Teacher Passport
This guide is for teachers applying to government, Catholic, and independent schools across Australia. It explains how employer-specific portals and ATS systems process applications, which APST phrases and state-specific terms carry the most weight, the exact format rules for each major employer, and how to structure a supporting statement that passes system filtering and persuades a human panel.
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The term "ATS screening" gets used loosely. For teacher applications, the process has two distinct stages, and understanding both changes what you prioritise.
When you submit a teaching application, it enters an employer-specific portal. The system typically parses your document for completeness (are all required fields and attachments present?), applies keyword and phrase matching against the job advertisement and selection criteria, checks compliance with format rules (page limits, file type), and routes the application to the correct panel.
NSW DoE uses iWorkforNSW on Oracle Taleo. QLD DoE uses SmartJobs. VIC DET uses School Jobs Vic. Applications that fail format requirements or lack the expected keywords carry a higher risk of being deprioritised before any panel member opens them.
Shortlisted applications go to a selection panel — typically three or more members in government departments. The panel scores each response against the selection criteria, ranks candidates for interview, checks references, and makes a recommendation to the principal or hiring manager.
Your statement must do two jobs. The same features that help clear ATS filtering — addressing every criterion, using the department's exact language, correct format — also make your application easier for a panel to score.
The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) are the single most important source of terminology for any teaching application. Every selection criterion maps back to one or more of the 7 standards. The phrases below are not filler — they are the language criteria are written in. Use the exact APST language, not synonyms.
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Format rules are not suggestions. NSW DoE states explicitly that applications exceeding page limits "may be excluded." That is a system-level action, not a panel judgement.
PDF only (required since 21 October 2020). Minimum 10pt font, ~2.5cm margins. Submit online only — email and paper applications are rejected.
| Role type | Criteria type | Page limit |
|---|---|---|
| Classroom teacher (3 criteria) | Specific criteria | 1.5 pages total |
| Classroom teacher (5 criteria) | Specific criteria | 2.5 pages total |
| Executive (AP, HT, DP) | General criteria | 3 pages max |
| Executive | Each specific criterion | Half a page each |
| Principal | General criteria | 3 pages max |
| Principal | Each specific criterion | 1 page each |
Catholic systems vary. Cover letter quality carries more weight — human judgement at shortlisting is the primary filter. Brisbane Catholic Education uses SAP SuccessFactors (online form). Sydney Catholic, Parramatta, and CESA use own portals (CV + cover letter or supporting statement). Canberra & Goulburn Catholic uses Workable (online application).
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| Mistake | Why it causes rejection | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Submitting a .pages file | Apple Pages cannot be parsed by any ATS | Export as PDF (NSW) or DOCX via File → Export To |
| Multi-column layout | ATS parsers read left-to-right; two columns become garbled | Single-column layout only |
| Criteria responses in a table | Table cells read in unexpected order | Prose paragraphs, not tables |
| Content in headers/footers | Some parsers don't read header/footer text | Put name and contact in main body |
| Missing a criterion | System flags incomplete; panels score zero for unanswered criteria | Every criterion must have a response |
| Unexpanded acronyms | "NESA," "APST," "NCCD" may not match the full phrase in the job ad | Spell out on first use, e.g. "NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA)" |
| Synonyms instead of job-ad language | ATS matching is phrase-based, not concept-based | Use the exact noun phrases from the criteria |
| Exceeding page limits | NSW DoE states these "may be excluded" | Count pages; remove excess examples |
| Generic application | Panels identify these; score poorly on school-specific criteria | Name the specific school, role, and year levels |
| Clichéd claims | "Passionate educator" is not evidence | Every claim needs a specific, measurable example |
The two-minute plain-text test. After writing your statement, paste the full text into a plain-text editor (Notepad / TextEdit). If your formatting breaks or words appear garbled, an ATS will have the same problem. Fix it before you submit.
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A supporting statement that clears ATS filtering and persuades a human panel follows a consistent structure for each criterion.
e.g. "I have demonstrated knowledge of current trends in student wellbeing, developed through [X] years of classroom practice at [school/context]." This mirrors the criterion for ATS matching and tells the panel immediately you are addressing the right topic.
A specific, concrete example from your teaching practice. Include school type, year level, your specific actions (not the team's), and a measurable outcome.
From a different context, if the criterion is broad enough to warrant it.
A brief sentence connecting your experience to the school or year levels advertised.
| Component | What to include |
|---|---|
| Situation | School type, year level, challenge or context — "In my Year 9 Maths class of 26 students at a regional school, with 4 students with identified learning needs..." |
| Task | What you needed to achieve — "I needed to differentiate instruction to ensure all students could access the syllabus content..." |
| Action | Specific steps you took (your choices, not the team's) — "I designed tiered tasks based on pre-assessment data, modified problem sets..." |
| Result | Measurable outcome — "22 of 26 students achieved at or above expected growth; all 4 students with learning plans met their IEP targets for the term." |
No data yet? In a prac context, use observable outcomes: "the cooperating teacher noted...", "students who had not previously volunteered contributions were actively participating by week 3."
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An application that passes every item below has addressed the most common ATS filtering and panel rejection causes.
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