Best Things To Put on a Resume With No Experience

Best Things To Put on a Resume With No ExperienceBest Things To Put on a Resume With No ExperienceIn this Best Things to Put on a Resume When You Have No Experience articleProfessional summary (even if you have no experience in your resume)Key skills youve learned in school and other experiencesEducation and academic achievementsClasses, training and certificationsPersonal or academic projects relevant to the jobAwards and accomplishmentsExtracurricular activities, sports and clubsVolunteer work and activitiesHow to format a resume with no experienceThe best things to list on your resume if you have no experienceNo professional experience on your resume? No problem as long as you read this guide on how to write a resume when you have no work experience.There are plenty of reasons why you may not have any previous work experience to list on your resume. There are many other things you can add to your resume to show employers that you are the perfect candidate for their open job post. When you dont have work experience, its important to highlight past activities, skills and other experiences youve had to show you have unique skills, professionalism and competency. When managers are hiring entry-level employees, the top two characteristics they are looking for in your resume are attitude and aptitude.That isAttitude a positive, hardworking, and likable personalityAbility aptitude to get up to speed quickly on the jobKeep these two traits in mind while writing your resume and add any relevant experiences that show that you have the attitude and aptitude for the job.1. Professional summary (even if you have no experience)Modern day resumes call for a professional summary instead of a career objective. Your professional summary should come immediately after your name and contact information and will include two or three sentences giving a broad overview of your background, interests and abilities.Since you dont have work experience, your professional summary should include one or two adjectives describing your work ethic, your level of education, your relevant skills and your professional passions or interests. Each professional summary should be tailored to the specific job you are applying for.Professional summary example 1Proactive and personable aspiring restaurant server currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in hospitality from Coral Springs University. Collaborative, team player who strongly believes that the customer should always come first. Passionate about Italian food and strongly interested in working in a fast-casual restaurant setting.Professional summary example 2Analytical and detail-oriented aspiring Data Entry Clerk possessing an Associate of Arts degree. Mathematical-minded as demonstrated by advanced college coursework in mathematics and statistics. Interested in obtaining an entry-level punkt in the data analytics field.2. Key skills youve learned in school and other experiencesAfter your professional summary, list your skills that are relevant to the position you are applying for. To get a good idea of the skills required for a job, simply browse job descriptions for that specific job title. Typically, within the requirements or qualifications section, there will be many skills listed that you can copy.Dont be afraid to list skills that you havent used in a professional setting. If you have learned about them in school or if you have practiced these skills during an extracurricular activity, list them Just make sure you are honest during an interview about your level of competency.Example of how to list less than 10 key skills in a resumeTime ManagementProfessionalismPublic SpeakingMS OfficeOrganizing and FilingExample of how to list more than 10 key skills in a resumeLeadership Team Management, Resource Planning, BudgetingMath Data Entry, Data Analytics, StatisticsProfessionalism Active Listening, Office Etiquette, Professional Communication, Time ManagementLanguages English (native), Spani sh (basic proficiency)3. Education and academic achievementsAfter your key skills, create a resume section for your education. List any degrees you have obtained or any degrees you are currently pursuing. If you stopped going to school before obtaining a degree, you can list the credits or hours you have completed.For each degree, list the school, the location, your degree, your field of study and the dates you attended. You should also include academic honors and awards, such as graduating Cum Laude.Example of how to list education in a resume 1Coral Springs University, Coral Springs, Florida August 2018Bachelor of Science in Biology Minor in PsychologyGraduated Magna Cum LaudeExample of how to list education in a resume 2Coral Springs University, Coral Springs, Florida In ProgressAssociate of ArtsExample of how to list education in a resume 3Coral Springs University, Coral Springs, Florida Aug 2010 May 2016Bachelor of Arts in Art History 200 Credit H ours Obtained4. Classes, training and certificationsNow its time to list any relevant classes, training, or certifications that are relevant for your resume.For classes, include coursework that you took through school that are relevant to the position you are applying for. Just list the class title instead of the class number, such as ECON101. You can also write a brief description that is one to two sentences long to describe the course, if it is relevant to the job youre applying for.For every training session and certification on your resume, list where you received the training, the type of course taken, the date you received it, and the date it expires (if any).Example of how to list a class in a resumeIntro to Hospitality Introduction to the hospitality industry, including various types of career paths. In-depth lessons on the food and beverage sector, including the categories of restaurants and the different types of food service.Example of how to list training and certifica tionsCoral Springs University, Coral Springs Florida Valid 9/2018 9/2021First Aid CPR Certified5. Personal or academic projects relevant to the jobYou can also list personal or academic projects relevant to the job you are applying for, such as a group project at school or a neighborhood summer bake sale. You just need to relate your projects with how you are a good fit for a companys position. Before writing a project down, think about how you will explain its relevance during an interview.Personal project relevant to a jobFor example, lets say you hosted a bake sale in your neighborhood and are now applying for a job as a cashier at a grocery store. You could explain that while selling your baked goodies, you practiced your customer service, money handling, and food service safety skills.Example of how to list a personal project in a resumeSummer Bake Sale Hosted a summer bake sale in my neighborhood every weekend from April to August 2018. Created and handed out flye rs, took and fulfilled customer orders, handled cash payments, and home baked all products. Skills learned include customer service, money handling, and food service safety.Academic project relevant to a jobIncluding an academic project in a resume is straightforward. Include where the project took place, what class it was a part of, the title of the project, the date it was completed and a short summary of its purpose.Example of how to list an academic project in a resumeCoral Springs University, Coral Springs, Florida August 2018Intro to Hospitality Course McDonalds Restaurant Analysis Group ProjectWorked within a team of 4 to analyze data on the revenue, size, and customer kusine of a popular fast-food chain in Florida. Created and presented findings during a course presentation. Was personally responsible for collecting data on McDonalds revenue and creating a PowerPoint presentation.6. Awards and accomplishmentsAfter relevant projects, create a section for awards, ac hievements, and accomplishments. You can list academic or school accomplishments, like Best Presentation in a class or Highest Grade. You can also list any personal achievements, such as winning a medal in sports or coming in second place during a spelling bee.For each award, achievement, and accomplishment, list where you received the award, the name of the award, the date you achieved it and a brief description, if necessary.Example of how to list awards and accomplishments 1Green Valley State, Green Valley, Michigan Spring 2018Intro to Hospitality Best Group Presentation (McDonalds Restaurant Analysis)Example of how to list awards and accomplishments 2Big Paws Swimming, Green Valley Michigan August October 2018100 Meter Butterfly U18 Gold MetalSee alsoBest Fonts for Resumes (With Examples)Related article How to add academic achievements to a resume7. Extracurricular activities, sports and clubsAfter you awards and achievements, create a section for extracur ricular activities. List anything you are passionate about that shows your positive attitude and aptitude for the job youre applying for, such as playing a musical instrument, clubs, sports and other activities. In your resume, list the relevant activity and include a brief description.Example of how to list extracurricular activities, sports and clubsPiano Has played piano for 8 years and practices, on average, 4 hours per day.Babysitting Babysits neighbors, 8 and 3 years old, twice a week.Swimming Competitive swimmer, having won multiple gold and silver medals in state competitions.8. Volunteer work and activitiesLastly, create a section for volunteer activities. This could be formal or informal volunteering, such as serving food at a local homeless shelter or helping your neighbor rake leaves. For each volunteer activity, include who you volunteered with, what your role was, the dates and hours you volunteered and a brief description.Example of how to list volunteer work and a ctivities in a resumeCoral Springs Soup Kitchen, Coral Springs, Florida January 2018 Present25 Hours Meal Prep and ServingPrepares, serves, and cleans up after meal service at a local homeless shelter on a bi-weekly basis.How to format a resume with no experienceA clear, easy to read, and consistent format is essential for grabbing an employer or hiring managers attention, especially when you have no formal work experience.How long should your resume be?Your resume should be one page long if you have no experience. It is important for your resume to fill one entire page though, so you may need to add more detail in your resume or experiment with formatting so that it is a full page-long resume.Related article How long should my resume be? The best fonts for a resumeChoose a traditional font like Times New Roman or Arial throughout your resume. Do not use more than one font type on the same resume.Related article Best fonts for a resumeThe best font size for a resumeThe s ize font you use on a resume will depend on how much you have written, as you need your content to fill up one entire page. A good place to abflug is using 16pt for your name, 12pt for your section headers, and 11pt for the body of your text. Experiment conservatively until your one-page resume looks complete.The best color scheme for a resumeWhen you do not have a lot of work experience, it is usually better to use a simple black and white color scheme. Using plain black text on a white page is a safe choice on a resume.The best paper to print a resume onWhen printing your resume, print it on a crisp white page of printer paper. There is no need to spend extra money on fancy thick paper or colored paper.A good resume is a consistent resumeConsistency is important for creating an impressive resume. This means all similar items on the page need to be aligned and formatted the same way. For example, if you decide to write your dates out in long-form and italicized, they need to be lon g-form and in italics every place there is a date on your resume. If you decide to put your school name in bold, every school name needs to be in bold.Formatting sections on a resumeClearly separate resume sections by formatting them in underlined and bold using a size that is one or two points larger than the rest of the text. This helps a hiring manager easily scan through your resume and pick out the important information fast.When creating a resume, especially when you have no experience, it saves a lot of time to use a resume building template. Using a free resume template allows you to focus on writing the content without spending too much time on formatting.