How to Get Work Experience in High School

What counts as work experience in high school?

Any type of structured or self-directed experience that helps you understand a workplace, practice career-ready skills, or take responsibility for completing the work can count as “work experience.” 

That can include things like:

These experiences are not all identical.

For example, a paid job is formal employment. Job shadowing is mainly career exploration. Volunteering should normally be described as volunteer experience. An independent project may belong in the “Projects” section of your resume.

But each one can help you build skills, explore careers, and prepare for future opportunities.

Why is work experience important in high school?

Getting experience can help you prepare for jobs, internships, scholarships, college applications, and eventually a career. But the goal isn’t to simply to collect impressive titles. In high school, you have some unique opportunities:

You can explore careers before committing to one

A career may sound interesting until you see what the work looks like every day.

You might think you want to become a teacher and discover that you prefer working with students one-on-one. You may be interested in health care but realize that research, technology, or administration fits you better than direct patient care.

That is useful information.

You don’t have to have your entire future figured out in high school, but work experience gives you a way to test different possibilities before making bigger decisions about college, majors, and careers.

You can build transferable skills

Transferable skills can help you in almost any workplace, no matter what you path you decide to take.

They can include skills like:

• Communication
• Reliability
• Teamwork
• Time management
• Organization
• Problem-solving
• Customer service
• Leadership
• Adaptability

It’s worth noting too that your first job doesn’t have to match your future major. Working in a grocery store may not connect directly to engineering, psychology, or journalism. But it can teach you how to communicate with customers, work with a team, follow procedures, solve unexpected problems, and manage your schedule. Those skills still count!

You can give better examples on applications

Applications often ask about your responsibilities, accomplishments, challenges, or goals.

Experience gives you something specific to discuss.

Instead of saying you are responsible, you can explain how you managed a weekly tutoring schedule. Instead of saying you work well with others, you can describe how your team prepared for a busy event.

The experience does not have to sound extraordinary. You simply need to explain what you did and why it mattered.

The work experience ladder

You do not have to begin with a formal job or internship.

Think of gaining experience as a series of possible steps:

You don’t have to complete every step, or complete them in order.

The point is that there are ways to move forward before you qualify for a highly competitive position.

For example, you could:

1. Interview a graphic designer about their work.
2. Learn to use a design program.
3. Create sample graphics.
4. Volunteer to design a flyer for a school event.
5. Use that work to apply for a paid design or communications role.

That is how experience starts building on itself.

Where should you start?

The best type of experience depends on what you need right now.

Start with the option that fits your actual circumstances, not the one you think will look most impressive.

Eight ways to get work experience in high school

There is no single best pathway. Your options will depend on your age, schedule, transportation, interests, financial needs, and what is available where you live.

What if a job or internship is not realistic for you?

Not every student can spend the summer working in an office or completing an unpaid internship.

You may need to earn money. You might take care of siblings, help at home, share a car, live far from major employers, or already have a full academic schedule.

That does not mean you have nothing valuable to include on a resume or application.

Paid work, family responsibilities, school involvement, community projects, and informal work can all demonstrate skills such as:

• Reliability
• Organization
• Communication
• Problem-solving
• Leadership
• Time management

The title of the experience matters less than what you actually did.

A student who works a regular restaurant shift may develop more responsibility and workplace experience than a student who occasionally observes people at a prestigious organization.

Choose something that works with your circumstances. You do not have to compete with someone else’s opportunities.

How to find work experience as a high school student

Some positions are advertised online.

Many others are found through schools, community organizations, workforce programs, and direct conversations.

Start with your school

Talk to your school counselors, teachers, coaches, or librarians, and ask questions about whether your school has:

• Local employer partnerships
• Job or internship listings
• Career fairs
• Alumni mentors
• Service opportunities
• Career-shadowing days
• Career and technical education programs

Look around your community

Potential organizations include:

• Libraries
• Museums
• Parks and recreation departments
• Community centers
• Local government offices
• Nonprofits
• Animal shelters
• Hospitals
• Small businesses
• Colleges and universities
• Child care centers
• Camps
• Cultural organizations

Check age and eligibility requirements before applying.

Look for local youth-employment programs

CareerOneStop’s Youth Program Finder helps people ages 14 to 24 locate free job, career, and training support.

Depending on the program, services may include help finding jobs, preparing applications, practicing for interviews, and learning about internships or apprenticeships.

Tell people what you are looking for

Let trusted adults know you are searching. Be specific.

“I need experience” is difficult to act on.

Instead, try something like:

“I’m interested in graphic design and communications. I’m looking for a job-shadowing opportunity, volunteer project, or beginner internship where I could help create digital content.”

That makes it easier for someone to think of a relevant person or organization.

Use your online network carefully

A professional online profile can help you research organizations, learn about careers, and find opportunities.

Appily’s guide to using LinkedIn in high school can help you create a profile and begin building your network.

Always verify that opportunities and recruiters are legitimate before sharing personal information.

Create a high school resume

You can make a resume even if you have never held a formal job.

Include:

• Your education
• Relevant classes
• Activities
• Volunteer experience
• Leadership
• Projects
• Skills
• Awards
• Informal work
• Family-business experience

Focus on what you did, not how impressive the title sounds.

Use Appily’s high school resume guide to build yours step by step.

Ask for a project, not just an internship

A small organization may not have the staff, time, or budget to create an internship for you. It may still need help with one specific problem.

So instead of asking:

“Do you have any internships?”

You could say something like:

“I’m a high school student interested in communications. I noticed your organization is preparing for its fall fundraiser. Would it be helpful if I drafted several social media posts or created a simple event flyer for your team to review?”

A strong project request explains:

1. The problem you noticed
2. What you can create or complete
3. When you can finish it
4. Who will review your work
5. Whether you may save an appropriate work sample

Keep the first project manageable.

You are more likely to receive a yes when the organization understands exactly what you are offering.

Here’s an example of what an email to a part-time employer could look like:

“Hello [Name],

My name is Paige N. Terview, and I’m a sophomore student at Appily High School. I’m interested in learning more about marketing, especially graphic design.

I’m reaching out to ask whether your organization offers any part-time, volunteer, internship, job-shadowing, or short-term project opportunities for high school students. I have experience with flyer design, and I would be especially interested in helping with your social media accounts.

I would be happy to send a resume or provide more information. 

Thank you for your time.”

Personalize the message.

Show that you understand what the organization does and explain why you contacted it specifically.

If you do not receive an answer, one polite follow-up after about a week is reasonable.

Does this count as work experience?

Here is how common high school experiences may fit on a resume or application:

Describe the experience honestly.

You don’t need to call a project an internship or turn babysitting into “childhood development consulting” to make it matter.

Is this opportunity worth your time?

A useful experience should answer “yes” to most of these questions:

1. Will I have a clear responsibility?
2. Will someone train, guide, or give me feedback?
3. Will I practice a useful skill?
4. Will I create, improve, organize, or contribute something?
5. Will I be able to explain what I learned afterward?

A recognizable company name does not automatically make an opportunity valuable.

A small project where you take real ownership may teach you more than an internship where no one knows what to do with you.

Be thoughtful about unpaid internships

Before accepting an unpaid position, make sure you understand:

• What you will learn
• What work you will complete
• How much time it requires
• Who will supervise you
• How the experience connects to your education
• Whether a similar paid option is available

Do you need work experience for college?

You do not need a prestigious internship or a certain number of work hours to build a meaningful college application.

Colleges want to understand how you spend your time, what responsibilities you carry, what you care about, and how you contribute.

That could include:

• A paid job
• Volunteer work
• An internship
• Family responsibilities
• Sports
• Clubs
• Hobbies
• Independent projects

The Common App allows students to report up to 10 activities, but it specifically says you do not need to fill every space. Its guidance encourages students to consider jobs, internships, volunteering, family responsibilities, hobbies, and sports, then focus on the experiences that best tell their story.

A job you took because you needed to earn money is not less meaningful than an unpaid internship related to a possible major.

They are different experiences. Each can reveal something important about you.

Learn more about what looks good on a college application.

How to make your experience count

Getting an opportunity is only the first step. It’s what you do with it that really matters.

How to put work experience on a high school resume

Focus on your actions, responsibilities, and results.

Instead of:

“Helped at summer camp.”

Try:

“Supervised 10 campers ages 6 to 8 and led daily games, crafts, and outdoor activities.”

Instead of:

“Tutored students”

Try:

“Provided weekly algebra tutoring to three middle school students and created practice materials based on their needs.”

A useful resume bullet often answers three questions:

1. What did you do?
2. Who or what did you help?
3. What changed or resulted from your work?

Use numbers when they add useful context, but do not force them into every bullet.

And be accurate about whether the experience was a job, internship, volunteer role, project, or simulation.

Watch out for job scams

Scammers may advertise fake jobs through social media, job-search websites, text messages, and email.

The Federal Trade Commission warns that fake employers may use job offers to obtain money or personal information. Some scammers also impersonate recognizable companies or repost altered versions of real job listings.

Be careful if someone:

• Offers you a job without a real interview
• Cannot clearly explain the work
• Uses a personal email while claiming to represent a major company
• Asks you to pay for equipment or training
• Sends you a check and asks you to return part of the money
• Requests banking or identity information unusually early
• Pressures you to respond immediately
• Offers unusually high pay for vague tasks

Verify the position through the employer’s official website and contact information.

You don’t need the perfect internship, a famous company name, or a complete career plan to begin gaining experience.

Start with the next realistic step.

Apply for a part-time job. Ask someone about their career. Volunteer for a project. Help produce your school’s announcements. Tutor another student. Build something. Help an organization solve a small problem.

Then keep track of what you learn.

Each experience can help you understand the workplace, build useful skills, and learn more about yourself.

Still deciding which careers or college majors you want to explore? Take Appily’s free College Major Quiz to find options that may fit your interests, strengths, and goals.