Resume Writing Advice for Your Child’s First Job

Applying for and getting that first job is an exciting time in every child’s life. It’s a good sign when your son or daughter expresses an interest in working and being more independent. And getting a job will help them to learn responsibility. Once your kids get their first paying job, you can teach them money management skills, including the task of saving and how to spend their money responsibly.

But where do they start and how do they build a resume when they haven’t worked before? Have no fear. We included a list of simple ways to help your child make a resume with minimal work experience.

Adding Skills

Your child’s skills are more valuable to an employer than you might think. Their skills can include good grades in school, effective communication skills—maybe expressed as a member of a club—or their ability to be a team player as a volunteer at a local homeless center. If you sit down with your kids and speak to them about their interests, it will open a conversation to discuss skills to include on the resume.

A few examples of skills can include the following:

• Effective listening
• Social media
• Writing
• Arts (painting, drawing, the theater, music, etc.)
• Cooking

Educational Experience

It is essential to add your child’s education which includes elementary school, middle school, charter school, private school, and tutoring if it will emphasize their understanding of a subject that will relate to a job.

Academic Achievements

Kids can include academic awards, scholarships, grade point average and memorable moments of recognition. For example, if your daughter is applying for an English tutoring position and was given an award for having the highest English grade in her class, this will be a moment to include on the resume. Remember to include high school committee work, academic contests, volunteer experience, and small business work on a resume.

Resume Length and Font

The length of your resume should be a minimum of one page. The writing should be in 12 points in an Arial, Calibri or Times New Roman font. The resume document should have one-inch margins around the text.

An objective could be a general statement of the industry and type of company that your child is interested in. Microsoft Word has a resume wizard that conveniently inputs words and provides templates.

Carefully Use Action Words

Encourage your child to describe any responsibilities for a school project. Teach your child about action words and how these descriptions will show the recruiter they have initiative with the motivation to succeed at school and work.

Some action words that your child may add to the resume include: observed, organized, assisted, developed, trained, tutored, and researched.

Be Creative

Although your child’s real-life work experience is likely minimal, you can creatively convey expertise. If your child is a babysitter, walks dogs, helped with a house repair project or helped plan an event at a church, add all of that to the resume. It will show that your child has a strong work ethic and is a team player.

Articulate Goals

Your child may also want to include future goals or a description of their dream job. Let kids use their imagination. If they want to become a CEO, manager, supervisor, or vice president, add it in the objective statement. Or they could add it to the cover letter. For example if the job they want is a customer service position, they could write “In pursuit of a customer service position to use my leadership skills to help customers at (Name of Company).

 

It can be a challenge to get that first job, but with these tips, your child’s first resume can stand out from the rest!