First Time Resume with no Experience Sample—20+ Examples and Tips

“We’d love to hire you. But—”

You’ve got no relevant experience.

How can you ever get a job?

Well—

You’ve got life experience.

Trust us. You’ve done things that make you valuable. You’re not a toddler.

You just need to put those details in the right resume format.

In this guide:

• A first time resume with no experience sample better than most.
• What to put in a resume with no work experience so it’s not blank.
• How to make a resume with no job experience that gets phone calls.
• Why you can’t just list skills in a no-experience resume (and what to do instead).

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Resume with no Experience Sample You Can Copy and Use

Want some other first time resume with no experience samples? See our guides:

• Resume for College Application Sample & Guide
• Student Resume Sample & Guide
• Internship Resume Sample & Guide
• Entry-Level Resume Sample & Guide
• Teen Resume Sample & Guide

Now here’s how to make a resume with no experience:

1. Use the Right Format in a Resume With no Experience

Danger.

You want the job. But—

So do hundreds of others.

And they have lots of experience.

How can a resume with no work experience compete?

Don’t panic.

Stick to the time-tested reverse-chronological format of most resumes.

Then use these tips:

Resume with no Experience Format

• Use one great resume font like 10–12pt Garamond or Cambria.
• Include some white space. Set your margins at one inch.
• Make the length of your resume with no experience one page.
• Create these resume sections: Heading, Objective, Education, Skills, and a few added sections.

Expert Hint: Save your no-experience resume as a PDF. PDF resumes work no matter what screen hiring teams view them on, and ATS readers can read them.

2. Write an Eye-Catching Resume Objective

“She’s got no experience... but still!”

You’ve got little time to make a first impression.

Most hiring teams glance at resumes. You’ll get about six seconds before trash-time.

But there’s hope.

A resume with no work experience for college students or high school can still wow them. It starts with a solid resume objective.

Use:

1. One adjective (energetic, hard-working)
2. The job title (nanny, programmer, cook, retail associate)
3. How/whom you’ll help (provide efficient coding for Alcoa)
4. Best relevant accomplishment (2nd place price in Codewars contest)

These resume with no experience examples will start you off:

Summary for a Resume with no Experience

See the difference?

Even a high school resume with no work experience can soar. If you start it with a bang.

It’s those details. I’ll show more in the next section.

Expert Hint: Write the summary for your resume with no experience last. If you write it first, you’ll spend too much time head-scratching and won’t think of good achievements.

3. Education Is Key in a Resume with no Experience

You don’t have work history. But—

You’ve done things to impress them.

To write a great resume with no work experience, dig into the online job posting. It’s stuffed with resume keywords.

Does that sound complicated?

They’re just skills, duties, and responsibilities.

These first time resume with no experience samples show how:

Let’s say the job ad wants skills in game development, data science, cloud computing, and machine learning.

Teaching Assistant Education—Example

Bang.

That first resume with no experience sample has everything.

Didn’t do that many projects?

You can also list sports teams, school groups, clubs, projects, and other academic pursuits. Use each one to show relevant skills.

Expert Hint: Just graduated high school? A high school resume with no work experience can even show classes you were passionate about, or teacher kudos.

4. Put Life in a Resume with no Experience

Oh no!

Your resume with no work experience is blank!

They’ll never hire you.

That’s not true. You’ve done more than you think.

The key?

Think about the job needs. Is it a nanny job? Programming? Cooking? Waiting tables? What about retail?

Each of those needs certain skills.

For example, say you want to be a nanny. Have you looked after your little brother/sister? Put that in your no-experience resume.

Or maybe you want to be a line cook? Have you cooked for family or friends? Yep—that warrants mention on a resume.

These resume with no experience examples show how:

Job ad wants these skills: (1) Java (2) MySQL (3) API (4) collaboration (5) writing algorithms.

How to Write a Resume with No Experience

Nailed it.

In a nanny resume with no experience, call that section, “Personal Nanny Experience.”

Same with a no experience resume for cooking or retail. Call it “Personal Cooking Experience” or “Personal Customer Service Experience.”

5. Prove Your Skills in a no Experience Resume

This is key:

Don’t just list your skills.

Anyone can write a list.

You have to prove them.

How?

Let’s say you want to prove leadership and problem-solving skills.

So—find a life event where you used those skills.

Then put them in bullet points like this:

You can use any life event, club, group, or effort to prove your skills.

You’ll need both soft and hard skills on your resume with no work experience for college students or high school students.

“Soft skills” are transferable skills that work in any job.

Those are qualities like interpersonal skills, communication, efficiency, and work ethic.

“Hard skills” are technical skills like MS Office or cloud computing.

This list of top resume skills can get you started:

Resume With no Experience Skills

Expert Tip: Don’t have the skills the job wants? Take some online classes from Udemy or Lynda. You’ll beat the pants off the other resumes with no experience.

6. Add Extras to Your Resume with no Experience

Still coming up short?

Your resume with no work experience must fill the page—but not with “filler!”

Wow them.

How?

With extras that show related skills.

You can add resume sections for:

• Classes or certifications (like First Aid or ServSafe Food Handler)
• Portfolio website (You must put this in a resume with no experience for computer science pros)
• Additional activities
• Interests
• Honors & awards
• Foreign languages
• Clubs & groups (BSA, computing clubs)
• Fitness
• Volunteering experience

You don’t need all of those.

Just the ones that show off your finest hours!

These no experience resume examples get it going:

Resume With no Experience—Extra Sections

Hint: I’d hire #1.

That first no experience resume sample pumps up your skills.

It also shows your passion.

Are you getting the picture? It’s not about your work history.

Expert Hint: Write a cover letter. The hiring manager will spend more time reading your resume with no work experience. Tip: don’t brag. Talk most about the job.

Key Points

Here’s how to write a resume with no experience: 

• Use the no experience resume template up top. It stops the “can’t get a job without experience” cycle.
• Focus on life accomplishments. Put them in your objective, education, and “extra” sections.
• Zero in on skills they need. They’re your best resume keywords, and they’re in the online job ad.
• Include a cover letter. Talk about the job a lot. Give evidence you’re a good fit despite lack of experience.

Got questions on how to write a resume with no work experience for college students? Writing a teen no experience resume and don’t know where to start? Leave a comment. We’ll be happy to reply!