The Best Resume Template and Tips For College and High School Students!

This post is about how to make the best resume! A FREE Resume Template is included.

If you are a high school or college student who needs help making the perfect resume keep reading this post!

This post will teach you how to make a beautiful resume! I will also send you a free resume template so that all you have to do is plug in your information. I know how much of a pain creating the perfect resume can be so I hope that this post helps you!

In high school, I made a resume that I thought was amazing! It showcased everything I thought a resume needed, all of my skills, work experiences, and volunteer work. I applied to college with this “perfect” resume.

When I got to college I had to take a freshman year transitions course and during one of the classes, we learned how to make a proper resume. When I heard that we were learning about resumes I ignorantly thought to myself that this was such a waste of time because I already had a great resume.

The teacher assistant in my class was a junior in college and showed us the difference in her high school and college resumes. I was shocked to learn that my “perfect” resume was not even close to being perfect.

I was comforted to see that her high school resume was also not very professional looking. She gave our class awesome tips to help us create the perfect resume!

I wish that I would have known how to make a professional resume in high school which is why I am writing this post.

This post is for any high school or college students who need an amazing resume.

If you are applying to college or any part-time jobs, this resume is great! I hope that this post and the resume template helps you!

Resume Tips! (Things I Wish I Knew Earlier)

Tip #1-One page:

Try your absolute hardest to fit your resume on to one page. It will look so much more professional and will also force you to condense the information.

College decision boards and employers want to be able to look at your resume quickly and have a clear picture of who you are. It is so much harder for them to do this if your resume is multiple pages long!

I know condensing material can be hard because I’m terrible at it! Just try your best to think about what information is the most important.

Tip #2- Focus on 3 categories:

My high school resume was filled with unnecessary credentials. In college, I learned that the 3 most important categories to include are education, employment, and other activities/engagement.

The only other category you should consider adding is a skills category. However, I find that this category is not needed because these 3 categories will make your skills clear.

College decision boards and most part-time employers what to know where you have received an education and how much education you have received.

They also want to know about your most recent job experiences (5-8 jobs is a safe amount to list).

The last and arguably the most important category is other activities/engagement. It is important to show that you are a team player and that you take part in activities outside of academics and work experiences.

Make sure to include any service, clubs, or any other enriching activities that you have been involved with. This section helps to build character!

Tip #3: Concise sentences that explain your past jobs:

It is important to write a couple of concise sentences explaining what you did at previous jobs. I promise to explain this further later on in the post but here is a perfect example of what I’m talking about.

Lifeguard Position: Enforced safety rules and worked to ensure the safety of all the swimmers.

This is a great description because it explains that you maintained a safe environment without sounding super wordy.

Sign up below for this FREE resume template.

How To Fill Out This Free Resume Template!

The resume below is a fake one that I created. Feel free to use this one as a guide. 🙂

I designed this resume template after my current resume. It is super easy to make and the perfect resume for high school and college students!

Step #1. Header

The first step is to type in your full name where it says “insert first and last name here.” Including your middle name is completely up to you! Make sure that your name is the largest text on your resume. You want your name to stand out so that admission boards and employers remember you.

Next, fill in your address, town, state, zip code, phone number, and email address. I chose to put my permanent address on my resume but this is completely up to personal preference. Make sure to choose the best phone number and email address for others to reach you on.

Step #2: Education Section

College Students:

Start with your most recent education. Include your college first and then your high school.

Make sure to bold the name of your school, town, and state (that the school is located in.) On the same line, write the dates that you have attended this school (do not bold). If you are still attending the school write “present” for your end date.

In a bullet point underneath your college make sure to write your major. If you have a solid GPA in that major make sure to include it.

If you are new to college and don’t have a GPA yet, please don’t worry. Writing your college GPA is not necessary if you are a new student.

Write down your high school GPA next to the dates that you attended high school as well.

High School Students:

Feel free to only write down your high school. You can also include your middle school but it is not necessary.

Write down your high school GPA next to the dates that you attended high school as well.

~ Education Section Example ~

Step #3: Employment Section

The biggest rule for the employment section is to start with your most recent job and work down to your least recent.

In the “name of where you work” section write the name of the company in bold. Next to this include the location of the company, (town and state not in bold).

On the next line write your position in bold. Next to this include the dates that you held this position (do not bold). If you still hold a position instead of writing an end date write the word present.

Include 2-3 bullet points that explain in concise sentences (see resume tip #3 above) exactly what you did at this job.

Repeat this process for as many jobs as you had/have. 5-8 jobs is a safe amount to show on your resume.

~ Employment Section Example ~

Step #4: Other Activities/Engagement Section

This section is very important because employers and college decision boards want to see how you spend your time outside of academics.

They want to know that you are an active community member who takes part in community service and other extracurricular activities.

This section is important because it builds character.

List of activities and engagements to include:

Any volunteer/community service work that you take part in.
Mission Trips
Clubs
Sports teams
Any awards that you have received.
Any other activity or engagement that you take part in.

Make sure that you include your most relevant and important activities and engagements. 3-6 is the perfect amount for your resume.

How to fill out this section of the template:

First, bold the name of the activity or engagement that you want to include. On the same line write when this activity took place (do not bold the date).

Next, write 1-2 bullet points about what you do/did for this activity. Make these sentences clear and concise.

Repeat these steps for all of your activities.

~ Other Activities/Engagement Section Example ~

After you complete all of these steps you will have the perfect high school and college resume! I hope that this post and the resume template helps you!

If you have any questions feel free to reach out to me. You can comment on any of my posts or email me at emily@positivityispretty.com

Make sure to download the resume template below!