College Student Resume Templates

Some of our customers have been hired by:

brands image

Select a resume template to customize

Introduction

Securing a job as a college student can be a challenge. Hiring managers are often looking for a combination of skills and experience, and someone working on a degree may not have a long history of relevant positions in the field. Your best bet as a student is to create a winning resume. Use the college student resume template for Word below to write a strong summary statement, skills section, work history, and education section that impresses the hiring managers.

CollegeStudent Structured ComboC

Writing Your Summary Statement

The first step to creating a resume that makes an impact on hiring managers is to write a compelling summary statement. This section gives an overview of what you can offer to the employer. It’s important to customize your statement so that it reflects what the employer is looking for.

Candidates can write a summary statement as a paragraph or as a bulleted list. Keep it short by including no more than three details or sentences. Here’s what to include:

  • Hard skills specific to the industry

  • Soft skills or personal qualities

  • Top selling points or impact

You can follow the lead of the college student resume template for Word and write your own statement such as these examples:

Example 1

  • Highly capable college student with an impressive record of academic success.

  • Experience leading committees and teams throughout campus and getting the job done.

  • Demonstrated written and oral communication skills.

Example 2

  • Enthusiastic and dependable college student with experience working in a variety of jobs.

  • Focused on being a top team player and helpful addition to any workplace.

  • Strong attention to detail and ability to stay on task efficiently.

Example 3

  • Highly successful college student with a consistent 4.0 GPA throughout academic career.

  • Critical thinker with an ability to adapt to any type of work setting.

  • Committed to providing excellent service to customers.

Example 4

College Student:

  • College student dedicated to academic excellence

  • Experience with customers

  • Friendly and outgoing

Writing Your Skills Section

Any college student who wants to get hired must demonstrate value to an employer with a strong skills section. This is a list of top qualities and industry skills that are relevant to the open position. In the college student resume template for Word, you can see how an example list of skills looks to the employer. Brainstorm some of the top attributes you possess and put them into a bulleted list format. Here are some best practices to make this section effective:

  • Order the details by placing the most important skills at the top

  • Target each skill to the exact industry and job you’re seeking

  • Give specifics, such as computer program names and numbers

Here are some example skills that college students may use in crafting this part of the resume:

  • Proficient in Microsoft Office

  • Experience with money handling

  • Customer service skills

  • Leadership background

  • Reliable with a strong work ethic

  • Top communication skills

  • Ability to work well with a team

Writing Your Work History Section

Once you get to the work history section of your resume, you can begin to expand on your experiences with more extensive details. As shown in the college student resume template for Word, there may be a variety of different work experiences that could be relevant to the job you’re trying to land. College students may need to include part-time jobs or volunteer positions because of the lack of a lengthy career history. Here are some other helpful tips:

  • Populate your work history with duties that are similar to the job posting requirements

  • Include specific action verbs for each detail from your career

  • Highlight your accomplishments as much as possible

  • Use measurable details, such as numbers and percentages

Here are some example work history details for a college student:

  • Headed a volunteer action group that reduced campus paper waste by 25 percent

  • Chaired the college student council committee, improving student participation by 30 percent

  • Tutored a group of three middle school students and helped them develop stronger math skills

  • Greeted new students at freshman orientation in August

Writing Your Education Section

The education section of your resume is the final part of your document. Experienced candidates may have a short listing of their academic history. Recent graduates and students can add more details, including their GPA, coursework, and clubs or organizations, like in the college student resume template for Word. Here are some helpful tips for this part:

1. Start by listing your most recent academic experience

2. Give information about your academic degree program and the school

3. Highlight any awards or achievements from your college experience

Here are two examples of an education section for a college student’s resume:

Example 1

  • Bachelor of Science in Marketing – in progress

  • 3.95 GPA

  • Winner of the Presidential Scholarship

  • Vice President of a service fraternity

  • Miller University, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

  • Basic Life Saving Certification – 2014

  • American Red Cross, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Example 2

  • Bachelor of Science in Communications – in progress

  • Achieved Dean’s List each semester

  • Coursework in Media Writing, Corporate Messaging, and Business Communication

  • Raleigh University, Raleigh, North Carolina

  • Certification in Microsoft Office – 2016

  • Microsoft Academy, Springfield, North Carolina

PRO TIP Need a cover letter? Click here to view our Cover Letter Templates.

Users find our resume templates helpful

As seen in*

brands image

*The names and logos of the companies referred to in this page are all trademarks of their respective holders. Unless specifically stated otherwise, such references are not intended to imply any affiliation or association with LiveCareer.