Students and New Grads · resumés and cover letters

Resumé and cover letter help for students and new graduates.

A strong student resumé fits on one page, leads with your education and best project, and turns part-time jobs, co-op terms and volunteering into results with numbers. Most students undersell themselves. School projects, part-time jobs, co-op terms and volunteering are real experience, and a good resumé shows them that way.

We edit your resumé or create one from your details for $29 CAD, and write cover letters for $7 CAD per job. Both together are $34 CAD. Back 24 hours from payment and complete information.

Send your resuméOrder a cover letterNo resumé? Build one

Who this page is for

Parents or guardians of high school students, plus college and university students, recent graduates and adults writing a first resumé for a part-time job, co-op term, internship or entry-level role.

For parents of high school students

Their resumé, in their voice. Not robotic. No empty buzzwords, no copy-paste templates.

If your teen is under 18, you confirm the order by email before we start, and you either pay for it or approve your teen's payment. We send the finished resumé to you, and to your teen when we have their email.

What hiring managers look for

Education, projects and reliability, in that order. Specifically:

  • Proof you can do the work: projects, labs, co-op terms and part-time jobs, written as results.
  • Reliability signals such as how long you kept a job, shifts you covered, or people you trained.
  • Skills that match the posting, listed specifically (Excel, Python, Adobe, a second language).
  • A clean one-page layout with education near the top while it is your strongest section.

What a strong students and new grads resumé looks like

One page. Move education below experience once your work history is stronger than your schooling, usually a year or two after graduating. Recommended section order:

  1. Contact details and links
  2. Short profile (2 lines) tied to the job
  3. Education, with program and graduation date
  4. Projects or co-op experience
  5. Work and volunteer experience
  6. Skills and certificates

Credentials and certifications

List your program, school and expected graduation date. Include a GPA or dean's list only if it helps, and add relevant certificates such as First Aid or a food handler certificate when the job calls for them.

Common mistakes we fix

  • Leaving off part-time and volunteer work because it seems unrelated.
  • Starting with an objective statement instead of a short profile tied to the role.
  • Using a heavily designed template that applicant tracking systems cannot read.

Applicant tracking system (ATS) and keyword tips

  • Copy the exact job title from the posting into your profile line.
  • List software by name (Excel, Google Sheets, Canva, Python) instead of "computer skills".
  • Use standard headings: Education, Experience, Projects, Skills.
  • Spell out acronyms once, such as Co-operative Education (Co-op).
Before and after

Students and New Grads resumé lines, rewritten

BeforeWorked at a grocery store.

AfterServed 80+ customers per shift as a cashier for 2 years while studying full time, and trained 3 new hires on the till.

Shows reliability, scale and trust, not just a job title.

BeforeDid a group project on marketing.

AfterLed a 4-person team to build a social media plan for a local business, presenting results to the owner at the end of term.

Turns coursework into leadership and a real client.

BeforeVolunteered at a food bank.

AfterSorted and packed 300+ hampers a month at a community food bank, and scheduled 12 weekend volunteers.

Volunteer work written like a job, with scale.

BeforeWas treasurer of a student club.

AfterManaged a $4,000 club budget as treasurer, tracking every expense and presenting the year-end report to 60 members.

Responsibility with money is a strong signal for any first job.

Illustrative examples. Your edit is based on your own experience and numbers.

Cover letters for students and new graduates

A student cover letter should connect one or two specific experiences to the job and explain why you want this employer. Keep it short, mention your program and graduation date, and show you read the posting.

A simple outline that works for most students and new graduates:

  1. Opening: the role, your program and when you graduate.
  2. One project, job or volunteer role that matches the posting, with a result.
  3. Why this employer, in one or two specific sentences.
  4. Close: your availability and a request to talk.

Each cover letter is written for one specific job, from your notes or your draft, for $7 CAD. Applying to several jobs? Add each one to the same order. Order cover letters.

How we help students and new graduates

Send your current resumé, or use the Build your resumé form if you are starting from nothing. We ask the questions that surface experience students forget to list, then write a one-page resumé aimed at the job you want.

Think Ahead Careers is an online resumé editing and cover letter service based in Ontario, Canada. There are no calls and no account: you send your resumé or details, we write it, and it comes back 24 hours from payment and complete information.

Questions

Students and New Grads resumé questions

I have no work experience. Can you still make me a resumé?

Yes. We build it from your education, projects, volunteering, clubs and any informal work such as babysitting or tutoring. Use our Build your resumé form and rough notes are fine.

Should a student resumé be one page?

Yes, in most cases. One focused page is easier to read and is what most entry-level employers expect.

Should I include my GPA?

Include it if it is strong, the posting asks for it, or you are applying to competitive internships. Otherwise leave it off; it is not expected on most Canadian resumés.

Should I list high school once I'm in college or university?

Usually not. Once you have post-secondary education, high school can come off unless it is your most recent or a notable achievement.

Can you write a cover letter for a co-op or internship application?

Yes. Add each posting to your cover letter order and we write a separate letter for each one.

Send your resumé today. It comes back 24 hours from payment and complete information, ready to send.

Send your resumé

Related guides

Not sure what to apply for? Take the free career quiz to see which kinds of jobs match your interests.

Last updated October 2026.

Other professions: Nursing, Engineering, Software and IT, Teaching, Retail and Customer Service, Administrative, Accounting and Finance, Sales, Skilled Trades, Hospitality and Food Service, Personal Support Workers.

Send your resumé