A fictional person: the names, employers and numbers are invented.
David Evans
Teacher of Science and Head of Year · KS3 and KS4
Newcastle upon Tyne, UKdavid.evans@example.comQTS: Awarded 2018DBS: Enhanced, on the Update Service
Summary
Secondary science teacher with eight years' experience across KS3 and KS4, specialising in biology. Head of Year for 210 students, with a record of lifting GCSE outcomes and attendance at the same time. Calm, structured classrooms built on retrieval practice and clear routines, and a regular contributor to department planning and staff training.
Experience
Teacher of Science and Head of Year 10 · Ouseburn Valley Academy, Newcastle upon Tyne
2021 – Present
Teach biology and combined science to six classes from Year 7 to Year 11, about 170 students a week.
Raised the share of my GCSE combined science students achieving grade 4 or above from 58% to 71% in two years.
As Head of Year for 210 students, cut persistent absence from 19% to 12% through a mentoring scheme and weekly calls home.
Introduced five-minute retrieval starters across a department of nine teachers; end-of-unit test scores rose by an average of 8 points.
Run a weekly STEM club; 14 students entered a regional science fair and two teams reached the final.
Teacher of Science · Whitley Fields High School, North Tyneside
2018 – 2021
Completed the induction year and taught biology, chemistry and physics to KS3 and KS4 groups, including two lower-attaining sets.
Built a tracker for GCSE required practicals that the department still uses to plan lab time and catch gaps.
Organised Year 6 transition science days for 120 pupils from four partner primary schools.
Education
PGCE Secondary Science (Biology) with QTS · Newcastle University
2017 – 2018
Placements in an 11–16 academy and an 11–18 comprehensive.
BSc (Hons) Biology · Durham University
2014 – 2017
Skills
Teaching
KS3 and KS4 science, AQA GCSE specifications, retrieval practice, adaptive teaching for SEND
Google Classroom, school MIS (Arbor, SIMS), Excel for data tracking
Certificates
NPQ in Leading Behaviour and Culture · Department for Education2024
Mental Health First Aid (Adult) · MHFA England2022
Languages
English — Native
Welsh — Basic
Additional information
Duke of Edinburgh's Award expedition supervisor (2019 – Present).
Three summary options
Start from the one closest to where you are now.
Early career
Early career teacher of chemistry with a PGCE, QTS and two strong placements in 11–18 schools. Plans practical-led lessons that keep lower sets engaged and taught a Year 9 group whose end-of-year scores rose 12 points. Keen to join a department that shares resources and coaching.
Head of department
Head of science with fourteen years' experience, leading a team of twelve across three sciences. Rebuilt the KS4 curriculum around fewer, deeper topics, lifted grade 5+ results by 11 percentage points and cut science staff turnover by mentoring every new teacher personally.
Career changer
Former laboratory scientist who trained through a salaried teacher training route after six years in pharmaceutical quality control. Brings real lab practice into the classroom, explains abstract ideas with everyday examples and runs a popular forensic science club for Year 8.
Keywords to include
Use the ones that are true for you, inside real sentences.
Lesson planning
Adaptive teaching
Behaviour management
Formative assessment
Safeguarding
KS3 and KS4
GCSE science
SEND
Data tracking
Pastoral care
What recruiters look for
Tips for this role, with the kind of numbers that count.
Give results with their context
"Good GCSE results" means nothing to a head teacher. "Grade 4+ rose from 58% to 71% for my classes over two years" does, especially if you add the starting point or the school average. Use percentages for your own groups only.
Name subjects, key stages and boards
Schools shortlist for specific gaps, so make it obvious what you can teach: which sciences, which key stages, which exam board specifications and whether you have taught A level. One clear line in your header saves the panel guessing.
Show QTS and DBS up front
Your qualified teacher status, the year it was awarded and an enhanced DBS on the Update Service are what safer-recruitment checks start with. Put them near your name rather than at the bottom of page two.
Give pastoral work its own bullets
Tutor, head of year and safeguarding work are part of the job, not extras. Measure them like teaching: attendance up, behaviour points down, fewer exclusions, more parents at review evenings. Schools value teachers who improve both.
Keep training recent and relevant
List professional development from the last three or four years that changed your practice, such as an NPQ, subject knowledge courses or exam marking. Leave out one-hour twilight sessions everyone attended.
Match the school's own priorities
Read the school's latest inspection report and the advert before you write. If they want better attendance or stronger science outcomes, lead with the bullets that prove you have already improved exactly that somewhere else.
Make this CV yours
Answer one question at a time; the assistant fills each section and never invents numbers.
Do teachers need a CV if schools use application forms?
Many state schools ask for their own application form as part of safer recruitment, and a CV alone is often not accepted. A CV is still useful: supply agencies, independent and international schools ask for one, and it gives you tested, measured examples to copy into every form.
How can I show exam results without naming students?
Use percentages and averages for your own classes, such as the share reaching grade 4 or 5, or the change in average test scores across a year. Compare them with the previous cohort or the department. Never include names, individual grades or anything that could identify a child.
Should an early career teacher list training placements?
Yes. Until you have two or three years of teaching, list each placement school with the key stages and subjects you taught and one result or responsibility. Panels read placements as evidence of how you cope with different schools and classes.
