive way will greatly increase your odds of developing a winning resume. The questions are the crucial elements of the resume formula. Answering them will not only give you the material you need for building a strong resume, but will also prepare you for networking and interviewing.
2. What do you want? That is your job target. (Offensive coordinator, etc.) The resume should be built around your job target (whether you include an objective or not) so that prospective employers can immediately see what position you are aiming for.
3. Why are you qualified to do it? That’s the summary or “Professional Profile” section. This is where you outline the skills and credentials that qualify you for the job. You can break your skills into functional sections or use bullet points to highlight key points. If this section is done properly, it will convince prospective employers that the rest of your resume is worth reading, bringing them to the next question.
4. Where have you done it? That’s the “Experience” section. The reader needs to know who you worked for, the city and sate where they are located, and what you did. Ideally, your job descriptions should include lots of active verbs and focus on keywords and functional skills that are most relevant to your target job or position.
How well have you done it? Listing accomplishments and special projects shows by example that you have contributed to previous schools or employer’s bottom line (winning, etc).
Preparing For The Interview
The following steps should take place before the actual interview:
• Know the salary scale (this avoids you having to talk salary during the interview)
• Know the increments of all the coaching positions if possible.
• Have an idea of who may come with you.
• Know your five - year professional goals.
• Investigate the history of the program (at least last three years).
• Study the district, i.e. number of schools, middle school program, the names of upper administration personnel, etc.
• Compile a list of questions for the interview committee.
• Organize pertinent materials for the interview, such as;
a. Coach’s responsibilities and staff structure (be sure to include girl’s athletics if applicable).
b. Booster club information (philosophy, etc.)
c. Brief summary of coaching philosophy.
d. Playbook.
Interview Coaching Tips
This information should be used as tips for the actual interview.
• Dress for success, i.e. first impressions.
• Proper attitude, act as if you already had the job, body language, eye contact, project confidence, etc.
• Be quick to respond to all questions.
• Emphasize the positive when discussing their school.
• Philosophy, how do you handle athletes?
• Convince the interview committee of your loyalty and its importance.
• Be able to demonstrate your organizational skills.
• Have a plan for developing your off-season program.
• Be able to discuss the sharing of athletes.
• Have an academic plan, how do you keep your athletes eligible?
• Knowledge of your states rules and regulations, the committee needs to be convinced that you will abide by all rules.
• Be computer literate; demonstrate the use of high-tech in scouting, grade checks, game plans, etc.
• Don’t ad lib be honest and sincere.
• Be yourself.
Considerations To Address When Applying For A Head Football Or Assistant Coaching Position
The following information should be used as a guide when applying for a head coaching or assistant football job. The following items listed below should be followed that will allow you to make your decision based upon the following criteria:
• Genuinely enthused and excited about.
• Long term committed, both to the school and its community.
• Positive in belief of the school, the community and football program.
• Earnest in promoting and supporting the students and the program.
• Contributing at a high level competency while actualizing your potential.
• Involved in the youth of the community.
• Is this a school that I would want my own kids to attend?
• Is this a community that I truly want my family involved in.
What is the coaching situation? How many football-coaching stipends available? Does the head football coach have full say on who is allowed to coach? How many coaches
Questions To Consider Asking When Seeking A Head Football Coaching Position
The following information should be considered and thought through when looking into your choices for the right school to be the head football coach at.
• What is the administrative feeling towards athletics? What part does athletics play in the total educational program? What are the school’s philosophies, goals and objectives concerning athletics?
• How is the continuity among coaches? Do animosities exist between coaches of different sports?
• What is the administrative policy concerning disciplines?
• What is the breakdown of administration? Who am I responsible to? What is expected of me?
• Does the faculty have a positive or negative feeling towards athletics?
• What support does the school receive from the student body, parents, boosters, and community?
• What is the attitude of the athletes? Are they familiar with winning programs?
• What current disciplines have been established in athletics concerning training rules, conduct, quitting, failure of classes, alcohol, drugs, etc?
• What is the social atmosphere among the students? Are there complications due to cross-cultural rivals? What are the socio-economical backgrounds of the students?
• What types of off-season programs are available? Is there a summer weight program and if one is in place what has been its attendance? Does the program provide athletic periods?
• must I keep from the old staff? Will I be allowed to bring coaches with me (offensive and defensive coordinators)?
• When keeping members of the old staff they must be able to conform to a new philosophy and new ideas. A Head coach must determine if the old staff can be loyal to change and his ideas for running his program.
• Does the district allow time off for professional development (clinics, seminars, etc.)? Does the school provide funds for coaching clinics? If not, may coaches use sick leave time to attend clinics without negative pressure from the administration?
• What is the policy concerning budgets? What is the football budget? What are the procedures for outside fundraising activities?
• What facilities are available?
Practice fields Equipment?
Game field (lights) Basic football gear
Locker rooms Sleds, Storage
Varsity room Football dummies
Training room Media – Video, editing systems
Weight room Game day headphones
Gyms or field house Training supplies
Coaches offices Uniforms game, practice
• If facilities are not available, can compensation be made through a booster club or maintenance department? Does the administration welcome improvements and ingenuity? A head coach needs to improve on his facilities annually.
• What are the policies and procedures concerning scouting, travel, buses, equipment maintenance, field preparation, meals, filming, etc?
• Does the school allow a summer camp? 7 on 7? May a fee be charged?
• Does the school have any special regulations other than those specified by the district or state association with regards to eligibility?
• What are the salary ranges for teaching and coaching? What are the other responsibilities accompany teaching contracts? (Club supervision, committees, etc.)
• Is the school willing to support a strong winning football program? Do the administrators, teachers, students and community want a strong program?
A football program should be managed with a business like approach. It should be well organized to function in a smooth, progressive and systematic manner. It should support the philosophy of the school climate, highlighted by accelerated goals, ideas, and its people. The ultimate goal of the school and the football program should be to meet the needs of the community and to become the best it can possibly be in a highly competitive environment.
Most Frequently Asked Interview Questions For
Head Football Coaching Position
The following questions are those most often asked during the interview process, be prepared to address each one in some detail.
• Philosophy
a. What do you do with seniors once the season comes to an end?
b. Staff development / all sports.
c. Educational philosophy.
d. Offensive philosophy.
e. Defensive philosophy.
f. Off-season philosophy.
• Tell us about your strengths.
a. Organizational skills must be evident.
• Tell us about your weaknesses.
• How would you get the faculty involved in the athletic program?
• What is your primary concern when developing your basic offense and defense?
• Explain your methodology of handling disciplinary cases?
• What are some of your strengths? What are some of your weaknesses?
• Why do you want his job? What do you know about the school district?
• How will you handle your football coaching staff assignments and organize your staff among the teams we promote – varsity, Jr. varsity, and freshman?
• What steps will you take to insure the academic eligibility of the athletes? What plans do you have for study halls?
• How do you see yourself with the administration at being important to the success of the overall program?
• How should the booster club be set up and should there be one club or a separate club for each sport?
• If we where to watch a practice what we would expect to see?
• If we where to observe your off-season program what should we expect?
• What about the coaches on staff here now.
• Experience with budget
• Discipline procedures
• Getting support of community
• Jr. High program philosophy
• What does your wife do?
• Evaluation of coaches
• Monitor no pass-no play
• Are you a good teacher-examples
• Punishment for kids who break team rules/district athletic rules
• Practice times and schedule
• How will you handle the transition and opposition of your hiring
• 5 year plan
• Will you live our community?
• How do you teach fundamentals
• Install equity as AD/HC
• Elementary school involvement
• Kids smoking and drinking
• Girls program-relationship/policies/rules
• Why are you successful?
• Why should we hire you?
• Football in playoffs-kids goes to basketball?
• Staff organization-top to bottom
• I am a7th grade parent convince me my kid should play football.
• Team is 1-6 how do you approach the rest of the season
• 1st thing you will do when get here
• Alignment of program 7-12
• Is all competition good
• What do you want graduated players to say about you and program
• Seniors after football season-handle them and situation
• College scholarships-procedures etc.
• SAT prep/TAKS prep
• Why you want come here
• Process of hiring staff
• Wife’s role
• Title 9-how will you be legal
• Computer / Video Tech Skills.
• How do you have equity in budget with all sports and justify football money?
• If we had an emergency at 10 o clock on Sunday morning-where would we find you?
• 7th grade athletic periods, your feelings on this.
• Master schedule for athletics.
• Chain of command and who are you accountable to.
• What is a player’s coach?
• Booster club guidelines, please explain.
• Coaches parties?
• Goals of your family?
• Teacher involvement.
• Date of hire to 1st practice plan.
• Would you like to teach a leadership class?
• Homecoming/parents night/ plan.
• Alumni relationships
• Relationship with middle school principal.
• Due process of students.
• Passing TAKS or winning football games-which is more important to you.
• Do you schedule wins or high competition?
• Jr. High games winning or participation?
• Demonstrate knowledge of UIL rules for athletics and academics.
• Community service activities.
• Board meeting attendance
• Upset parent after the game handling the situation-other coaches involved.
• Relationship with local law officials.
• Steroid prevention.
• Management and leadership-what styles do you use?
• Local youth coaches-handle, involve, and communicate.
• CDL and transportation issues-rules for bus.
• Activity fund management.
• Student trainer and manager policy (girls)?
• Pep rallies-players involved or not and why.
• Wednesday night church and practice.
• Method to get numbers up for participating in athletics.
• Monitor other sports-how?
• Fundraising efforts? Why, how, how much -relationship with other school programs efforts
• Concession stands.
• Band relationships and communication -halftime; parent nights, traditions, football player’s play at halftime.
If Teaching Position Is Required
When applying for a coaching position that requires you to teach as well, the following questions my be asked by:
• Tell us about yourself. What is your background, education, etc. and why you want to be considered for this position?
• What do you enjoy about teaching and what do you believe is the greatest attribute or characteristic that you could bring to the classroom to ensure the success of your students?
• What do you need to know about your students in order for them to be successful?
• What techniques do you use to motivate students and get them excited about learning?
• If you gave a major exam and 35% of your students failed, what would you consider as too high a failure rate and how would you deal with it?
• Describe your methods/philosophy of classroom management/discipline.
• Explain your approach for communicating with parents about concerns involving students in your class. Do you consider parent involvement an important part of the education process? Explain.
• Tell us what you know about the following: Block scheduling and Cooperative Learning.
• How do you feel about inclusion and developing modifications for Special Education/504 students?
• How do you want your students to view you?
• What is your philosophy of classroom management? How do you handle discipline problems in the classroom?
• How do you plan standards-based lessons in your subject area?
• Describe a successful lesson that you have delivered.
• In what area do you believe you could grow professionally?
• When do you contact parents regarding your students?
• Are you interested in coaching/advising any extra-curricular activities?
• Give an example of how you are a team player.
• What do you feel is the meaning of the document and motto, “No child left behind”, and how does that motto relate to you as a teacher.
• Do you have any questions?
By Jerry Campbell
The information provided here should be used as a guide for developing your philosophies for building a successful football program. Included along with this article are several different ideas for preparing for a head or assistant coaching opportunity. The information included here has come from many different experiences and opportunities both as an assistant and as a Head Football Coach. When going into an interview have a plan and procedures for implementing your plan for success.
The following information is a step-by-step procedure or checklist when getting you ready for the interview process when pursuing a Head coaching or assistant’s position.
Preparing Your Resume
Your resume serves as the initial indicator of your organizational skills and professionalism. A poorly prepared resume could convey the wrong message to a interview committee member. A properly constructed resume should have the following contents:
1. A letter of interest, with a brief statement of your teaching and coaching philosophy.
2. Resume of no more than two pages (include picture).
3. Teaching and coaching chronology.
4. Three to five references (always include current and recent principal).
Additional Suggestions For Preparing Your Resume
1. Actively sell your qualifications by focusing on accomplishments and results rather than routine job descriptions.
2. Final hiring decisions are rarely based on resumes alone; however, the resume should be concise, factual and positive listing of your education, experience and accomplishments.
3. Make sure the information you provide (throughout the resume) is relevant to prospective employers, supports your candidacy, and focuses on skills and experiences needed to do the job.
4. Be conscious of the continuity of your history. The reader will be looking for reasons to eliminate as many resumes as possible. Resumes with gaps of unaccountable time often reach the circular file.
5. Weigh your choice of words. Select strong action verbs, concrete nouns and positive modifiers for emphasis. Use concise phrases and clauses rather than complete sentences.
6. Try your resume on another coach that has experience with the interview process or members of faculty that has sit in on the interview process before.
7. Keep a separate list of references and make them available only on request.
8. Always send a cover letter on matching paper with specific reference to the school’s needs and your qualifications for the job. A personal letter is always best, so make an effort to get the name and title of individual making the hiring decision.
9. Remember, your resume is only a door opener. You want a personal interview.
Your resume has only a few seconds to impress - or to end up in the trash.
A strong resume needs a solid foundation, and no amount of trickery can mask poor organization. Start with these basics.
Contact Information: List your contact information at the top of the resume. Include your full name, mailing address, phone number and e-mail address. If you have a personal Web site, include the URL only if the site shows off your skills or applies to your career goals.
Objective: The objectives section gives recruiters an immediate sense of who you are and what you're looking for, without forcing them to wade through the entire resume. If you decide to include an objective, stress what you'll add to the company, not what you're looking to take away.
Experience: List your experience chronologically, with your most recent job first. If your latest experience wasn't the most impressive, arrange your list by importance. Include the company name, location, your title and dates of employment. Also, give a brief description of your accomplishments these tips:
• Emphasize your most important responsibilities even if they weren't your primary duties.
• Use active voice. Strong sentences are those in which a subject performs an action (active voice) as opposed to an action being performed on the subject (passive voice). "I planned an event," creates a stronger impression than "An event was planned by me."
• Impress employers with cause-effect relationships and tangible results. Quantify your achievements with percentages and numbers like "increased enrollment 20 percent" and "supervised three-person staff."
• Use descriptions to highlight your sense of initiative. Paint yourself as a "go-getter" with strong verbs like "proposed," "launched" and "managed."
Skills/Interests: Today's workers are more tech-savvy than ever, so make sure you mention your technical and computer skills. List programming languages, software programs and operating systems you've used as well as certifications you have. Don't forget "soft skills" like foreign languages and public speaking.
Always include memberships in professional organizations, because it shows you're serious about your career. Mentioning your interests is optional. Listing activities and hobbies can portray you as a well- rounded person, but it can raise eyebrows, too. Be careful what you list. (You should probably keep your passion for professional wrestling to yourself.)
Education: List your most recent education first and work backward. State your degree, major, minor, dates of attendance and the school's name and location. You may also want to add your GPA (if 3.0 or higher).
References: Don't waste valuable space on references. Employers assume you'll provide them upon request.
Finishing Touches
• Create several versions of your resume, each tailored to the type of position you're applying for. Writing multiple resumes can be time-consuming, but it's a small price to pay for the job you want.
• If you're applying for a specific job, research the position and company. Pay attention to the job requirements, and highlight your qualifications as they reflect the hiring company's needs.
• Be concise. Stick to one page. Make sure every word is meaningful.
• Choose fonts that are easy-to-read, clean and consistent. Don't use non-traditional or overly creative fonts.
• Read, edit and re-read your resume to make sure it's well written, clear and typo-free. Do it again. Then, ask your friends and family to do the same.
• If you use an online resume, consider saving a text (".txt") version that will look good on any computer. Send your resume as an attached file and also paste the text into the body of the e-mail just to be safe. Online resumes should also include plenty of keywords, since they may be searched.
Those in favor say objectives are the simplest, quickest way to target a specific position. Those against charge that objectives waste valuable space and limit you to just one position when you might be qualified for others.
Whether you are pro- or anti-objective, here are tips for writing a resume that will grab recruiters' attention from the get- Job objectives work best for two types of job seekers:
• Those who know exactly what job they want, and
• Those whose career goal isn't obvious on their resumes.
If you include an objective, place it directly under your name and contact information. An objective typically begins with "to." For example, "Objective: To obtain a position ... "
Your objective should be simple, specific and brief -- no more than two or three lines. It should highlight what you have to offer the company, such as a specific skill or experience. A recruiter is more interested in what you can give the company than what you hope to get from it.
Here's an example of an effective job objective:
Objective: To obtain an entry-level account management position in financial services utilizing my strong analytical and interpersonal skills.
Review your objective each time you send a resume and make sure it fits the job you're applying for. Just as you should have several versions of your resume, you should also have several versions of your job objective.
Summarizing Your Skills
Not 100 percent sure what job you want? Then you may find a summary statement more effective than an objective.
While an objective focuses on the job, a summary statement focuses on the job seeker.
A summary statement is a one- to two-sentence overview that captures the essence of your skills and experience. It highlights what makes you a qualified candidate as well as what makes you different (and better) than other applicants.
Tailor your summary statement to highlight the experience that is most relevant to the job.
You've found your dream job.
You spot the job posting, craft a winning resume and e-mail it to the recruiter. Then the waiting game begins.
After you've sent a resume, it's tempting to sit back and hope the recruiter will call. But -- make no mistake -- you SHOULD follow up. You just need to figure out when and how to do it.
Wait a Week, Recruiters Say. The majority of recruiters (53 percent) say candidates should wait one week before following up, according to a Hot Jobs survey.
Some recruiters prefer you act sooner: Twenty-one percent said candidates should wait less than one week. And others prefer you wait longer: Eight percent said candidates should wait two weeks.
And some even rather that you wait for them to call you. Nineteen percent of recruiters surveyed said they preferred to contact candidates, rather than for candidates to contact them.
Your best bet? Go with the majority opinion and wait a week.
Send a Short E-Mail Message
E-mail is a great follow-up tool because it not only lets you remind the recruiter that you've applied for a job, but it also lets you submit a resume again without seeming too pushy.
A week after you've submitted a resume, send the recruiter an e-mail to follow up.
Use these tips to write your follow-up e-mail:
• Put your full name and the title of the position you've applied for in the subject line.
• Write a professional note that reiterates your qualifications and interest in the job.
• Attached your resume again. (Don't make the recruiter have to dig though old e-mails to look for it.)
• Include your full name in the file name of your resume.
• Don't forget to proofread carefully before you hit "Send"!
Phone With a Friendly Reminder
If you decide to follow up on a resume over the phone, be sure to rehearse what you want to say to the recruiter.
Keep it short and sweet. Introduce yourself and remind the recruiter that you submitted a resume recently. Make sure you state exactly what job you're interested in. You can also ask if they received your resume and if they're still considering candidates for the position.
If you get a recorded message, you may want to call again later. Call a few times in hopes of speaking with a real, live recruiter before resorting to leaving a message.
You also need to know even to put down the phone. Calling recruiters repeatedly isn't going to make them more likely to call you back. It's probably just going to irritate them.
Almost half (47 percent) of recruiters claim that their biggest pet peeve is candidates who keep calling them, according to a HotJobs survey.
Should You Just Resend Your Resume?
Have a few weeks passed since you sent a resume and you still haven't heard from the recruiter? Are you considering simply reapplying for the position?
Don't.
Recruiters usually keep resumes on file, and they'll likely discover that you've already sent one. Worse, they may think that you didn't even realize that you'd already applied for a position.
Only resend your resume to a recruiter when you want to apply for a different position at a company. Otherwise, you should e-mail or call to follow up.
Your Resume Should Address The Following Four Questions
Make Sure You Have The Answers.
1. Answering the following four questions in a fully persuasive way will greatly increase your odds of developing a winning resume. The questions are the crucial elements of the resume formula. Answering them will not only give you the material you need for building a strong resume, but will also prepare you for networking and interviewing.
2. What do you want? That is your job target. (Offensive coordinator, etc.) The resume should be built around your job target (whether you include an objective or not) so that prospective employers can immediately see what position you are aiming for.
3. Why are you qualified to do it? That’s the summary or “Professional Profile” section. This is where you outline the skills and credentials that qualify you for the job. You can break your skills into functional sections or use bullet points to highlight key points. If this section is done properly, it will convince prospective employers that the rest of your resume is worth reading, bringing them to the next question.
4. Where have you done it? That’s the “Experience” section. The reader needs to know who you worked for, the city and sate where they are located, and what you did. Ideally, your job descriptions should include lots of active verbs and focus on keywords and functional skills that are most relevant to your target job or position.
How well have you done it? Listing accomplishments and special projects shows by example that you have contributed to previous schools or employer’s bottom line (winning, etc).
Preparing For The Interview
The following steps should take place before the actual interview:
• Know the salary scale (this avoids you having to talk salary during the interview)
• Know the increments of all the coaching positions if possible.
• Have an idea of who may come with you.
• Know your five - year professional goals.
• Investigate the history of the program (at least last three years).
• Study the district, i.e. number of schools, middle school program, the names of upper administration personnel, etc.
• Compile a list of questions for the interview committee.
• Organize pertinent materials for the interview, such as;
a. Coach’s responsibilities and staff structure (be sure to include girl’s athletics if applicable).
b. Booster club information (philosophy, etc.)
c. Brief summary of coaching philosophy.
d. Playbook.
Interview Coaching Tips
This information should be used as tips for the actual interview.
• Dress for success, i.e. first impressions.
• Proper attitude, act as if you already had the job, body language, eye contact, project confidence, etc.
• Be quick to respond to all questions.
• Emphasize the positive when discussing their school.
• Philosophy, how do you handle athletes?
• Convince the interview committee of your loyalty and its importance.
• Be able to demonstrate your organizational skills.
• Have a plan for developing your off-season program.
• Be able to discuss the sharing of athletes.
• Have an academic plan, how do you keep your athletes eligible?
• Knowledge of your states rules and regulations, the committee needs to be convinced that you will abide by all rules.
• Be computer literate; demonstrate the use of high-tech in scouting, grade checks, game plans, etc.
• Don’t ad lib be honest and sincere.
• Be yourself.
Considerations To Address When Applying For A Head Football Or Assistant Coaching Position
The following information should be used as a guide when applying for a head coaching or assistant football job. The following items listed below should be followed that will allow you to make your decision based upon the following criteria:
• Genuinely enthused and excited about.
• Long term committed, both to the school and its community.
• Positive in belief of the school, the community and football program.
• Earnest in promoting and supporting the students and the program.
• Contributing at a high level competency while actualizing your potential.
• Involved in the youth of the community.
• Is this a school that I would want my own kids to attend?
• Is this a community that I truly want my family involved in.
What is the coaching situation? How many football-coaching stipends available? Does the head football coach have full say on who is allowed to coach? How many coaches
Questions To Consider Asking When Seeking A Head Football Coaching Position
The following information should be considered and thought through when looking into your choices for the right school to be the head football coach at.
• What is the administrative feeling towards athletics? What part does athletics play in the total educational program? What are the school’s philosophies, goals and objectives concerning athletics?
• How is the continuity among coaches? Do animosities exist between coaches of different sports?
• What is the administrative policy concerning disciplines?
• What is the breakdown of administration? Who am I responsible to? What is expected of me?
• Does the faculty have a positive or negative feeling towards athletics?
• What support does the school receive from the student body, parents, boosters, and community?
• What is the attitude of the athletes? Are they familiar with winning programs?
• What current disciplines have been established in athletics concerning training rules, conduct, quitting, failure of classes, alcohol, drugs, etc?
• What is the social atmosphere among the students? Are there complications due to cross-cultural rivals? What are the socio-economical backgrounds of the students?
• What types of off-season programs are available? Is there a summer weight program and if one is in place what has been its attendance? Does the program provide athletic periods?
• must I keep from the old staff? Will I be allowed to bring coaches with me (offensive and defensive coordinators)?
• When keeping members of the old staff they must be able to conform to a new philosophy and new ideas. A Head coach must determine if the old staff can be loyal to change and his ideas for running his program.
• Does the district allow time off for professional development (clinics, seminars, etc.)? Does the school provide funds for coaching clinics? If not, may coaches use sick leave time to attend clinics without negative pressure from the administration?
• What is the policy concerning budgets? What is the football budget? What are the procedures for outside fundraising activities?
• What facilities are available?
Practice fields Equipment?
Game field (lights) Basic football gear
Locker rooms Sleds, Storage
Varsity room Football dummies
Training room Media – Video, editing systems
Weight room Game day headphones
Gyms or field house Training supplies
Coaches offices Uniforms game, practice
• If facilities are not available, can compensation be made through a booster club or maintenance department? Does the administration welcome improvements and ingenuity? A head coach needs to improve on his facilities annually.
• What are the policies and procedures concerning scouting, travel, buses, equipment maintenance, field preparation, meals, filming, etc?
• Does the school allow a summer camp? 7 on 7? May a fee be charged?
• Does the school have any special regulations other than those specified by the district or state association with regards to eligibility?
• What are the salary ranges for teaching and coaching? What are the other responsibilities accompany teaching contracts? (Club supervision, committees, etc.)
• Is the school willing to support a strong winning football program? Do the administrators, teachers, students and community want a strong program?
A football program should be managed with a business like approach. It should be well organized to function in a smooth, progressive and systematic manner. It should support the philosophy of the school climate, highlighted by accelerated goals, ideas, and its people. The ultimate goal of the school and the football program should be to meet the needs of the community and to become the best it can possibly be in a highly competitive environment.
Most Frequently Asked Interview Questions For
Head Football Coaching Position
The following questions are those most often asked during the interview process, be prepared to address each one in some detail.
• Philosophy
a. What do you do with seniors once the season comes to an end?
b. Staff development / all sports.
c. Educational philosophy.
d. Offensive philosophy.
e. Defensive philosophy.
f. Off-season philosophy.
• Tell us about your strengths.
a. Organizational skills must be evident.
• Tell us about your weaknesses.
• How would you get the faculty involved in the athletic program?
• What is your primary concern when developing your basic offense and defense?
• Explain your methodology of handling disciplinary cases?
• What are some of your strengths? What are some of your weaknesses?
• Why do you want his job? What do you know about the school district?
• How will you handle your football coaching staff assignments and organize your staff among the teams we promote – varsity, Jr. varsity, and freshman?
• What steps will you take to insure the academic eligibility of the athletes? What plans do you have for study halls?
• How do you see yourself with the administration at being important to the success of the overall program?
• How should the booster club be set up and should there be one club or a separate club for each sport?
• If we where to watch a practice what we would expect to see?
• If we where to observe your off-season program what should we expect?
• What about the coaches on staff here now.
• Experience with budget
• Discipline procedures
• Getting support of community
• Jr. High program philosophy
• What does your wife do?
• Evaluation of coaches
• Monitor no pass-no play
• Are you a good teacher-examples
• Punishment for kids who break team rules/district athletic rules
• Practice times and schedule
• How will you handle the transition and opposition of your hiring
• 5 year plan
• Will you live our community?
• How do you teach fundamentals
• Install equity as AD/HC
• Elementary school involvement
• Kids smoking and drinking
• Girls program-relationship/policies/rules
• Why are you successful?
• Why should we hire you?
• Football in playoffs-kids goes to basketball?
• Staff organization-top to bottom
• I am a7th grade parent convince me my kid should play football.
• Team is 1-6 how do you approach the rest of the season
• 1st thing you will do when get here
• Alignment of program 7-12
• Is all competition good
• What do you want graduated players to say about you and program
• Seniors after football season-handle them and situation
• College scholarships-procedures etc.
• SAT prep/TAKS prep
• Why you want come here
• Process of hiring staff
• Wife’s role
• Title 9-how will you be legal
• Computer / Video Tech Skills.
• How do you have equity in budget with all sports and justify football money?
• If we had an emergency at 10 o clock on Sunday morning-where would we find you?
• 7th grade athletic periods, your feelings on this.
• Master schedule for athletics.
• Chain of command and who are you accountable to.
• What is a player’s coach?
• Booster club guidelines, please explain.
• Coaches parties?
• Goals of your family?
• Teacher involvement.
• Date of hire to 1st practice plan.
• Would you like to teach a leadership class?
• Homecoming/parents night/ plan.
• Alumni relationships
• Relationship with middle school principal.
• Due process of students.
• Passing TAKS or winning football games-which is more important to you.
• Do you schedule wins or high competition?
• Jr. High games winning or participation?
• Demonstrate knowledge of UIL rules for athletics and academics.
• Community service activities.
• Board meeting attendance
• Upset parent after the game handling the situation-other coaches involved.
• Relationship with local law officials.
• Steroid prevention.
• Management and leadership-what styles do you use?
• Local youth coaches-handle, involve, and communicate.
• CDL and transportation issues-rules for bus.
• Activity fund management.
• Student trainer and manager policy (girls)?
• Pep rallies-players involved or not and why.
• Wednesday night church and practice.
• Method to get numbers up for participating in athletics.
• Monitor other sports-how?
• Fundraising efforts? Why, how, how much -relationship with other school programs efforts
• Concession stands.
• Band relationships and communication -halftime; parent nights, traditions, football player’s play at halftime.
If Teaching Position Is Required
When applying for a coaching position that requires you to teach as well, the following questions my be asked by:
• Tell us about yourself. What is your background, education, etc. and why you want to be considered for this position?
• What do you enjoy about teaching and what do you believe is the greatest attribute or characteristic that you could bring to the classroom to ensure the success of your students?
• What do you need to know about your students in order for them to be successful?
• What techniques do you use to motivate students and get them excited about learning?
• If you gave a major exam and 35% of your students failed, what would you consider as too high a failure rate and how would you deal with it?
• Describe your methods/philosophy of classroom management/discipline.
• Explain your approach for communicating with parents about concerns involving students in your class. Do you consider parent involvement an important part of the education process? Explain.
• Tell us what you know about the following: Block scheduling and Cooperative Learning.
• How do you feel about inclusion and developing modifications for Special Education/504 students?
• How do you want your students to view you?
• What is your philosophy of classroom management? How do you handle discipline problems in the classroom?
• How do you plan standards-based lessons in your subject area?
• Describe a successful lesson that you have delivered.
• In what area do you believe you could grow professionally?
• When do you contact parents regarding your students?
• Are you interested in coaching/advising any extra-curricular activities?
• Give an example of how you are a team player.
• What do you feel is the meaning of the document and motto, “No child left behind”, and how does that motto relate to you as a teacher.
• Do you have any questions?