How to write your resume when you have no experience

Building your first-ever resume can seem impossible. On the outside looking in, the working world seems like a vicious circle: you can’t have a job without experience, and you can’t have experience without a job.

However, you probably have an interesting background that you can showcase but haven’t thought about. Here’s what you could write on your resume:

Contents

Education

Start your resume by stating your current level of education.

Follow it with past certifications or degrees you have had in order from most recent to oldest.

Of course, this section shouldn’t take half of your page, so only keep the essential ones.

You can put in your resume a degree that you didn’t finish yet. 

Online certifications can be a great way of showing your interest in a certain field but it will never equivalate to a degree.

Therefore, if you have done, let’s say, the Fundamentals of Finance online course from Wharton School, it won’t demonstrate to the recruiter your skill or ability in the field.

Nonetheless, a more practical course in Excel, WordPress, or Python might have a bigger impact on your job application since it shows you have extensive knowledge that isn’t taught at school. 

Some popular platforms for online university courses are Coursera, edx, or directly on the University’s website.

Personal Profile

A small section of around 5 lines can be at the beginning of your resume.

This needs to give a quick idea of your resume as a whole.

You can include your ambition and your most relevant skill.

You need to be very concise with your information and go directly to the point.

You can go into deeper details on your past experiences and explain how you perform well during them.

It can be a paragraph or just bullet points. This section is optional.

Voluntarism

A very valuable experience on your resume is volunteering because it shows you already have worked.

And this can really make your resume stand out!

You can work for the retirement home or hospital next to your house.

They often need help and they will be happy to see you coming.

There are many organizations that need your help, think about food banks or animal shelters. Volunteering at your church could also count. 

Extracurricular activities you might have done at school are another good experience.

This is very well regarded by recruiters since it shows your leadership and your implication.

Professional References

A section for professional references can add a great deal to your resume.

It shouldn’t be any friends or family members!

Instead, think of a class in which you succeeded particularly well and ask for a reference from that teacher.

Your referee can come from any sphere of your life (school, extracurricular activities, church).

Make sure they will give you a good recommendation!

Your referee is there to vouch for your professionalism but a bad word on their part can (and probably will) recoil recruiters from hiring you.

Skills

Do not overflow your resume with empty-meaning skills.

Only 5 or 6 is enough. You can put qualities such as teamwork, communication, or problem solver.

They might have asked for specific skills to be met in the job presentation.

It will often be computer related-skills (Office suite, WordPress, Outlook). Make sure to put in the ones you know. 

Furthermore, knowing a language can be a great asset throughout your career.

For instance, restaurants might want a server who can speak a foreign language, particularly in a multicultural or touristic area.

Being able to speak to clients or investors from other countries can make all the difference in the world.

Put your level beside each language you know (Mother tongue, bilingual, advanced, intermediary, beginner). 

Interests

This needs to be a very small section at the end of your resume.

It will help recruiters learn more about yourself.

It still needs to be professional but don’t overthink it. It should be truthful since they might question you on it during the interview.

You can show a more adventurous (travel, scuba diving, climbing), intellectual (reading, writing, museum), and/or athletic (swimming, marathon, skiing) side of yourself in this section.

Keep it short! Around six or seven.

Important Informations

Your name must be unmissable: in big letters, in the center.

Do not forget to add your email address and your cell number.

They will contact you via those numbers.

It needs to look professional, so don’t put your email address that looks something like: [email protected].

Make sure there aren’t any mistakes in those numbers otherwise, you will never hear from them.

You can add your LinkedIn account or civic address if you are comfortable with it.

If you choose to put your LinkedIn, it needs to be clean, up-to-date, and professional. They might check it out. 

Do not worry too much about your lack of experience. Recruiters know you can not have ten years of experience when you just come out of school. 

Too often, people will talk about what they don’t have (qualifications or experiences) but on the contrary, they should think about what they could bring to the table.

Try to make yourself shine! Your resume needs to show that you have the personality for the job. Remember that you never have a job if you don’t try. So… Good luck!