Principal Resume Example & Writing Guide
Use this Principal resume example and guide to improve your career and write a powerful resume that will separate you from the competition.
Principal is a highly respected title that can open doors for you in the corporate world. But before you can become an effective principal, you need a solid resume that showcases your experience, achievements, and skills.
Here are some tips and an example principal resume to help you write yours.
How to Write a Principal Resume
Here’s how to write a principal resume of your own.
Write Compelling Bullet Points
Bullet points are the most important part of your resume because they’re the only thing hiring managers will read. So it’s crucial that you use them to your advantage by crafting clear, concise bullet points that highlight your experience and qualifications.
For example, rather than saying you “managed school budget,” you could say you “reduced school budget by 10% while maintaining academic excellence, resulting in increased funding for new science lab”
The second bullet point is much more specific and provides more detail about what exactly you did and the results of your work.
Identify and Include Relevant Keywords
When you apply for a principal role, your resume is usually scanned by an applicant tracking system (ATS) for certain keywords. These programs look for certain skills and experiences that are relevant to the job, like “budgeting” or “team management.” If your resume doesn’t include enough of the right keywords, the ATS might reject your application.
To increase your chances of getting an interview, use this list of common principal keywords as a starting point to help you optimize your resume:
- Program Management
- Project Management
- Strategy
- Business Process Improvement
- Change Management
- Management
- Team Leadership
- Business Analysis
- Stakeholder Management
- Consulting
- Business Strategy
- Leadership
- Integration
- Project Planning
- Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
- Vendor Management
- Sales
- Public Speaking
- Operations Management
- Organizational Leadership
- Microsoft Project
- Risk Management
- Strategic Planning
- Budgeting
- Strategic Partnerships
- Negotiation
- Marketing Strategy
- Team Building
- Coaching
- Engineering
Showcase Your Technical Skills
In order to be successful in this role, it is essential that principals are proficient in a variety of technical systems and procedures. Recruiters are looking for principals who are skilled in programs like Microsoft Office Suite, ERP systems, and manufacturing software. Additionally, it is important that principals are familiar with government regulations related to their industry, as they will often be responsible for ensuring that the organization is in compliance with these regulations.