Get ready to rock your student resume game in 2024! We've got the secrets to crafting a resume that'll make employers do a double take.
Did you know that employers care more about your experience than your grades? And did you know that you can have experience even if you haven’t had a job yet? Move on to learn how to make a student resume that checks all the boxes on a recruiter’s checklist.
In this guide you will find:
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Looking for a specific resume examples for students? See the list:
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).
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William Sutton
Junior SEO Specialist
Phone: +1-799-456-7878
Email: w.d.sutton@gmail.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/wdsutton
Twitter: twitter.com/wdsutton
Objective
A detail-oriented self-starter working towards an MA in Linguistics at UCLA (GPA 3.85). Eager to join TakeOff Media as Junior SEO Specialist to help execute data-driven campaigns, develop content, and optimize conversion rate. Strong background in statistics and language, internship experience with SEO and data-driven marketing.
Experience
June 2018– September 2018
Fragrance Unlimited
Website Intern
Education
2018—present
UCLA
MA in Linguistics (Expected June 2020)
GPA: 3.85
Relevant coursework:
Key achievements:
2017
UCLA
Bachelor of Science, Cognitive Science
GPA: 3.9
Relevant coursework:
Thesis title: “Logical Reasoning—On the Border of Philosophy and Psychology”
Extracurricular activities and achievements:
2017
Abraham Lincoln High School, Los Angeles, CA
High School Diploma
GPA 3.95
Combined SAT score: 1500 (Math: 700, Evidence-Based Reading and Writing: 800)
Activities:
Interests
Key Skills
Languages
Now let's learn how to write the best student resume.
How to write a student resume that stands out? Make it relevant, navigable, and readable for humans and machines alike. First, pick a visually appealing template. Then, apply the correct formatting rules. Here's a checklist for best student resume format:
1. Go for the reverse-chronological format.
A good student resume starts with your latest school and goes back in time. The same applies to the other sections, such as summer internships, experience, etc.
2. Use simple and readable resume fonts.
Anything between 10 and 14pt works fine. Write simple headings. Make good use of white space. A cluttered resume will put the recruiter off.
3. Make it a one-page student resume.
With your experience that will be the perfect resume lenght.
4. Put a catchy resume objective at the top of your student resume.
It's super imporant, as hiring managers don't read resumes. They scan them.
5. Create a separate student resume skills section.
Show what you can do and what can you improve. You should list here only relevent skills, not everything you know.
6. Add some bonus sections to attract attention.
Consider additional resume sections to show off your certifications, interests or membership in student associations and organizations.
Expert Hint: Export your student resume to a PDF file. Its formatting will remain intact and ATSs (Applicant Tracking Systems) will be able to read it.
Your student resume has 7 seconds to impress the recruiter. So cut to the chase and make the most of the little time you have and start it off with a powerful resume objective. This foolproof formula will help you nail it every single time:
And here’s how it looks in practice:
Mention the company you’re applying to by name. You don’t want your student resume objective to look generic. The opening statement sets the tone for the rest.
What about when you have no work experience?
You obviously won’t be able to put a lot of professional experience in your student resume objective. But don’t let this discourage you. Leverage your passions. There’s always something you’re great at. Identify it, think how it can help you in the role you’re applying for, and boast about it in your student resume objective.
Expert Hint: Your student resume should start with the objective, but there’s nothing wrong with writing it at the very end. Once your entire student resume is ready, go through it, select the best parts, and arrange them in a snappy intro.
Reality check: A recent NACE study revealed that hiring managers pay the most attention to internships and employment on student resumes. It turns out that the biggest influence was having an internship with the organization. The second was the experience in the industry, and the third was a major degree. It means one thing: your student resume experience section must be anything but empty.
If you’re serious about landing a job as a student, you need to show you’re not entirely green behind the ears. Think of your:
Take a look at the example below. It’s all about a summer internship. But reads like a summary of Jeff Bezos’ early years:
June 2015– September 2015
Fragrance Unlimited
Website Intern
Expert Hint: Not sure about the best jobs for students? Go right here to look for inspiration.
Your student resume won’t get you anywhere if you’ve never heard of ATSs (Applicant Tracking Systems). ATSs are commonly used in large companies to help recruiters separate the wheat from the chaff. To cut a long story short. ATSs screen your student resume for keywords. If they’re missing from yours, this is what you have to do:
When describing your experience (or education, or skills) tailor your resume by using the phrasing and vocabulary from the job ad.
In the student resume example above, the keywords are highlighted. But it doesn’t end here. Your key skills must be properly exposed. According to the mentioned NACE study, the following skills are among the most valued in recent college graduates.
Even though these skills are the most desirable, they don’t have to be the best skills to put on a student resume. So, what are the best skills to put on your resume?
Here’s the secret: Make sure the skills on your student resume stay as close as possible to those listed in the job ad. If the job ad refers to the ability to work in a team as collaboration go for the resume keywords used in the job ad. Both the ATS and recruiters like it.
Expert Hint: Keep your list of skills for a student resume at bay. Put up to ten skills you feel confident about and leave out the others. This way you’ll avoid the so-called presenter’s paradox.
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It’s no secret that the education resume section isn’t as important as experience on your student resume. But it’s not unimportant either. So, if you’re serious about making the most of your student resume, don’t neglect this section. Make sure you:
2018—present
UCLA
MA in Linguistics (Expected June 2020)
GPA: 3.85
Relevant coursework:
Key achievements:
2017
UCLA
Bachelor of Science, Cognitive Science
GPA: 3.9
Relevant coursework:
Thesis title: “Logical Reasoning—On the Border of Philosophy and Psychology.”
Extracurricular activities and achievements:
On a good student resume, the education section has every right to be more detailed than on a seasoned pro’s resume. After all, this is what you do on a daily basis. The rule of thumb is to only list the latest school/degree. But if you’re an MA student, do list your bachelor’s as well. And don’t go back more than five years.
Expert Hint: If the experience section of your student resume looks meager, do a little trick. Swap the experience and education sections, so that education comes first on your student resume.
These little tweaks for your student resume can become a giant leap for your career. Dazzle the hiring manager with a couple of strategically placed extras.
Interests
Languages
Expert Hint: You can easily double the impact of your student resume by writing a student cover letter. Did you know? More than half of the recruiters expect a cover letter to be part of your job application, but less than half of the candidates write them. So learn how to write a cover letter an double your chances to land an interview.
Double your impact with a matching resume and cover letter combo. Use our cover letter creator and make your application documents pop out.
Want to try a different look? There’s 18 more. A single click will give your document a total makeover. Pick a cover letter template here.
Time for a quick recap. To write the perfect student resume:
Do you have what it takes to win a scholarship? Write a scholarship cover letter that will make you stand out from the crowd.
Questions on how to write a resume? Want to share advice on how to prepare different kinds of student resumes? We’d love to hear from you. Leave your comment below.
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Experienced in the education management industry, Maciej shares his knowledge for every step of your job hunt, from landing an internship to moving to an executive position. Maciej has helped job candidates at all stages of their career paths, from interns to directors to C-suite members, to thrive in their job. His mission is to help you find the right opportunity and create a job application that gets you the career you deserve.
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