There are so many things that a student does while he or she is in high school that just does not fit into an academic category and therefore do not show up on the student’s transcript. Yet, these are often the things that make a student stand out. In today’s blog, I want to encourage you to begin working on building a record of these achievements by writing a high school resume.
A well-prepared resume does make a difference when looking for a job!
A resume is a summary of experiences or achievements that may help qualify you for the next level in life. As such, a high school resume would include things like awards earned, leadership positions held, jobs and volunteer positions, special educational opportunities or special test scores, extracurricular activities, your involvement in the community, particular projects you have taken on or anything you’d specifically like to highlight.
Take a few minutes each year to review your student’s resume and add items. If you wait until they are a senior, you may find that you’ve forgotten a lot of things that occurred along the way. While you’re at it, collect a list of adults that worked with your student in these areas. These will be great contacts later when your student needs a letter of reference – or a job.
I’ve uploaded a very simple Sample High School Resume using bullet points. You can choose a different style depending on the types of achievements you are highlighting, just try to stay on one page.
In addition to the one-page resume, gather supporting materials such as certificates of award, ribbons, photos of projects, newspaper/web articles, letters of commendation, etc. Then, if your student has a particular passion, expand this part of the resume into a stand-alone portfolio. For example, many homeschooled students have developed an idea for a service project and have brought it to life virtually on their own. This highlights oh so many positive characteristics in a person and you want those to shine – so develop a project timeline showing how the idea started and the steps taken to grow it over time.
A college may not necessarily ask you for a resume as part of their application process, but having all of this information gathered together in one place will help you as you sit down to discuss your student’s college application with an admissions officer. This information can also aid you as you search out scholarships.
And, by the way – if your student does have a special passion, I’d love to highlight them here on the blog. Contact me and let us feature them in a post – then you can add that to your resume!
~to your success,
Joanne
Image courtesy of phasinphoto / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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