What Should A High School Resume Look Like

Resume Summary Example: Personality First And Foremost

Describing yourself can be tough, but don’t hold back. You have many of the qualities employers want. Here’s where your personality can shine. The 2-3 sentence resume summary is the first section, directly under your contact information. It allows you to exhibit a bit of personality while you explain the qualitiesthat will make you a great employee.

Here are some sample questions to ask yourself when writing your summary:

• What makes me a good student, friend, teammate, family member?
• Which of my skills or personal qualities have helped me in school ? Am I organized, creative, responsible?
• What activities, projects and interests could I describe that translate into job skills?

Below is a high school student resume summary example you can use as a guide for creating your own version.

Resourceful and dedicated high school student with excellent analytical skills and a demonstrated commitment to providing great customer service. Strong organizational abilities with proven successes managing multiple academic projects and volunteering events. Well-rounded and professional team player dedicated to continuing academic pursuits at a collegiate level.

High School Resume Templates

These high school resume templates will make getting started easy. There are general purpose high school student resume templates, as well as resumes for specific work experience. These templates will guide you with a professional resume format and a basic idea of what to write. We also have student resume examples and other professional resume templates.

High School Student Resume Template

Miguel Co / The Balance

As a high school student with limited work experience, it can be hard to know how to organize your resume, and what to include. By focusing on your education, volunteer, and extracurricular experience, you can create a strong resume that will stand out to an employer.

Read below for more detailed tips on writing a high school resume. Youll also find a downloadable resume template that lists the information you should include in your high school resume. Use this template to generate a list of information to include on your own resume.

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Common Resume Errors To Avoid

Since this may be your first resume, make sure you edit and proofread carefully. Ask a parent, teacher, or friend to check, too. A second set of eyes never hurts and almost always helps. Here are some sample errors to check for:

• Missing or incorrect words
• If you are currently doing something, use the present tense
• If you did something in the past, use the past tense.

Do not pump up the font size or expand the page margins to make your resume look fuller than it is. If the content seems sparse, try looking for a different layout. Or enhance what each section conveys about your desirability as a candidate by digging deeper into you skills.Extracurricular activities: a hidden strength

How Do You List High School On Your Resume

In your resume’s education section, list the name of your high school, its city and state, and the years you attended. You can also list one or two major achievements, such as being a team captain or being the president or founder of a club. If and when you have a college education, list it above your high school details.

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Cv Skills Example: Abilities That Get You Hired

Employers willing to hire inexperienced workers are looking for signs of responsibility, initiative, and desire to learn. What you do need are soft skills,also known as interpersonal, social or people skills. Examples include communication including listening, courtesy and ability to take direction as well as dependability, punctuality and and being well organized.

Of course, hard skillshave a place on your resume too. these are pragmatic skills necessary or valuable for certain jobs, tools or programs or sciences. Examples for a high school student might include computer programmingor child careexpertise.

With ATS likely to be scanning your high school student resume (unless you are applying to work for an individual or at a very small company, you need to know what keywords will help get your resume in the hands of hiring managers. Respondents to a Society for Human Resource Management survey ranked these as the most important skills for entry-level employees:

• Dependability and reliability a whopping 97% said these were a must!
• Integrity 87% .
• Respect 84%.
• Teamwork 83%.

You probably have all of these skills to one degree or another. So, make sure you list them on your high school student resume.

According to a Society for Human Resource Management study, 78% of HR professionals listed customer focus also referred to as “customer orientation” or “focus on customers” as very or extremely important qualities for an entry-level job applicant.

First Job High School Student Resume

Use this template

Why this resume works

• When youre writing your first job high school student resume, its easy to imagine your resume looking a little sparse.
• To fill in some of the empty space, ensure youre including a skills section to give hiring managers an important overview of your strengths.
• Plus, it acts as a bit of a test. If you can demonstrate the skills you list throughout your resume, hiring managers will be more likely to call you for an interview.

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What To Include In My High School Resume

At the end of the day, resumes are about showing an employer that you are the right person for the job.

You want to show youre a competent, passionate, and responsible individual, with the right skills to get the job done.

Well, work experience isnt the only way to convince recruiters of that.

Instead, you can focus on the following sections:

• #1. Contact Information – This is where you write down your personal and contact information like first and last name, phone number, e-mail address, or links to other profiles.
• #2. Resume Objective – In 3-4 sentences, you should be able to describe your career goals and aspirations as well as list your skills.
• #3. Education – As you probably guessed, this is where you list your education history and relevant certifications.
• #4. Extracurricular Activities – These include participation in high school clubs, competitive events, and volunteer work.
• #5. Projects & Gigs – You can mention relevant projects you have participated in, as well as any internships.
• #6. Work Experience – If you dont have any work experience, you can mention apprenticeships or volunteer work instead.
• #7. Languages – Language skills are always a plus for your application.
• #8. Hobbies & Interests – These offer some insight into your personality and can show that youre passionate and interested in the industry.

As you can see, theres a lot that can go into your resume to make up for the missing work experience.

So, lets start with:

Keep Your Contact Information Up

Include your contact information so that the employer can contact you to set up an interview or even offer you the job. This information should include:

• full name – first and last name

• address – your current mailing address

• phone number – your personal cell phone number

• professional-sounding email address – for example, johndoe@gmail.com is much more likely to get a follow-up than sparklyunicorn@animefans.com

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What Should Go On A College Resume

Any of the sections below could appear on your resume for college applications. Pick an assortment that works for you!

• Heading with your name, address, and e-mail
• High school information with your graduation date, GPA , class rank, and SAT/ACT scores
• Academic awards, publications, honors, and other achievements
• Coursework

When Should You Submit A Resume To Colleges

Some colleges and scholarship committees request or recommend that you include a high school resume with your application materials. Bring your resume to college interviews and give copies to your college counselor and teachers so that they can write you the strongest possible recommendation letter.

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Tips For Writing A High School Resume

Make an Outline: Make a quick list or outline of all possible experiences, paid and unpaid, to include in your resume before you try to find the right language to describe them. Think of this as a brainstorming step and try to jot down as much down as you can. Your outline should include:

• Contact Information
• Volunteering
• Activities

Include Resume Skills: It’s always a good idea to include skills related to the jobs for which you are applying. You probably have many skills that you can include that you acquired in school, sports, youth groups, extra-curricular activities, or volunteering.

Use Action Words: Use active language when describing your experiences, so you are portrayed in a dynamic way. Start the phrases in your descriptions with action words like organized, led, calculated, taught, served, trained, tutored, wrote, researched, inventoried, created, designed, drafted, and edited.

Keep It Short . Your resume doesn’t need to be any longer than a page. Some sections of the resumesuch as contact information and experienceare required. But others, such as an objective or career summary, are optional.

Proofread Your Draft and Print Copies:Review your draft very carefully before finalizing your document and make sure there are no spelling or grammatical errors. Ask your guidance counselor, parents, or a favorite teacher to critique your resume.

What About Athletics In A Resume For A High School Graduate

Do you need sports in a high school graduate resume?

Dont list them all. Thats fudging.

Only list skills you can prove in your high school graduate resume.

Expert Hint: Write a cover letter for your high school grad resume. Talk about how much you like the company, why, and how the job fits your goals and passions.

Double your impact with a matching resume and cover letter combo. Use our cover letter builder and make your application documents pop out.

Want to try a different look? Theres 18 more. A single click will give your document a total makeover. Pick a cover letter template here.

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Create Additional Resume Sections

Although space is precious on a resume, additional sections can go a long way to differentiate you from other candidates. As mentioned above, considering that as a high school student you may not have much work experience, adding more information can be an excellent way to show your potential.

Below are some of the most successful optional sections you can add to your resume:

• Hobbies and interests are a great way to show who you are as a person. They make you seem like a well-rounded applicant who is motivated and passionate. Pastimes with skills that are transferable to the job youre applying to are especially valuable to include. For example, being part of a sports team may indicate that you have strong teamwork abilities, communication skills, and a competitive mindset.

• Awards can help sell yourself to employers. Regardless of the achievement, any successes you may have picked up during your high school career can help you stand out from the crowd.

• Volunteering experiences are always a good addition to any resume. These show that you are a proactive individual who cares about other people or your community. People like to work with individuals who are generous and helpful, so make sure to list any volunteering projects or experiences youve undertaken.

Job Outlook For High School Students

Many high school students ask themselves, “How will I get a job without experience?” Guess what: Everybody who is now working started out in a first job without having any employment history. You have to start somewhere. A little time and research can be all it takes to find a job that adds to your skills list while putting some money in your pocket!

You have already made the decision to look for work. Now, with Resume.io’s collection of tools at your fingertips, we’ll walk you through everything you need in the first steps to success. It all starts with getting your foot in the door.

If you plan to work during the summer, you are lucky because of the relatively low competition. Over time, fewer teens have been choosing to enter the seasonal job market only about one in three during the summer of 2018, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics . Fewer high school students are working part-time jobs during the school year as well, so you will be in demand no matter when you want to work.

According to a Brookings Institute report on BLS statistics, only about half of high school students aged 16 to 19 had a job in 2000, down from 58% during the peak year in 1979. By 2018, the percentage had dropped and plateaued to 35%, the lowest on record

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What To Include In Your High School Resume

1. Strong summary statement

A summary statement, also called a professional summary, is basically a pitch of yourself to your potential employer. It is composed of two or three sentences that convey your strongest qualities.

For example, if youre applying for a sales associate position, your summary statement could read like this:

Hardworking student with professional experience in customer service and sales. Created business plan for the Annual Class Bake Sale which resulted in a 75% increase in profits compared to the previous year. Proven team player with excellent verbal communication skills and ability to solve problems quickly.

2. Relevant work history

If youve had common high school jobs like cashier, retail associate or babysitter, include them in your work history if youre applying for similar positions.

Every work experience entry needs to include a job title, the dates of employment and any major achievements. We always recommend you quantify these achievements with numbers.

Heres an example:

Sandras Beauty Supply Sept. 2019March 2020

• Dont write references available upon request.
• Dont copy-paste job descriptions into your resume.
• Dont give away too much personal information like your exact address or photos of yourself.

Mind your fonts and margins

Proofread your resume

A cover letter could help.

What Information Should My High School Resume Include

In a nutshell, your high school resume should include:

• Contact info: Name, email, phone number, address
• Education: high school name, GPA, test scores, class rank, coursework, achievements and honors
• Experience: Work, volunteer, and extracurricular qualifications
• Skills: Computer expertise, foreign languages

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How To Format A High School Resume

Lets start with the basicsformatting your high school resume. The good news is, you dont have to start from scratch. Weve created a modern high school resume template for you thats perfectly suited to showcase your skills and experiences at any level. And if youre a creative type looking to add extra personality to your resume, you might consider exploring the high school resume template options on sites like Canva.

What makes a good high school resume template, anyway? Here are a few of the most important formatting rules your resume should follow:

• Limit your high school resume to one page.

• Ensure your resume is skimmable by using big headings, bullet points, and plenty of white space.

• Use classic and easy-to-read fonts, such as Cambria, Calibri, Georgia, Helvetica, or Garamond, to name a few.

• Save your high school resume as a PDF file so the formatting wont change when someone views or downloads it.

Once youre set with a great high school resume template following these guidelines, your first step is to add your contact information. Here are a few tips on what to include:

Once youve expertly added and arranged your contact info, youre ready to move on to the next part of the high school resumeyour objective statement.

High School Graduate Resume Exampleeducation

SAT Score: 1450

John Jay High School, Katonah, NY

GPA 3.8

20152019

President, High School Yearbook Committee

• Led team of 8 to source 750+ photos of 253 senior students, plus 100+ memorable quotes and other memories.
• Worked with vendors to secure a 15% cost-savings.
• Developed plan to include underrepresented groups 50% more.

Excelled in Business Coursework

• Enrolled in 5 business classes through the school’s young business leader program, including accounting, business law, and marketing.
• Maintained 4.0 GPA in all 5 core business classes.
• As business management class project, created team that raised concessions sales at all home football teams by 25%.

Captain of Debate Team 2 Years

• Led team to 3rd place in New York State debate tournament.
• Coached and mentored 5 debate team members in best practices to improve debate scores by 20% in 3 months.

• Co-captain of school track team

Get the point?

You dont have to use those exact high school graduate resume examples.

Dont just slap your GPA in there, plus a team sport.

If youve got projects, classes, or high school achievements thatll wow them, show them.

And if not?

Dont sweat it. Just fill your high school graduate resume with no work experience with other high-flying moments from your life.

Expert Hint: Include your GPA only if its 3.0 or above. Otherwise you might hurt your chances.

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Sample High School Graduate Resumeexperience

Furry Angels Animal Fundraising Group

Co-Founder, Leader

• Raised $2,000+ annually for homeless animals.
• Assisted with saving the lives of 1,500 dogs, cats, and a llama.

Counter Clerk, Cook

20172019

• Opened and closed store, operated cash register, made sandwiches, and provided exemplary customer service in a busy sandwich shop.
• Commended 5x by manager for attention to detail.

Nice.

That entry-level resume for a high school graduate shows a passionate, competent candidate. She probably finishes what she starts, with flying colors.

Expert Hint: Studies show that employers give preference to candidates with previous work experience. To boost your chance of getting hired, dig deep to find your most impressive moments. Then spotlight them in your resume for a high school graduate.

The ResumeLab builder is more than looks. Get specific content to boost your chances of getting the job. Add job descriptions, bullet points, and skills. Easy. Improve your resume in our resume builder now.

Nail it all with a splash of color, choose a clean font, highlight your skills in just a few clicks. Youre the perfect candidate and well prove it. Use the ResumeLab builder now.