High School Student Resume Examples & Writing Guide
High School Student Resume Examples & Writing Guide
You’re a high school student who wants to land your first full-time job or internship. Show the managers how valuable you are with this great resume for high school students.
You read Catch-22 in English class last year—now you’re living it. Why?
You’re writing a high school student resume to land your first job or internship—but don’t have any experience to show. Luckily, you’re about to learn how to make a resume for high school students so good, they’ll think you’re the valedictorian.
In this guide, you'll see:
High school resume examples that will help you land your first job.
A high school resume template that suits your needs.
A full breakdown of how to write a resume for high school students that gets interviews.
Best skills to add to your high school student resume.
I had an interview yesterday and the first thing they said on the phone was: “Wow! I love your resume.” Patrick
I love the variety of templates. Good job guys, keep up the good work! Dylan
My previous resume was really weak and I used to spend hours adjusting it in Word. Now, I can introduce any changes within minutes. Absolutely wonderful! George
By studying over 500,000 resumes crafted with our builder, we found that*:
- On average, students report having 41.13 months of work experience. - The most commonly added skills by students are: Learning Assessments, Microsoft Office Suite, Performance Improvement, and Teamworking. - Students usually finish building their resume in just 26.3 minutes. - The most popular resume templates for students are Cascade, Diamond, and Concept. * The data comes from the last 12 months (August 2023-August 2024).
First, let's take a look at three resume examples for high schoolers with varying degrees of work experience.
High School Resume Examples
As a high schooler, you might already have plenty of entry-level work experience. Conversely, you might be looking for your first job ever. Each of these types of resumes requires a slightly different approach. Below are three resume samples to help you visualize your end goal: a complete job application for a high school student with no experience, part-time experience, or plenty of work history.
#1 High School Resume Example With No Proper Work Experience
Jill Kikorski
High School Senior
Personal Info
Phone: 513-365-6607
E-mail: contact.jillkikorski@gmail.com
linkedin.com/in/jillkikorski_p
Objective
Enthusiastic high school senior with a passion for politics. Seeking to leverage top scores in Social Science (102%) and volunteering experience at a nonprofit voter awareness organization to deliver on all major KPIs as an intern at the Cuyahoga County Government Office.
Education
Cuyahoga Heights High School,
Garfield Heights, OH
Expected Graduation: 2024
GPA: 3.75
Relevant Coursework: AP US History, Intro to Government, AP European History
Vice president of the student council
Member of the debate & political science clubs
Experience
Student Delegate
Model United Nations
June 2021–November 2023
Represented two countries for numerous UN committees with pre-set topics for debate.
Researched the background of the countries and prepared notes on possible solutions to the problems faced.
Provided strong leadership and guidance to the team, resulting in a top-3 delegation finish.
Achieved a 95% committee resolution rate.
Volunteer Experience
Volunteer
VoterVoice,
Garfield Heights, OH
March 2022 - Current
Delivered speeches to increase voter awareness
Collected donations for voter education campaigns
Distributed informational flyers at local events to promote civic engagement
Skills
Strong research and analytical skills
Effective written and verbal communication
Public speaking and debate
Problem-solving
Negotiation
Microsoft Office Suite
Time Management
Languages
Spanish - bilingual
Certifications
Microsoft Office Specialist Expert, Microsoft, January 2019
#2 High School Resume Sample With Part-Time Experience
Jill Kikorski
High School Senior
Personal Info
Phone: 513-365-6607
E-mail: contact.jillkikorski@gmail.com
linkedin.com/in/jillkikorski_p
Objective
Enthusiastic high school senior passionate about delivering exceptional customer service in a fast-paced environment. Achieved a 98% on-time delivery rate, exceeding company standards as a delivery driver. Seeking a cook position at Grillfield to contribute my grilling expertise and dedication to quality food preparation.
Education
Cuyahoga Heights High School,
Garfield Heights, OH
Expected Graduation: 2024
GPA: 3.75
Vice president of the student council
Member of the cooking club
Experience
Pizza Delivery Driver
PizzaMia, Garfield Heights, OH
June 2022–Present
Ensured timely and accurate delivery of pizzas to customers, maintaining high customer satisfaction.
Implemented efficient route planning, resulting in a 15% reduction in delivery times.
Demonstrated strong problem-solving skills to address customer concerns and ensure a positive experience.
Achieved a 98% on-time delivery rate, exceeding company standards.
Volunteer Experience
Grillmaster
Annual Charity Fair, Garfield Heights, OH
September 2021 & 2022
Led a team of volunteers in preparing and grilling food items for the charity fair.
Raised $2,000 in charitable donations through engaging food promotions and sales.
Received recognition for outstanding leadership and culinary skills from event organizers.
Skills
Culinary Arts
Customer Service
Route Planning
Car & Motorcycle Driving
Problem-Solving
Time Management
Effective Written and Verbal Communication
Negotiation
Microsoft Office Suite
Languages
Spanish - bilingual
Certifications
Microsoft Office Specialist Expert, Microsoft, January 2019
#3 Experienced High Schooler Resume Example
Jill Kikorski
High School Senior
Personal Info
Phone: 513-365-6607
E-mail: contact.jillkikorski@gmail.com
linkedin.com/in/jillkikorski_p
Summary
Efficient high school senior with a passion for culinary arts and 2+ years of success working in fast-paced environments. Collaborated with the kitchen team to implement a time-efficient system for grilling, reducing downtime between meal services by 30%. Participated in creating new menu items, resulting in a 20% increase in customer satisfaction. Aiming to bring my strong communication skills and culinary achievements to enhance the dining experience at Wurstfield.
Education
Cuyahoga Heights High School,
Garfield Heights, OH
Expected Graduation: 2024
Work Experience
Cook
Grill & Doner, Garfield Heights, OH
June 2022–Present
Participated in creating new menu items, resulting in a 20% increase in customer satisfaction.
Collaborated with the kitchen team to implement a time-efficient system for grilling, reducing downtime between meal services by 30%.
Received recognition for maintaining a consistently clean and organized kitchen workspace.
Demonstrated exceptional teamwork by consistently achieving a 99% accuracy rate in preparing orders, contributing to a positive and efficient kitchen atmosphere.
Pizza Delivery Driver
PizzaMia, Garfield Heights, OH
January 2021–June 2022
Ensured timely and accurate delivery of pizzas to customers, maintaining high customer satisfaction.
Implemented efficient route planning, resulting in a 15% reduction in delivery times.
Demonstrated strong problem-solving skills to address customer concerns and ensure a positive experience.
Achieved a 98% on-time delivery rate, exceeding company standards.
Volunteer Experience
Grillmaster
Annual Charity Fair, Garfield Heights, OH
September 2021 & 2022
Led a team of volunteers in preparing and grilling food items for the charity fair.
Raised $2,000 in charitable donations through engaging food promotions and sales.
Received recognition for outstanding leadership and culinary skills from event organizers.
Skills
Culinary Arts
Grilling
Food Safety
Customer Service
Route Planning
Problem-Solving
Time Management
Effective Written and Verbal Communication
Now, let’s get started on your high school student resume!
1. Choose the Best High School Student Resume Format
Think of writing your resume for a high school student like a take-home test. The standards for getting an A+ are high.
You need to do your research, use powerful language, and customize your resume for the job you want to land. It won’t be easy—The recruiters will give your resume only a 7-second glance to decide whether you pass or not.
To pass the eye test, make sure your resume isn’t cluttered. Here’s how to make your high school resume format crystal clear:
Expert Hint: Keep your contact information in the resume header concise. Give your name, professional email address, phone number, optimized LinkedIn URL, and a link to any other of your relevant websites, blogs, or social media profiles. You can also add a catchy resume headline for some extra flair.
2. Write a Catching Resume Objective for a High School Student Resume
Pop quiz! What’s the best way to make your high school student resume stand out?
A pitch-perfect high school resume objective. It’s a short paragraph at the top of your resume that explains what skills will make you a good fit and what you’re hoping to achieve for the company.
Current title (high school senior, high school student).
One or two accomplishments.
One sentence explaining what you’re seeking to achieve for the company.
Look at these two high school resume objective examples for reference:
High School Student Resume Objective—Example
See the difference?
The good high schooler resume example gets to the point—it details the hard work you put in as a student and shows you are knowledgeable in the industry you are applying. Plus, it makes an offer to help achieve the company’s goals.
But if you use the bad example, you’ll be expelled from the applicant pool. It reads generic and provides no value to the recruiter. It doesn’t even use the name of the target organization—you get the feeling the resume is being spammed around to all companies within a 30-mile radius.
Expert Hint: Although the resume objective goes on top of your application, it’s not a good idea to start writing your resume with it. Finish all the other sections first. It’ll make creating a compelling objective much easier.
3. Use Your High School Education to Great Effect
You’ve been in the halls of a school your entire life.
And although it may seem that you have no practical skills and experience… It’s not true. School is where you’ve achieved some of your greatest accomplishments.
Start your resume education section with the basics: list your school name and expected graduation date.
Then, highlight your biggest achievements as a high school student. List any AP or Honors courses you attended under relevant coursework—extra brownie points if they connect with the position you’re applying to. Put your GPA (especially if it’s above 3.5) on your resume since this is the first job you’re applying for or if you’ve recently graduated. And don’t forget about your academic-centered memberships.
Take a look at how this candidate made the education section on the resume for high school students shine with great achievements, and compare it to what you shouldn’t do.
High School Resume Example—Education Section
You get the difference. The bad example just lists a high school and graduation date. It’s less productive than sleeping during class.
The good example shows that you excelled during your time in high school. It signals to the recruiter that you didn’t just get by in high school but achieved and grew—two values much appreciated in the workplace.
4. Add Any Relevant Work Experience to Your High School Resume
You don’t need to have any relevant work experience. Hell, you don’t need to have a resume work experience section at all. But if you have any seasonal or temporary work experience, they will make your resume skyrocket to the top of the pile.
Think about which of them you gained during your previous working experiences.
Write resume bullets that show those skills and back them up with numbers if you can.
Check these high school resume job descriptions out:
And again, you’re not expected to have 20+ years of experience at 16 or 18 years old, despite what the internet says. If you’re applying for your first job out of high school, just skip this section and highlight your skills more in the next sections of your high school resume.
Expert Hint: Writing the perfect resume can seem like a hassle, so cheating can be tempting. But should you relax and let the AI write your resume? There is nothing wrong with using chatbots for help, but you should develop strong resume-writing skills yourself. They’ll greatly help you in the future.
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, and highlight your skills in just a few clicks. You're the perfect candidate, and we'll prove it. Use our resume builder now.
5. Add Important Skills to Your High School Student Resume
Remember the job ad? It’s full of skills your future employer expects you to have. They act as resume keywords for their ATS scans.
An ATS is a software system that recruiters use to weed out applicants whose resumes don’t match the position they are applying to. If you don’t have the right keywords for the position, you’ll likely land in the reject pile automatically. This means you need an ATS-friendly resume.
So, match your skill list with the keywords you find in the job ad. Here are some common examples of skills for a high school student resume:
Don’t overload your application with a long list of skills for a resume. No recruiter wants a resume that’s as long as the list of irregular verbs. Pick 5–10 skills, and you’re golden. Also, if possible, try to prioritize hard skills over soft skills. For example, if you’re applying for a receptionist position, use resume keywords like MS Office or your typing speed.
6. Load Your High School Student Resume With Extra Sections
Every high school student has the same resume sections we explained above. Want to stand out? Add one or two bonus sections to get recruiters to notice you. Choose from:
Adding 1–3 of them is how you can upgrade your resume as a high school student.
Look at this great example of extra sections:
You see how the first high school resume template shows key skills and provides additional experience and achievements. This is how you should do it.
Meanwhile, the second candidate doesn’t present anything valuable unless they apply at a Spanish restaurant.
Expert Hint: Don’t forget to learn how to write a cover letter. Most jobs require it—and it’s where you can give more details about your passions and interests.
Double your impact with a matching resume and cover letter combo. Use our cover letter generator and make your application documents pop out.
Want to try a different look? There's 21 more. A single click will give your document a total makeover. Pick a cover letter template here.
Key Points
For a high school student resume that passes with flying colors, remember to:
Use the provided high school student resume template. It’s got everything you need.
Showcase your achievements with a captivating objective. Highlight them further in the later resume sections.
Detail your educational background. Don’t forget to add relevant awards and classes you took, along with the school name, city, state, and the expected graduation date.
Highlight your skills. Refer to the job ad and add relevant hard and soft abilities.
Write a high school cover letter. A cover letter with no experience is extremely effective at boosting your chances of landing your first job.
And if you’re looking for related guides, check out any of these:
Do you have questions on how to write a great high school student resume with no experience? Not sure how to present your high school education on a resume? Leave a comment. We’ll be happy to reply.
Mariusz is a career expert with a background in quality control & economics. With work experience in FinTech and a passion for self-development, Mariusz brings a unique perspective to his role. He’s dedicated to providing the most effective advice on resume and cover letter writing techniques to help his readers secure the jobs of their dreams.