Tip of the Month: Stand out with your Instructor Bio
Hello Hello!
We’re excited to bring you our first Tip of the Month!
Your Instructor Bio is the perfect way to highlight your expertise, your experience, and your personality. Below are some elements we recommend including in your bio to ensure it is concise and appealing for students:
- Relate your Instructor Bio to your course topics. If you’re teaching programming, emphasize your programming background. If you’re teaching sailing, emphasize your sailing skills. Teaching courses in multiple topics? Write your bio to cover your expertise in all of the topics.
- Provide social signifiers. Include social proof for your potential students to demonstrate that you are a real-world expert. Have you worked with many large, Fortune 500 companies in your career as a consultant? Name them. Have you published articles in magazines? List them out. Real-world examples of your experience provide depth to your Bio.
- Keep it comprehensive, but concise. This isn’t the place for 2,000 words on your childhood. Keep your Bio short, to the point, and relevant to your expertise.
- Include a high-quality image of yourself. Share a non-pixelated, non-animated (no cartoons!) image of yourself to establish more trust with your students. If you are publishing as a company, including a corporate logo is fine.
- Last but not least, have fun. Your unique approach to teaching what you love makes you stand out. Write an introduction that will make students excited about learning, most of all because they get to learn from you.
What are your tips for writing a compelling Bio? Do you have any examples of instructor bios that have caught your attention? Share with us below!
Comments
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Thank you for sharing these excellent tips on crafting an effective and compelling instructor bio. Here are a few additional thoughts and suggestions:
- Highlight your teaching experience and credentials: In addition to your professional experience in the subject area, be sure to mention your teaching experience, any relevant teaching certifications or credentials, and your educational background. This helps establish your credibility as an instructor.
- Showcase your passion and teaching philosophy: A great instructor bio goes beyond just listing accomplishments and qualifications. It should also give students a sense of your teaching style, your passion for the subject matter, and your philosophy on effective learning.
- Use a friendly, approachable tone: While you want to highlight your expertise, it's also important to come across as approachable and relatable. Use a conversational, friendly tone in your bio to help students feel comfortable and excited about learning from you.
- Provide relevant personal details (sparingly): While you don't want to overshare personal information, a few well-chosen personal details can help humanize your bio and make it more engaging. For example, you Feline blog could mention a relevant hobby, interest, or personal experience that ties into your subject area.
- Keep it updated: As you gain new experiences, credentials, or accomplishments, be sure to update your instructor bio regularly to keep it current and accurate.
As for examples of compelling instructor bios, I've always been impressed by bios that strike a balance between showcasing expertise and conveying a personal, engaging tone. One example that comes to mind is the bio of Dr. Shini Somara, a popular science communicator and mechanical engineer, which highlights her credentials while also showcasing her passion for making complex topics accessible and engaging.
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