A student resume is short and specific. The reader, usually a store manager, an internship coordinator or a campus office, wants to know three things: when you are available, what you have already done that looks like the work, and whether you will show up. Answer those and the page is doing its job.
The examples below are fictional. Replace every [bracketed] school, activity and date with your own.
Start with availability and education
Students are often hired for specific hours. Put your availability in the profile line, then your current school or course with the expected completion date. A college student can add a relevant course or project; a high school student can add a subject they did well in, if it relates to the job.
Student resume format (fictional)
[Your Name] — [Part-time retail assistant / Marketing intern]
[Phone] · [Email] · [City]
PROFILE: [Year] [course] student at [school]. Available [days and hours] from [date]. [One piece of evidence].
EDUCATION: [Course or grade], [School or college] — expected [year].
EXPERIENCE: [Part-time job or volunteer role], [Place] — [dates]. [What you did].
ACTIVITIES: [Club, team or event] — [your role and one thing you organised].
SKILLS: [Tool], [language and level], [skill from the job posting].
High school vs college student resume
- High school student: education, a part-time job or volunteering, school activities and any certificate such as first aid. One short page.
- College student: education with relevant coursework, internships, part-time work, projects and campus leadership. Still one page.
- Engineering or computer science student: add a projects section with what you built, the tools you used and a link to the code or a demo.
How to describe activities so they count
Clubs and events count when you say what you did. "Member of the drama club" is a line anyone can write. "Managed ticket sales for two college plays, about [number] tickets each" shows responsibility, money handling and follow-through.
Activities written as evidence (fictional)
Weak: Member of the college tech club.
Better: Organised a [number]-team hackathon for the college tech club; booked the venue and ran registration.
Weak: Volunteer.
Better: Tutored [number] school students in maths every Saturday for [months].
Can a student resume be one page?
It should be one page. Education, one or two jobs or activities and your skills fit comfortably.
What if I have never had a job?
Use school projects, volunteering, sports teams, tutoring and family business help. Describe what you did in each, the same way you would describe a job.
Should a student include GPA?
Include it if it is strong or if the employer asks for it; otherwise leave it out.
Applying for an internship? See the student internship CV example and the internship cover letter. About to graduate? Move to the fresh graduate resume example, then build yours in the resume builder.