Starting out · Shelf
US: first jobs and what comes after high school
For readers in the United States: what teens can legally do and earn, work permits, summer jobs, a first resume, and the choice between college, community college, trade school and the FAFSA.
12 guides60 minutes of reading
On this shelf
- What jobs can a 14 or 15 year old do in the US?The FLSA hours limits, the allowed-jobs list, state permits and where 14 and 15 year olds actually get hired.
- What jobs can I get at 16 in the US?What opens up at 16, the hazardous jobs still banned, pay by state and how to get hired with no experience.
- How do I get a work permit as a minor?Which states need working papers, who issues them, what to bring and how to get one in a day.
- What are the best summer jobs for teens in the US?Where teen summer jobs are, when to apply, 2026 pay and the city youth employment programs that take 14 year olds.
- How can I make money as a teenager in the US?Legal earners at every age from 13, the self-employment tax rule and which ones leave a skill behind.
- How do I write a resume as a teenager with no experience?Five sections on one page, what counts as experience and a worked example that gets read.
- What should I do after high school?Six routes compared on time, cost and outcome, with cheap ways to test each before committing.
- Is college worth it in the US?The earnings gap, the real net price, the three ways college fails to pay and a decision method.
- Community college or university: which should I start at?Cost, the transfer completion data and how to make the two-plus-two route reliable.
- Trade school or college: which is the better choice?Trade school, apprenticeship and college on time, cost and pay, and the Tuesday that should decide it.
- When is the FAFSA deadline and how do I fill it out?The 2026-27 deadlines that matter, the steps, the Student Aid Index and the mistakes that cost aid.
- How do I pay for college?Grants, scholarships, earnings and federal loans in order, and why the choice of school is the biggest lever.
469 guides on 55 shelves. Each one starts with the short answer and ends with one thing to try.
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