How to Write a Resume with No Experience – Beginners’ Guide

Are you looking for a job with no prior work experience? Here’s exactly how to write a resume with no experience and wow the recruiters immediately. 

Looking for a job can be overwhelming, especially if you have no experience. You have to make your resume from scratch, write some kind of cover letter, and impress the recruiters. That’s the purpose of your resume.

Writing a resume can feel like such a chore, and you’d rather watch your favorite series or even clean up the room. I feel you. 

If you want to land your dream job, there are a couple of things you need to know about writing a resume. Before we go into it in much detail, I have a free resource I want to introduce to you:

Put Down Your Contact Information on the Top

The first thing you should do while writing a resume is to add your personal and contact details at the top of the page. Also, keep it short and simple for an easy read. In the contact information mention the following things:

• Your first and last name
• Contact number
• Email address
• A link to the professional profile, like LinkedIn

Start With a Resume Summary

After the contact info, the second most crucial part of your career resume is the summary statement. The resume summary is an introduction to employers that highlights your qualifications related to the particular job.

It also sums up who you are professionally in a sentence or two at the top of the page. Try to write a compelling summary about yourself and why you want to do your job. All in all, your main aim should be to grab a hiring manager’s attention for the job.

It’s sort of like an elevator pitch, where you want to grab the reader in a couple of sentences.

Decide a Resume Format

The format of the resume should be attractive, clean, and readable. A few wide-used professional resume templates include chronological, functional, and hybrid (combining the two). 

In the chronological resume format, you will need to mention work experience in reverse order. However, a functional resume design focuses more on your skills and achievements. For jobseekers with no experience, a functional-style resume works well. 

Here are a few tips for the best resume format:

• Keep one-inch margins to all four sides of the page.
• Choose either 11 or 12pt resume font for the entire content.
• Make a proper format for your address and contact details.
• Divide your resume into sections: Contact Information, Resume Summary, Work Experience, Education, Skills.
• Use bullet points to mention skills and previous projects.
• Be consistent with your resume formatting.
• Try to stick to 1.15 line spacing.
• Avoid using any photos on your resume or cover letter.

List Key Skills You’ve Learned

After your professional summary, you should list your skills relevant to the job you are applying for. Most resume layout starts with your most recent job(s), but it’s much better to list skills you’ve acquired if you have no prior work experience.

Keep in mind that employers are looking for a combination of soft and hard skills in a candidate. Team leadership, verbal communication, and self-management are examples of soft skills. Hard skills are those that you have learned through specialized education or on-the-job training. Examples include Excel, Python, or SAP. 

Here are examples of a few hard and soft high-income skills you can include in your resume to get the dream job:

• Time management
• Problem-solving
• Customer service
• Active listening
• Organizational skills
• Microsoft Excel
• Email management and more

Always write skills in bullet-points. Never write them in a paragraph. It’ll take up precious space that you don’t have on your resume.

Focus On Your Education and Internships

As a no-experience job aspirant, your educational details work as a strong part of your resume. This is especially true if you have just passed the university or high school. So, instead of a work experience section, write about your education details.

Think about how you can mention your qualification skills or what part of your education is relevant according to job requirements. This part becomes easy if you are a university student or have a specialized degree.

Start mentioning your education from newest to oldest. Also, mention your grades when they’re above 80%.

Other Sections to Include in a No-Experience Resume

A resume without experience has the advantage of space, where you can include some other interesting things about yourself. You can use this space for the following sections:

• Hobbies and interests: Hobbies put a good impression on the employer. So, you can list your frugal or minimalist hobbies as well as interests. You can also mention your passion related to the job.
• Languages: If you know any second language, you can mention that too in your resume. Most companies these days prefer employees who know more than one language. But, do not exaggerate your proficiency; keep it simple and to the point. Alternatively, if you teach English online, that’s also something to mention.
• Awards and certifications: Do you have any certificates or rewards in any field? If yes, then do mention that in this section. It shows your interest in standing out and also helps you win a good job as well.

What To Not Include In Your Resume?

When writing a resume, there are many elements you need to add. But, for creating a perfect resume, you will need to be very careful with the information you are putting in it. There are a few things that you should never mention in your resume.

For example, never include writing samples, photos, URL links, unprofessional email IDs, or social media accounts on a resume. Also, make sure you’re not using an amateurish writing style.

Other things not to put on your resume are as follow:

• Excess Information
• Long paragraphs
• Spelling mistakes and grammatical errors
• Unnecessary personal information
• Your age
• Do not write any negative comments about a former employer
• Never explain hobbies and interests in detail

With A Cover Letter, Your Resume Will Do Better

A cover letter adds extra interest for an employer to your resume. It can put a good impression on a prospective employer, and is wise to show the employer why you are fit for the job.

Resumes give an overview of your qualifications and career, but a cover letter can tell a story about your skills and experience.

Follow the below mention tips to write a perfect cover letter:

• Keep the format of the cover letter simple and effective.
• Try to write an attractive cover letter that explains everything about why you are compatible with the job you have applied for.
• Mention your skills in detail and explain how these will be helpful in your job.

Things to Consider When Creating Your First Resume

Once you have finished resume writing for a new job, follow the below steps to ensure that your resume is best and well written.

Proofread carefully: Review your resume from start to end and read every sentence. Ensure your content in a resume is consistent and the font size is the same throughout the resume. Each time you update your resume, make sure to cross-check it. You can also ask someone else to proofread your resume to ensure there are no further mistakes. GoTranscript is a good resource for that.

Be confident: Be clear and confident about your skills as well as achievements. Make sure this reflects in your resume through highlighted text in a decent manner.

Keep it concise: Recruiters or employers often have many applications to review and may spend a few seconds reading any resume. So, keep it concise as well as specific, which is easy to read for employers.

All in all, your resume should be powerful but brief too. Now, you have learned how to write a resume with no experience. So, create an effective resume with the help of the above tips to grab your first job.

Frequently Asked Questions – How To Write A Resume With No Experience

Here are the most frequently asked questions when it comes to writing a resume with no experience. 

What Do I Put On My Resume If I Have No Experience?

When you are fresh out of college and have no experience, you can smartly include basic things in your resume. For example, include career objectives, side hustles, soft skills, hard skills, internships, volunteer work, and other achievements earned in school or university.

Follow a specific design throughout the resume and list all these things in a professional way.

How Long Is A Resume Usually?

Your resume should not be too long and should not be too short as well. Two pages is the absolute maximum, but I’d recommend trying to stick to one page. A recruiter looks at your resume for a total of 7 seconds, so they’re probably not going to read that second page.

But, you can attach a cover letter with your resume to explain why you are a good fit for the job.

What Should A Simple Resume Look Like?

The resume has five main essential parts: contact info, resume objective or summary, education, skills, and experience. It is the basic information that every resume format should have when you apply for a new job.