High School Student
Cover Letter Example

If you’re a teen who has very little work experience, finding a job might seem challenging. However, a well-written cover letter is the perfect way to convince employers that you’re worth hiring.

A great cover letter for a part time job highlights your work ethic, passion, and the valuable skills you acquired from other real-life experiences, such as school courses, extracurricular activities, or volunteer work.

Here are a few tips for crafting the perfect high school student cover letter (also known as a resume cover page):

Highlight your high school student skills

Use your cover letter to showcase any relevant skills that show employers you’re a great fit for the job.

Despite limited work experience, there are a variety of skills that many high school students have that are still valuable to employers.

Here are some skills for high school students that you can include in your cover letter:

• Time management
• Organization skills
• Communication skills
• Adaptability
• Flexibility
• Interpersonal skills 
• Initiative
• Leadership skills
• Teamwork
• Attention to detail
• Open-mindedness
• Patience
• People skills 
• Customer service
• Presentation skills
• Being a quick learner
• Problem-solving and critical thinking skills
• Research skills
• Ability to follow instructions
• Technical skills, such as proficiency in Excel or Google Docs
• Design skills – Photoshop

Be sure to provide real-life examples of your accomplishments to demonstrate your skills. For instance, if you’re applying for an administrative position, talk about how you put your strong organizational skills to work by putting together a fundraising event at school.

Open with a strong introduction

Understanding how to write an attention-grabbing cover letter introduction is especially important if you’re writing a cover letter with no experience. Since you don’t have much work experience to highlight, crafting a strong introduction is the best way to give employers a better sense of your passion, and how you can contribute to their organization.

Here are tips on how to write an impactful intro paragraph:

• Show your enthusiasm for the company or role
• Lead with an impressive achievement that highlights skills that are essential to the job
• Research the company to show initiative, but be strategic with how you incorporate this information in your cover letter. You can position your talents in alignment with their long-term goals, or bring up any recent news and connect it back to why you’re interested in working for the company.

Show your passion for the industry

Employers want to hire someone who’s going to be genuinely excited to be there. People who are passionate about their jobs are more likely to have a positive attitude, stronger work ethic, and enhanced productivity.

Here are some ways that you can show your passion on a cover letter:

1. Show your enthusiasm for the role with a professional but personable tone.
2. Don’t just say you’re interested in the job, explain why you’re interested.
3. Connect a personal passion to the job to prove you’re committed to making an impact. For example, if you’re applying for a tutoring position, you can talk about how you had a wonderful tutor during your childhood who supported your academic growth in elementary school, and how you want to do the same for someone else.