This section is important because recruiters and potential employers will use it to contact you. Tap in with our templates if you're looking for examples of how to include this information in a creative way.

• Email: Try to avoid using informal words in your email. A professional email address should typically include your name or last name, or a combination of your initials (stay away from bubblegumprincess@gmail.com, we're begging).
• Phone number: This should be your cell phone number. Relisten to your voicemail message to make sure you wouldn't mind a potential employer hearing it. Trust us.
• LinkedIn Profile Link: You may not have one, that's okay! There's plenty of time to get to that (check out our Guide to Making a LinkedIn when you're ready). But if you do, this is a great place to link it.

Time to introduce yourself! Think of it as an "about me" section. Summarize your skill-sets and accomplishments, and provide an explanation of what you hope to accomplish, whether it is a job or a scholarship. Keep it short, sweet, and specific to the role.

Example summary for a scholarship:

Highly motivated high school student seeking scholarship (or academic program) opportunities to pursue a career in accounting. Currently, I manage my high school's Key Club chapter and its community fundraising efforts. My future goals include increasing financial literacy within my community and helping minority small businesses be financially successful.

List your most recent school and your highest level of education. Include the name of your school, location, and dates. Consider including your GPA (recommended if it is above 3.5) and any academic distinctions or awards like honor roll or any special academic programs. Also, feel free to add any coursework that is relevant to the job. You may not see these things as work experience, but the skills you're learning are transferable.

Example:

Columbia High School, Maplewood, NJ
Expected May 2024

GPA: 3.6/4.0,
High Honor Roll for 5 semesters

Relevant Coursework: AP Statistics, AP Computer Science, Intro to Financial Literacy

First thing's first: closely read the position or scholarship description. All of your experiences can show the value you'll bring to a job or organization, even if it doesn't seem to be related to accounting; you just have to get to the core of what the experience has taught you and the skills you've developed from it. Think about what fills your time beyond classes: do you volunteer to tutor peers? Are you a caregiver to your siblings or elderly relatives? Do you help your parents book appointments and translate for them? These are all experiences that you can add to your resume. Get to the core of what the job tasks are asking of you; is it problem solving, working against deadlines, communicating internally and externally, data input, etc.?

When listing a previous experience, be sure to include the name of the company, organization, or club, with your position, and the dates you began working or volunteering in this role. Underneath this information, include 2-5 bullet points with a description of your responsibilities. Make sure that you're tailoring your experiences by listing responsibilities relevant to the specific job, program, or scholarship you're applying to. For each bullet try to use a different action item that speaks to your leadership (think: manage, lead, develop, create, coordinate, execute). And lastly, try to quantify when you can. If you've helped 100+ customers, say that! You might come across some responsibilities that you have never done before — only you have, just in different ways.

If you have worked as a server, you can highlight your experience balancing payments, checking receipts against bills, your ability to multitask, collaborate, and work under pressure. You get the idea!

You can also use positions you have at extracurricular clubs or your position as a summer counselor to illustrate your leadership ability. For example, you were probably responsible for motivating others, setting goals, managing budgets, organizing events, teaching other members, and communicating effectively.

And last but not least, if you've had the opportunity to participate in pre-college programs, definitely include those! If applying to scholarships, this will showcase your interest in attending college and being prepared for it. Bonus points if it's related to the major you want to pursue.

Take a look at these quick examples based on varied experiences. It goes without saying that you should have more than one-bullet (2-5 is ideal). This is just a taste. Put your own spin on it!

Stony's, Maplewood, NJ June 2022 - August 2022 Server

• Supported manager with daily sales and cash reconciliation
• Key Club, Maplewood, NJ September 2021 - June 2022 President
• Coordinated budgets, timelines, and strategies for 5 fundraising events
• Columbia High School, Maplewood, NJ September 2021 - May 2022 Tutor
• Developed study materials for 20+ AP Statistics students to help them acquire greater knowledge for the weekly and AP exams leading to an overall 25% increase in academic performance

In this section, you can include hard skills, soft skills, or both! Hard skills are specific and technical, and can be measured or tested, such as being proficient in a specific software or language. For this reason, most people refer to hard skills as "technical skills". If you don't have many hard skills, don't stress! You can focus on soft skills, which are strong qualities that enable a person to interact effectively with others, such as communication, attention to detail, and initiative.

See examples below on how to list your soft and hard skills – ahem – technical skills.

Technical Skills

• Languages: Spanish (Native), English (Fluent), French (Intermediate)
• Computer skills: Proficient in Microsoft Office, Google Suite Soft Skills
• Collaboration
• Problem-solving
• Reliable
• Adaptable