Jobs received 35 per cent of the votes in a survey of 1,000 teenagers, ahead of Oprah Winfrey (25 per cent) and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg (10 per cent). Also-rans included Tony Hawk, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen and Kimora Lee Simmons.
"We live in a celebrity-obsessed culture, so it's no surprise that teens admire famous entrepreneurs like Steve Jobs and Oprah Winfrey, who have built brands around their personas as well as around their products," said Jack Kosakowski, president of Junior Achievement, which carried out the survey.
Almost two thirds of the 12 to 17 year-olds chose Jobs because he "made a difference in/improved people's lives or made the world a better place". One third cited his "success in multiple fields".
Junior Achievement teaches business and financial skills to teenagers around the world.