Job-hunting tips

Make the relevant information easy to find.

• Name, contact details and a brief introduction.
• Teaching qualification, completion date, and accurate registration and practising-certificate status. Distinguish what is held from what is still in progress.
• Placements: dates, subjects, year levels and your contributions.
• Relevant work, skills and wider school involvement.
• Referees, following the application pack’s requirements.

Use readable headings and consistent dates. Ask a mentor to check it. Follow the school’s length and format requirements.

NZ guidance: Canterbury’s teaching CV guidance, pp. 26–27; Teaching Council registration guidance.

Manage your CV versions

Start with the advertised criteria. Prepare examples that let the panel understand your teaching and how you work with others.

• Teaching and learning: what you taught, how you checked understanding, and what you adjusted.
• Relationships and inclusion: how you supported participation, responded to a classroom difficulty, or worked with colleagues and whānau.
• Professional learning: feedback you received, what you changed, and what you still need to learn.
• The NZ context: examples relevant to your developing practice under Te Tiriti and the current professional standards.

These are preparation prompts, not a ranking of what every principal values. Use real examples and remove identifying student details.

Professional reference: Teaching Council’s current standards guidance. Research: Tamir (2021) found differing emphases on professional and personal qualities across US school sectors. This qualitative study does not establish a universal NZ hiring checklist.

Read the application pack, school website, newsletters and ERO report. Address the criteria with relevant examples and supply the requested forms and documents.

A template is a starting point: check the school, role and contact details each time.

NZ guidance: Canterbury’s advice for teaching applicants.

Manage email templates

Ask permission and check contact details. Choose people who have seen you teach, such as an associate teacher or mentor, and share the vacancy.

NZ guidance: Canterbury’s teaching referee advice, p. 27.

Choose examples matched to the role: helping a learner, responding to behaviour, working with colleagues, and acting on feedback. Practise explaining them aloud.

• What was the situation, and what were you trying to achieve?
• What did you do, and why?
• What happened, how do you know, and what would you change?

Ask about the interview format and any teaching task. If you bring work samples, use material you are permitted to share and remove student identifiers. It is fine to acknowledge that you are still developing.

Practice guidance: Otago Polytechnic’s interview preparation advice. A structure such as STAR can help organise an answer.

The interview is also an opportunity to understand the role. Ask who would mentor you, when you would meet, how observations and feedback work, and how release time, planning support and teaching responsibilities are arranged.

NZ professional guidance: Teaching Council induction and mentoring. NZ research: ERO’s 2024 study of new teachers found that participants valued support from mentors and colleagues. Its survey and interview findings do not prove that one support arrangement causes better outcomes.

• After an interview: a brief thank-you is optional. Ask when a decision is expected if this has not been discussed.
• If an agreed date passes: one polite enquiry about the timeline is reasonable.
• If unsuccessful: you can thank the panel and ask for one or two points to improve. Accept that detailed feedback may not be available.
• If offered a role: acknowledge the offer and clarify the response deadline and next steps.

Respect the school’s contact instructions. You do not need to send a message after every application or chase repeatedly. Record the outcome and next step even when no reply is needed.

NZ university guidance: Wellington’s interview guide, “After the interview” treats thank-you messages as optional and suggests asking for feedback. The timing suggestions here are practical judgement.

Set aside time to check vacancies, prepare applications and review feedback. Keep the CV and letter version used, interview questions, deadlines and next steps. Continue considering other roles until you have accepted one.

If you are in a school-based training programme, check its application arrangements with your mentor or programme lead before applying elsewhere.

Research: van Hooft and colleagues (2021) reviewed job-search research and found associations between purposeful, organised searching and employment outcomes. This is broader than NZ teaching and does not prove that a particular routine will secure a job. Practical follow-up guidance: Wellington’s interview guide.

Record applications and follow-up dates