High School Resume Guide with Example

When it comes to writing a resume for high school, we’ve got you covered. But did you know that different careers actually require different styles of resumes?

If you are a high school student looking to revamp your resume and understand the do’s and don’ts of resume building, look no farther. 

Here is a quick guide that explains how to write a high school level resume along with some simple templates to get you started, and 5 pro tips to building your high school resume!

Getting Started

The first step to generating a kicking resume is to take stock of your accomplishments. You may want to grab a pen and paper to keep track by making a list, as it may get long. The more specific you can be, the better, as the goal is to define what makes you unique and an experienced candidate. 

Here are 6 questions to ask yourself to start thinking of ideas.

1. Have you won any awards throughout your high school career?
2. Were you ever in charge of overseeing a group or organisation?
3. Have you done any volunteer work? 
4. Do you play any sports?
5. What extracurricular activities do you participate in outside of school?
6. Do you have a job? 

Some examples of accomplishments you can jot down are

• Team captain
• Honours student
• Violinist
• Member of global ambassadors club
• Helped organise a school assembly
• Volunteered at a food drive

So take a minute and think about what makes you stand out and what accomplishments make you proud of yourself. 

Now that you have compiled your list, it’s time to look at a few templates to get a better idea of how you will be formatting your information into a resume.

Layout For High School Resume

Let’s look at our first template to understand the primary content and organisation of high school resumes.

Notice how this resume showcases 5 primary categories― Profile, Experience, Education, Skills, and Volunteering. While not all resumes are divided into the same categories, these 5 groups are an excellent place to start. You could also include your achievements and extracurriculars/interests.

You should begin your resume with a heading that includes your name and contact information. Make sure your name is highly visible to make sure future employers or university admissions don’t mistake your resume for someone else’s. 

Profile

The first section is your profile or objective. The purpose of including a profile is to give a summary of your strengths and goals as a student. Some high school resume skills examples include

• Active listening
• Problem-solving
• Leadership
• Management
• Team player
• Self-driven
• Motivated
• Customer service 
• Communication
• Multi-tasking

Because resume designs are so flexible, content is more important than composition. Therefore, deciding to lay your skills out in a list rather than a paragraph is entirely acceptable, as long as you include the skills that describe you best. 

With that being said, don’t get carried away with trying to include every skill you can possibly think about, as the purpose of the profile is to give a concise recollection of the past four years. 

In this example, the applicant describes herself in a brief paragraph that highlights her character and skills, pointing out key points of experience alongside. While you will be listing your experiences again, later on in your resume, you can also mention your most transformative experiences that illustrate your strengths. 

Think of the profile as a summary of your objectives and most recognisable achievements.  

Work Experience

The next category, experience (or in this example, work experience), is where you should list any jobs you have previously or currently have. The purpose of including your work experience and other responsibilities is to show colleges or future employers that you are capable of balancing external work alongside schoolwork. It shows that you are both responsible and driven.

Similar to this example, you should be specific with how you describe jobs. Be sure to include your role, employer, dates/time period of employment, and a brief description of your responsibilities.

Creating a resume for high school students with no experience doesn’t have to feel impossible. If you do not have any formal work experience, you can include other achievements that show your strengths, such as “youth soccer coach” or “part-time nanny.” 

Education

Whether you are planning to use your resume to apply for higher education opportunities or full/part-time job opportunities, including your education details is an essential step to highlighting your qualifications.  

When listing your schooling, typically you should only put education from high school and above. Anything lower is not as relevant because it was performed at such a young age. 

Make sure to include your school, dates attended, location, what you studied (if applicable) and any other information you think helps sum up your educational experience. 

In the example above, the template includes details including GPA and activities. These are useful extras that you may want to consider adding to the educational description as they describe work ethic and involvement. 

Skills

Although we already touched briefly on skills in the profile statement, now is your chance to get more specific about your proficiencies. 

In the template we have been looking at, the student-designed sliders to show how proficient she is in each skill set recognised. If the digital design is not your forte, have no worry because a simple list is perfectly fine! 

You can return to the list mentioned earlier to generate ideas to include for skills. Other proficiencies to include are language skills, computer skills, and anything else that you think will make you stand out from others. 

Volunteering

The last category included in our sample resume is volunteering. This section is important because it shows how you give back to your community. Being involved in community service activities is an excellent way to validate your character and intent.

Even if you only have a few volunteer experiences, it is important to include anything that may stand out as exhibiting responsibility and charitability. 

Templates

Browsing through high school student templates is a great way to find ideas and get inspired for your own resume. We have included 3 different templates that each display a unique component of resume design. 

Example 1:

Example 2:

Example 3:

The templates above cover various design elements that can be applied to resumes as well as different categories that you may consider including (such as references, first aid qualifications, and awards/honours). 

5 Pro Tips for High School Resumes

After you have gotten the basics to creating a high school resume, you may want to consider a few tips for enhancement. 

1. Don’t make your resume longer than one page. Sometimes it is hard trying to fit everything into your resume, but condensing it into one page is the best way to ensure future employers take the time to read through your qualifications. No one wants to sit through a 20-page essay, and the same goes for resumes. 
2. On the other hand, make sure your resume fills the entire page. Filling up the whole page (no longer, no shorter), is the best way to portray yourself. Submitting a half-empty resume will lead to it getting undervalued and is a sure way for your work to end up forgotten. 
3. Prioritise actions that show consistency. You want your actions to show commitment, so choosing to include 4 years of French is more important than including a month of learning how to play the guitar or one season of soccer. 
4. Present yourself honestly. There’s nothing worse than entering an interview and getting asked about something you included on your resume that you truly know nothing about. Admissions officers and interviewers can spot a fake when they see one, so avoid padding your resume with extra fluff. 
5. Review sample resumes. The best way to get inspired is by looking at resources online. Since the information presented in your resume will be uniquely about you, don’t be worried about “copying” someone’s resume style. All design principles are up for grabs! 

Try Pearl Lemon Recruitment!

Having difficulties getting started? Try using a resume builder to start the process of putting your thoughts on paper. 

Here at Resume Cats, you can create a top tier resume in as little as 15 minutes using our resume builder. Just gather your accomplishments and personal details and then check out some of our sample templates to start creating a resume that will make you stand out from the crowd!