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The Complete Guide to an Irresistible College Student Resume (Resume Examples Included)

• Martin Poduska , 
• Updated November 5, 2023 9 min read

Are you a college student looking for your first internship? Or perhaps a fresh graduate who’s about to apply for her first real job?

If so, then you’ve probably already tried to write your first resume — and became painfully aware of your lack of work experience.

Yet, even if you had a few moments when you felt useless (even the best soon-to-be graduates feel that way), you should remember that every person has skills and knowledge to show off.

The main challenge is discover and transcribe these skills and experiences into words in the right way.

In case of a college student resume, you can look to relevant courses or volunteering experiences. Or perhaps you were wise enough to do an internship during your studies.

In any case, we’ll show you how you can write a fantastic college student resume even if you’ve never worked a day in your life.

Table of Contents

Click on a section to skip

CHAPTER 1: Before You Start Writing

Chapter 2: how to write a great college student resume in 6 easy steps, 1. personal details, 2. professional summary / objective statement, 3. education summary, 4.  skills summary, 5. work history, 6. testimonials.

• Final tips to consider before you press "Send"

Like all things, a good resume starts with having the right mindset. The mindset you adopt during writing will reflect in the impression your resume will give off once it's finished.

Yet, the most important thing about writing powerful resumes might sound a bit counter-intuitive at first: Your resume shouldn’t be about you, it should be about the employer.

Instead, it needs to present you as a capable candidate who'll be an asset to the company you're approaching. Do you still have no idea how can you be an asset to a great company with your current skill level?

Why would anyone want to hire a fresh graduate?

There’s no reason to feel intimidated. Even if you have no experience under your belt, there are people out there who’ll be glad to employ you.

Still, you might be asking, why exactly would an employer want to hire someone who has next to no experience?

There are several reasons. Keep these things in mind and make sure at least some of them reflect in your resume.

• Quick learning and adaptability. You’re a blank canvas. Since it’s probably going to be your first work experience, your employer will be able to shape you role however they see fit within the business.
• Saving on employee salaries. As an entry level employee, you’re probably willing to work for significantly lower salary than seasoned professionals.
• Comfortable with new technology. Recent graduates have grown up around technology and have developed the ability to pick up new tools rapidly.
• Investing into someone who shows potential. Talented people are scarce and far in between. If you invest into someone who shows potential early, your investment will return later.
• Enthusiasm. Everyone is excited about their first job and will work their hardest in order to make a good impression. Graduates bring bounds of creative energy and are more competitive than employers later in their career.

6 Tips to Remember Before You Start Writing Your Resume

Managers are expected to solve hundreds of tiny problems every day. Making the decision as for whether to hire you or not is going to be one of those problems.

You want to help them solve it as painlessly as possible.

• Be relevant. A hiring manager wants to know whether you’re going to bring value to the company and be a good fit for their company culture. Your resume should give them a clear answer to that question. Asking the ‘so what’ question witch each bullet point will help you achieve that.
• Follow the 6 seconds rule. Most recruiters only spend about 6 seconds reading each resume. Make sure your strongest points immediately discernible to make a recruiter give your resume a second look.
• Pack your resume with keywords. Take a closer look at the job advertisement and scan it for a number of words that best describe the position. Include them in your resume. Incorporating keywords will help you get through these applicant tracking systems so your resume gets to a hiring manager.
• Avoid using buzzwords. Some phrases have been used so much in resumes they became meaningless. Avoid words such as “thinking outside the box”, “creative” or “problem solver.” For a more complete list, check this article .
• Use action verbs. While buzzwords are highly discouraged, there are some power words you might want to use. These include expressions such as “achieved”, “advised”, “delegated” and others. Check out this list  for more.
• Fit your resume on a single page. As a college student, you certainly don’t have enough experience to fill 2 pages.

The format of your resume will heavily depend on the information you have to work with. If you have a lot of of internship experience, you’ll want to highlight it just bellow your summary and education sections.

On the other hand, if you didn’t have any jobs related to your desired career, you can play up your education.

If the job requires technical skills like C# or Ruby, consider putting it just below the education section and right above your work experience.

In any case, always make your resume revolve around your greatest strengths and adjust its structure accordingly.

Looking for your first job?

Stand out from your peers with a cool resume.

You don’t have to fret too much about this section. It only becomes relevant once your resume catches an employer’s attention. For this reason, you also don’t want to give it too much space on the page.

Insert it into the header of your resume and follow these simple guidelines:

• Contact details. Put your name at the beginning of your resume. Don’t forget to include your email address and telephone number. Make sure your email address sounds professional. It’s nigh impossible to be taken seriously with an email address like [email protected].
• Address. If your address is close to the workplace you’re applying to, include it in your resume as it could be seen as a positive. This can be an address of your student accommodation , college, or home address. Just put the one that’s closest to the job. Usually, it’s enough to provide your city and state, e.g. Kent, Washington.
• Links to your online profiles. This includes your LinkedIn profile, personal website and/or your web portfolio. Don’t forget to customise your public LinkedIn URL so it looks something like this: “www.linkedin.com/in/yourname” (default version is pretty difficult to read or transcribe as it contains special characters and numbers). Just click the “Edit your public profile” button in the top-right corner of the page.
• Don’t include your photo. Be careful with this one! In some countries, including your photo is a common practice, in most others just an awkward faux pas . A great majority of experts agree that it’s better not to include a photo on your resume (and a college student resume is no different) unless you’re explicitly asked otherwise.

Example: Personal Details

YOUR NAME Email:  [email protected]  |  Phone:  +1-202-555-0157 LinkedIn:  linkedin.com/in/yourname  |  Portfolio:  behance.net/yourname

Your resume should never focus on what YOU want. On the contrary, it should tell a potential employer why THEY want to hire you. What’s the best way to do it?

Write a professional summary that clearly summarises the key qualifications you have to offer a potential employer. Also, don’t forget to include any relevant experiences or skill that can set you apart from other candidates.

Let’s say you worked your way through college financing your own education. This demonstrates your dedication and work ethic. Receiving a scholarship proves your academic excellence. Or perhaps you had a great internship experience. Take your time to pick those accomplishments that are closely related to the job you’re applying for. Most importantly, keep it short and relevant . Avoid anything vague.

Example: Professional Summary

• MA English graduate with five years of experience in academic and creative writing.
• Superior skill in communicating complex ideas in a clear and concise manner. 
• Achieved high academic honours while maintaining part-time employment.
• ICT background and closely familiar with SEO and the intricacies of writing for the web . 

As a fresh graduate or college student, you should put the education section above your work experiences . After all, your degree is probably still one of the strongest cards you can play at this point.

Therefore, every college student resume should list academic distinctions such as summa cum laude, scholars hips, honours such as dean’s list and other awards. Only list your GPA if it’s higher than 3.0 on a 4.0 scale . If your overall GPA is lower than that, mention your major GPA. Highlight your accomplishments and consider adding those of your courses that are related to the job you’re applying for. If you’re yet to graduate, include your graduation date.

Example: Education Summary

University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland BA in Business and Marketing, Expected Graduation June 2017

• Academic accomplishments: GPA 3.8 / 4.0, Dean’s list, Received second place in the university’s business plan competition
• Relevant coursework: Marketing Management, Survey Research, Strategic Internet Marketing, Integrated Marketing Communications, Marketing Analytics

Depending on the information you have to work with, it will be either the work experience or the skills section that will take up most space. If you’ve done several internships and have acquired some experience to speak of, you can simply follow regular resume guidelines .

Yet, the approach that most experts recommend in case of a college student resume is to focus on your skills . This is what they call a “functional resume.”

Read through the job description again and select skills that are crucial for the position. See how they overlap with your own skills and group your experience under each of the respective skills headings.

Notice that no company names or job titles are mentioned here. These will be listed in the work history section. However, don't hesitate to mention any class projects, volunteer work or extracurricular activities that demonstrate your ability and are related to your target job.

Example: Skills

Writing and Communication:

• Degree with an emphasis on clarity and structure in written and oral communication.
• Wrote blog posts, news features, technical documents and marketing copies. 
• Former editor-in-chief of the university newspaper.
• Experience writing business and grant proposals, pitch documents and advertising copy.
• Translated documents and interpreted conversations in Spanish, German and English.

Creative and Analytical Thinking

• Analysis of audience, purpose and style of documents. 
• Strategic choice of wording, tone, format and source of information.
• Ability to take fact-based materials and make them interesting.

Software and Social Media

• Knowledge of social media, blogging and digital marketing.
• Experience with Google Wave, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, WordPress and Blogspot. 
• Managed social media accounts with more than 30.000 followers in total.

In the end, employers want to see those dates and positions. Now that you’ve done most of the work in the previous section, all there’s left to do is to list your work experiences chronologically. Include dates, company names, and job positions.

Don’t forget to list your volunteering positions too. It might not be a paid work experience but it’s an experience nevertheless.

At the same time, volunteering looks insanely good on any college student resume. It speaks volumes about your character, work ethic, and social engagement.

Example: Work History

• Marketing Intern — Wayne Enterprises, Inc., Gotham City — Summer 2014
• Editorial Assistant — Daily Planet, Metropolis — Summer 2013
• Cleaning Officer — LexCorp, Metropolis — Dec 2012 –  Jun 2013
• Soup Kitchen Volunteer — Martha Wayne Foundation — 2010 – Present

Don’t be afraid to insert testimonials at the end of your college student resume. They say more about you than you could ever explain yourself. First, when you describe yourself, it can easily sound like bragging. Second, as a student, you have no authority yet. Let your mentors, supervisors, and professors do the bragging for you.

Witch each testimonial, include the person's name, title and position. If they only gave you a full-blown recommendation letter, extract 1-3 sentences and make sure you don’t take them out of context.

Example: Testimonials

• “Sally was always well organised and punctual with her work and her intelligence was evident. I hope you will consider giving her a place.” —  Professor John Doe, University of Gotham City
• “I have no hesitation in recommending Sally for the job. She is a very good student, a hard worker, and will, I am sure, be an asset to your company and team.” — Dr Suzanne Smith, University of Gotham City

Final tips to consider before you press "Send"

• Use off-peak hours for maximum attention , especially if you’re reaching out to an employer directly. Hiring managers are busy people and you want them to receive your resume when they have enough time to read through it.
• Always follow-up. If you receive no answer within several days after submitting your resume, don’t hesitate to send a follow-up email to remind the company of your application.
• Break some rules. Don’t be afraid to adjust the resume structure we’ve outlined above. Always think about how can your college student resume best communicate your strengths.
• Tailor your college student resume for every role. A generic resume will always miss the mark. It’s impossible to keep your resume relevant if you don’t consider particular demands of every job. Review the job description and modify your resume accordingly.
• Your formatting needs to be consistent. All typefaces should be the same and sizing should be consistent throughout a resume. The same applies to spacing and capitalising.
• Check your resume for typos. Having typos in your resume means an instant death for your application. It portrays you as careless and even incompetent for not using the spellcheck feature in your text editor.
• Attach a cover letter.  Your resume should never go unaccompanied. Write a short cover letter and insert it into the body of your email. If you don't know how to write one, check out our Complete Guide to Writing Powerful Cover Letters .

Give your learning a boost, explore our wide array of resume samples . Get inspired to create a resume that paves your way to a promising career.

Martin Poduska is a resume expert and career advice writer at Kickresume. He leads Kickresume’s team of writers and is the main person responsible for upholding the standards of expertise and quality on the blog. In addition to having written nearly 100 in-depth, painstakingly researched resume advice articles, as chief editor he has also edited and revised every single article on this blog. Tens of thousands of job seekers read Martin’s resume advice every month. Martin holds a degree in English from the University of St Andrews and a degree in Comparative Literature from the University of Amsterdam.

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College Resume - Examples & Writing Guides for 2024

You’ve just sat down to write a college student resume.

An A+ resume that converts.

Whether you need a part-time job to cover your bills or a college internship for more experience, we are here to help.

This guide will take you through a simple step-by-step process of creating a college student resume. 

• An example of a finished college resume that works
• How to write a college resume that’ll fill up your interview diary
• How to make your college resume stand out [with top tips & tricks]

For some added inspiration, here’s a college student resume example, created with our very own resume builder :

The above example gets serious results, and yours will too. Simply follow the steps below.

Check out some of these related resume examples that you might be interested in:

• No Experience Resume
• Internship Resume
• Research Assistant Resume
• Students and Graduates Resume
• High School Resume
• Teacher Resume

How to Format a College Student Resume

The first step when creating any resume is to pick the best resume format.

Formatting has a number of benefits, but mostly it allows the hiring manager to read your resume with ease.

The most common resume format for a college student is “functional” or “skill-based”, which allows the hiring manager to immediately see the benefits in hiring you. We recommend college students starting with this format.

Students will usually have stronger skills than their work history, which makes the functional resume a good choice. It’s also ideal for those who have gaps in their employment history.

Now that you have the best format, you need to organize your resume layout .

Use a College Student Resume Template

Before you go ahead with crafting your college student resume, you may want to use a college student resume template.

A resume that is neat and orderly will be a breeze for recruiters to read.

Oh, and it’s the best way to prevent formatting issues.

What to Include in a College Student Resume

The main sections in a college student resume are:

• Contact Information
• Volunteer Experience
• Extracurricular Activities

Want to go a step further? You can also add these optional sections:

• Awards & Certification
• Personal Projects

Interests & Hobbies

But what should you write for each of these sections? Read on to find out.

Want to know more about resume sections? View our guide on What to Put on a Resume .

How to Correctly Display your Contact Information

Now, this section doesn’t require flair, but it must be factually correct. Messing up the contact section can mean the recruiter can’t contact you – oops! 

The contact information section must include:

• Title - In this case, “College Student” or “High-school Graduate”
• Phone Number – Proofread this multiple times
• Email Address – Use a professional email address ([email protected]), not one from your childhood ([email protected]).
• (Optional) Location - Applying for a job abroad? Mention your location.
• Abigail Pearce - College Student. 101-358-6095. [email protected]
• Abigail Pearce - Student. 101-358-6095. [email protected]

How to Write a College Student Resume Summary or Objective

So, this is a job you really want.

This may even be a job you NEED.

However, your competition is fierce. 

And with so much competition, you need to convince the hiring manager within the first few sentences.

To do this, use a resume summary or objective .

These are short paragraphs that go on top of your resume, just under your contact information. They give an overview of your entire resume.

But what is the difference between the two sections?

A resume summary is a 2-4 sentence summary of your professional experiences and achievements.

Dependable marketing sophomore with 1 year part-time experience in a marketing internship to oversee marketing campaigns that maximise profit. Experience includes PPC campaigns, SMM, web design, brand development, and more.

A resume objective is a 2-4 sentence snapshot of what you want to achieve professionally.

Current undergraduate sophomore in marketing with hundreds of classroom hours in marketing and sales related courses. Passionate about maximizing revenue with effective marketing campaigns. Experience includes creating campaigns for my own personal projects in my first term at College X. Skilled in WordPress, Facebook Ads Manager, Photoshop, ClickFunnels, and more.

So, which one is best, summary or objective?

Those with some work experience should go with a resume summary. On the other hand, those who seriously lack work experience should go with a resume objective.

How to Make Your College Student Work Experience Stand Out

Recruiters like to feel confident that you can do the job. There is no easier way to do this than to list your work experience .

Here’s the best way to structure your work experience section:

• Position name
• Company Name
• Responsibilities & Achievements

The Pizza Cabin

03/2019 - 01/2020

• Served food to 40+ people a night and multiple tables at a time.
• Educated customers on menu items and daily specials.
• Received 98% positive customer feedback.
• Engaged customers in a personal, yet professional manner, which helped me to win “Employee of the Month” 4 times.

To separate your resume from the competition, you should focus on your achievements instead of daily tasks. This will allow the recruiter to see the obvious benefits in hiring you.

Instead of saying:

“Served customers”

“Served food to 80+ people a night and multiple tables at a time”

Simply, the first statement is way too vague. There zero chance the recruiter will be impressed by this.

The second statement shows that you were able to serve 80+ people and multiple tables at a time. This tells the recruiter that you are able to work under pressured conditions and to time constraints – impressive!

What if You Don’t Have Work Experience?

Now, not every applicant will have worked in a similar job before.

If this is you, there is a simple way to get around this.

Simply call-upon crossover skills from any previous jobs.

For example, if you held a customer service role at a local pizza restaurant, you can talk about any crossover skills and experiences. Just like a sales associate, you would be able to show you used strong communication and sales skills.

As a student, make sure to check out our student resume guide!

How to Correctly List your Education

Next, it’s time to talk about your education.

Whether it’s a college junior resume or college sophomore resume, your education section is crucial.

There’s nothing too complicated with this section, just simply enter the information for your in-progress degree in the following format:

• Degree Type & Major
• University Name
• Expected Graduation
• GPA, Honours, Courses, and anything else you might want to add

Majoring in Marketing

University of Chicago

2019 - Present

• Relevant Courses: Principles of Marketing, Managerial Communications, Quantitative Methods, and Macroeconomics.

Now, you may have some questions on this section. If so, here are the answers to some of the most frequent questions that we get:

• What if I haven’t completed education yet?

As we mention above, you should still mention your current place of education, despite not finishing yet

• Should I include my high school education?

If you have not yet finished your college degree, you should also include your high school education

• What do I put first, my education or experience?

Experiences are the priority, so those go first

Want more information? Check out our guide on how to list education on a resume .

Top 10 Skills for a College Student Resume

You’ve got all the skills.

But here’s the thing –

Your competition is well-skilled too!

Show the hiring manager that you’re the top candidate by listing your best skills.

But what are the best skills for a college resume?

Create a list of hard skills and soft skills that you have developed so far in life, such as the following:

Hard Skills for a College Resume:

• Microsoft Office
• Typing Speed
• Copywriting

Soft Skills:

• Creative Thinking
• Communication
• Time-Management
• Team Player
• Decision-Making

Tailor your skills to the job description. You can have the best skills in the world, but the recruiter won’t appreciate them if they’re not relevant to the job.

Here’s a more comprehensive list of 100+ must-have skills this year.

What Else Can You Include?

We’ve now covered every essential resume section .

But the school bell hasn’t rung just yet.

You need your resume to stand out!

Acing the above sections should be enough to get you shortlisted, but adding the following sections could give you a further advantage over the other applicants.  

Awards & Certifications

Have you ever won an award?

Have you completed any third-party courses?

Do you hold any specialized certifications?

Regardless of what it is, if there is anything that you’re proud of, be sure to include it here.

Here’s an example:

Awards & Certificates

• Food Handlers Card & Food Safety Manager Certification 
• “Critical Thinking Masterclass” – Coursera Course

Need to speak multiple languages at your new job?

Yes or no, being able to speak a second language is impressive.

And with so much competition, this could be the difference.

Add a language section if you have space. 

Rank the languages by proficiency:

• Intermediate

Now, you may be wondering, “why would a recruiter want to know that I’m a part of the football team?”

Well, it allows the recruiter to get to know who you are on a personal level.

But it doesn’t stop there…

Certain hobbies demonstrate that you have soft skills, like teamwork and communication. 

Here’s which hobbies & interests you may want to mention.

Include a Cover Letter with Your Resume

Your resume should now be ready to send.

No application is complete without a convincing cover letter.

In opposition to a generic resume, a personalized cover letter shows that you care about working for this specific company .

Here’s how to structure a winning cover letter:

You should complete the following sections:

Personal Contact Information

Your full name, profession, email, phone number, and location

Hiring Manager’s Contact Information

Full name, position, location, email

Opening Paragraph

It’s no secret that recruiters skim through their pile of resumes. As such, use concise language to mention:

• The position you’re applying for
• Your experience summary and best achievement to date

With the recruiter intrigued, you can get deeper into the following specifics:

• Why you chose this specific company
• What you know about the company
• How are your top skills relevant for the job
• Which similar industries or positions have you worked in before

Closing Paragraph

Don’t just end the conversation abruptly, you should:

• Conclude the points made in the body paragraph
• Thank the recruiter for the opportunity
• Finish with a call to action. This is a good way to keep the conversation going. A simple “At your earliest opportunity, I’d love to discuss more about how I can help you achieve X” will work

Formal Salutations

End the letter in a professional manner. Something like, “Kind regards” or “Sincerely.”

For more inspiration, read our step-by-step guide on how to write a cover letter .

Key Takeaways

Building a college resume doesn't have to be hard.

Follow the tips in this guide for a college resume that is head & shoulders above the competition. 

Here are our best tips on how to create a college resume:

• Make your resume easy to read by formatting it correctly. Prioritize the reverse-chronological format, and then follow the best practices on content layout
• Use a resume summary or objective to hook the recruiter
• In your work experience section, highlight your most notable achievements to date
• Include a convincing cover letter to separate you from the competition

Suggested Reading:

• How to Make a Resume with No-Experience [21+ Examples]
• 21+ Essential LinkedIn Profile Tips For Job-Seekers
• Use Resume Keywords to Land the Job [880+ Keywords]

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College Student Resume Example

We have the lowdown on how to craft a resume that will wow an employer or graduate school, even if you aren’t sure where to begin!

Our resumes have been proven to work.

Beautiful resume templates to land your dream job

College Students

As if studying for hours and completing endless piles of homework wasn't enough, now you have to write a resume. What is a resume anyway? And how do you make one if you haven’t held a “real” job yet? And what are companies looking for anyway? 

We'll explain all that and more, now let’s dive in.

What's a Resume?

A resume is a single sheet of paper that details your education, experience, and skills. Companies review applicants' resumes in order to choose who they want to invite for an interview. Therefore, it's important to have a stellar resume in order to make it past the first round.

Resume's generally have the following parts:

• A summary describing who you are and what you want
• Your education level and degree
• Work experience
• Certifications

However, not all resumes need to follow this exact format. For example, if you're a writer or researcher, you might have a section for publications. If you're a performer, you may include your repertoire.

How to Write a Summary for a College Student

• Mention your previous experience . Have you worked as a peer tutor? Did you hold a part-time job while studying? Did you participate in any volunteering activities, or sports? Did you hold any leadership positions? 
• Describe your greatest strength . Are you organized? Do you have a passion for research, or data, or writing? 
• Explain what you’re eager to accomplish in the next stage of your career . What are you looking for --- a job, an internship, research experience? Be specific and mention the industry and the position you want. 

How to List Your Work Experience as a College Student

• Use reverse chronological format . List your most recent jobs first, as this shows managers how you’ve gained experience in the industry. 
• Use action verbs . Verbs are critical to demonstrating what you can do for the company. Review the following list for some powerful examples.
• Collaborated
• Communicated
• Fundraised 
• Volunteered

See our list of over 350 action verbs to find more.

Tip: ALWAYS start each bullet point with a verb, it packs a strong punch and quickly demonstrates your abilities. 

Resume Sections

Not sure what sections to include on your resume? Consider:

• “Leadership & Volunteer Experience”
• “Related Coursework”
• "Publications"

It’s important to list any leadership experience, as this is one of the first sections that employers seek. You don’t have to hold an “official” position like a treasurer, team captain or student governor in order to have leadership experience. If you led a group project, motivated your club sports team, or helped your peers with a difficult subject you can list it as an example of leadership. Just pick a strong verb (i.e., led, managed, organized) to begin the sentence. 

Here are some examples:

Resident Advisor

• Served as a Resident Advisor to 30 freshmen
• Organized and implemented 12 communal bonding activities for 30 freshmen residents, including plant potting and tie-dye t-shirts
• Managed a budget of $1,000 for residents' activities
• Mitigated roommate conflicts and referred to the supervisor when appropriate
• Designed 12 posters for resident activities using Adobe Illustrator

Peer Tutor 

• Tutored 30 freshmen students in elementary Chemistry
• Assisted Chemistry professor in grading homework sheets, labs, and exams
• Revised the Elementary Chemistry’s lesson plans to include more engaging group work, including a contest to create Harry Potter potions
• Received 9/10 on anonymous tutor reviews from students at the end of the semester
• Hosted weekly office hours to answer students’ questions about the material

Research & Projects

• Devised a thesis on the correlation between imaginary play and childhood development
• Conducted research on 250+ elementary school children and their relationship with imaginary play
• Wrote a final paper spanning 40 pages on the prevalence of Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in football athletes
• Interviewed 10 professionals in the psychology and psychopathology field
• Oversaw the cleanliness and feeding of 50 mice used in research studies
• Assisted in research studying the correlation between sleep deprivation and caffeine in 300 college students
• Collaborated with 5 other students to submit a proposal for a psychology course that  detailed the faults in elementary school education and offered feasible solutions

Leadership & Volunteer Experience

• Served as Treasurer for the club soccer team, which included managing a budget of $1,000, choosing the vendor from which to purchase jerseys and paying travel expenses
• Fundraised $3,000 for the Blue Jay choir group by selling donuts to students 5 days a week for 3 weeks
• Created 12 posters for the club soccer team’s games using Adobe Illustrator
• Volunteered as a peer listener twice a week for students struggling with homesickness
• Planted a garden with community members in the surrounding campus area
• Dean’s List Fall 2017 - Spring 2019
• 1 of 15 students selected for a prestigious $20,000 scholarship 
• Nominated “Top Resident Advisor” by the freshmen class of 2020
• Awarded by the Director of Harvard’s Psychology Department for outstanding research 
• Awarded “Community Leader” for completing 50 hours of volunteer work in the community within one semester

Tip: if you work a part-time job or play a sport, mention it! It shows time management, responsibility, and dedication. 

How to List Your Skills as a College Student

Your skills will vary widely depending on your classes, your hobbies, and any experience you may have from a previous job or internship. The following are just some general ideas: 

• Social Media Skills
• Microsoft Suite (Word, Excel, Powerpoint)
• Google Suite (Docs, Sheets, Slides)
• Data Analysis 
• Presentations
• Communication 
• Interpersonal Skills
• Time Management 
• Detail-Oriented
• Organization 

Tip: If you speak, read, or write a foreign language, list it on your resume. Be sure to include if you are a “beginner,” “proficient,” “intermediate,” “advanced” or an “expert.” And don’t exaggerate your ability -- you could end up in a sticky situation! 

How to List Your Education as a College Student

List the name of your university on your resume because it can serve as a networking tool. If the recruiter or hiring assistant went to the same school, it can help you stick out. 

As for your GPA, whether or not you should include it depends on the industry in which you’re seeking work. However, the rule of thumb is that you should only include your GPA if it is above a 3.5. If you're still not sure, check out our GPA advice for more information.

Tip: No matter what extracurricular you participated in, course you took, or sport you played, do not be embarrassed! There is something that you learned from each one of these things. The trick is to figure out what that was, and how to list it on your resume. If you’re stuck, ask yourself, “What skill did I walk away with from this activity?” or “What did I accomplish after participating in this experience?” 

College Student Career Overview

Job Outlook

The job outlook for College Students depends on the industry in which they are specializing. For example, aerospace engineers make $116,500 while nurses can expect an income of $73,300.

Your job outlook will also depend on your GPA, your networking contacts, and your extracurriculars. Students who have higher GPA or more internships are more likely to get into an industry of their choice. 

Average Salary 

According to TheClassroom, the majority of working college students earn between $7,500 and $42,000 per year. This depends on the kind of work you do, how often you work, and the state in which you live. 

College Students do best with part-time jobs, since the structure allows them to continue their studies and pursue other sports or interests. 

Top Minimum Wages by State

• $15 -- Washington DC
• $13.50 -- Washington
• $13 -- California

Start Your Search for Part Time Jobs 

• Simplyhired

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