Disability Advocate Resume Example & Writing Guide
Use this Disability Advocate resume example and guide to improve your career and write a powerful resume that will separate you from the competition.
Disability advocates are a critical part of the social safety net, helping people navigate the complex disability benefits system. They’re often the first point of contact for people who are applying for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or need help appealing a denied claim.
If you love helping people and want to work in a field where your efforts can make a real difference in someone’s life, then you might be ready for a career as a disability advocate. But before you can land a job in this field, you need a great resume to help you get noticed by hiring managers. Here are some tips and an example resume to help you write yours.
How to Write a Disability Advocate Resume
Here’s how to write a disability advocate resume of your own.
Write Compelling Bullet Points
When you’re writing bullet points, it can be tempting to focus on the tasks you performed. But that’s not always the most effective approach.
Instead, you can use your bullet points to showcase your accomplishments, skills, and results. So rather than saying you “provided disability advocacy services for clients,” you could say that you “provided disability advocacy services for 20 clients, resulting in a 15% increase in Social Security benefits for all clients.”
The second bullet point paints a much clearer picture of what you did and the results of your work. And it also provides a specific number to demonstrate the scale of your work.
Identify and Include Relevant Keywords
When you submit your resume for a disability advocate role, it’s likely that it will go through an applicant tracking system (ATS). This program will scan your resume for specific keywords related to the position. If your resume doesn’t include enough of the right terms, the ATS might filter out your application.
One way to make sure your resume makes it past the ATS is to include relevant keywords throughout all sections of your document. You can find a list of common keywords for disability advocate roles below:
- Disability Rights
- Advocacy
- Mental Health
- Disability Advocacy
- Mental Health Counseling
- Crisis Intervention
- Psychology
- Social Services
- Public Speaking
- Case Management
- Program Development
- Event Planning
- Community Outreach
- Working with Adolescents
- Nonprofit Organizations
- Program Evaluation
- Fundraising
- Facilitation
- Communication
- Teaching
- Customer Service
- Event Management
- Social Media
- Leadership
- Research
- Teamwork
- Microsoft Access
- Personal Development
- Time Management
- Organization Skills
Showcase Your Technical Skills
As a disability advocate, you need to be proficient in a variety of software programs and systems in order to effectively do your job. This might include familiarity with case management software, social media platforms, and disability-specific resources. Additionally, you should be comfortable using technology to communicate with other members of the disability community, including people with disabilities, their families, and service providers.