Almost every job advert seems to ask for experience, and your CV looks empty. That feeling is common, and it is usually wrong. Employers who hire beginners know you have not had a career yet. They want signs that you can learn, turn up, work with other people and finish things. You probably have those signs already, in places you have not thought to look. This guide is a method you can follow in any country: what counts as experience, how to lay the page out, how to write a summary, how to turn plain facts into strong bullets, and what to cut.
Every name, organisation and figure in the examples below is made up. They show the shape of a good CV, so use your own true details and never copy someone else's claims.
What "experience" really includes
Experience is anything where you had a responsibility and did something with it. Paid work is one kind. These count too:
- Projects. A final-year project, a group assignment, a website you built, a small shop you run online, a channel or blog you keep going.
- Volunteering. Helping at a charity, a place of worship, a food bank or a community event.
- Coursework. A research paper, a lab report or a presentation that shows a skill the job needs.
- Part-time and informal work. Helping in a family business, tutoring, babysitting, seasonal jobs, delivery shifts.
- Caring responsibilities. Looking after a relative means planning, patience and dealing with professionals. If it is relevant and you are comfortable sharing it, it is real experience.
- Clubs and societies. Sports teams, student groups and community clubs, especially if you held a role such as treasurer, captain or organiser.
The test is simple: could you describe what you did, and what came of it, in one honest sentence? If yes, it can go on the page.
Step 1: Collect the raw material
Before you open any template, spend ten minutes writing a list. For each item, note what you did, who it was for, roughly how long it lasted and anything that changed because of you. Then read the job advert and highlight the skills it asks for. Your CV is the overlap between the two lists. Anything that does not support this particular application can wait for another version.
Step 2: Choose a layout
There are two sensible layouts for a first CV. Pick one deliberately.
Reverse-chronological (education first)
Sections run in this order: summary, education, experience (most recent first), skills. Choose it when your best material is your degree or course, or when you have a few dated entries such as a placement, a part-time job and a society role. It is also what most recruiters and screening software expect, so it is the safe default.
Skills-led (sometimes called functional or hybrid)
Here a "Key skills" or "Relevant experience" section sits near the top and groups your evidence by skill, such as "Customer service" or "Research and analysis", with each skill backed by two bullets from different parts of your life. Choose it when your history is scattered, when you have gaps, when you are switching fields or when your best proof comes from projects rather than jobs. Keep a short, dated timeline lower down (education and any jobs) so readers can still see where you were and when. A CV that hides dates completely tends to make recruiters suspicious.
If you are unsure, start reverse-chronological. Move to skills-led only if you find yourself stretching to fill the experience section. Our guide to what an ATS is explains why plain headings help in either layout.
Step 3: Write a summary when there is nothing to summarise
A summary is two or three sentences at the top. With no job history, do not apologise and do not fill it with adjectives. Say who you are, what evidence you have and what you want.
Weak: "Hard-working and motivated person looking for an opportunity to grow in a dynamic company."
Stronger: "Recent business studies graduate who ran the weekly accounts for a family shop and led a four-person final-year research project. Comfortable with spreadsheets and talking to customers. Looking for an entry-level administration or customer support role."
The stronger version names a background, gives two pieces of proof and states the target job. If you cannot name a target, write the summary for the role you are about to apply for and change it next time.
Step 4: Turn coursework and projects into achievement bullets
A bullet that lists a duty tells the reader nothing. A good one says what you did, how, and what came of it. Use a number only if it is true; a concrete detail does the same job when you have no figure.
A course project
Before: "Group project on renewable energy."
After: "Led a four-person project comparing solar and wind costs for a small town; split the tasks, analysed the data in a spreadsheet and presented the findings to the class."
Volunteering
Before: "Volunteer at a food bank."
After: "Sorted and packed donations for around 40 households each Saturday, trained two new volunteers and updated the stock sheet so shortages were spotted earlier."
Informal or family work
Before: "Helped in my uncle's shop."
After: "Served customers, handled cash and kept the stock list for a family grocery shop on weekends and holidays; suggested a simple reorder list that cut missed items."
A personal project
Before: "Made a website."
After: "Built and launched a five-page website for a local football club using a website builder; collected the content from coaches and updated match results weekly."
Start each bullet with a verb (led, organised, built, trained, tracked), keep it to one or two lines and cut anything you could not talk about at an interview.
Keep it to one page
For a beginner, one page is the right target in almost every country. A second page usually means padding: school subjects, repeated duties, long hobby lists. If you are over, cut the oldest and least relevant item first. A short CV with strong entries reads better than a long one with weak ones.
What to leave out
- Objectives and clichés. "Team player", "fast learner" and "dynamic" need evidence or should go.
- Skill bars and percentages. "English 90%" means nothing. Write "Excel (formulas, charts)" instead.
- Long hobby lists. Keep an interest only if it shows a skill or something distinctive.
- Personal details that are not needed. Rules differ by country. In some places a photo, date of birth or marital status is expected, and in others employers prefer you to leave them off. Check the country notes below, and keep ID numbers off the CV in every case.
- Anything untrue. It can be checked, and it can be asked about at interview.
More common slips are covered in our guide to the top 10 CV mistakes.
A worked example: Daniel Okoye (illustrative)
This example is made up and uses a skills-led layout, because Daniel's best evidence comes from projects and volunteering rather than jobs.
Daniel Okoye
City, Country · +00 000 000 0000 · daniel.okoye@example.comSummary
Recent diploma graduate in business administration who helped run a family shop and led a four-person college project. Organised, careful with figures and comfortable talking to customers. Looking for an entry-level administration or customer support role.Key skills
Customer service
• Served customers and handled cash at a family grocery shop on weekends and holidays
• Answered questions and resolved complaints for around 40 food bank households each week
Organisation and records
• Kept the stock list for the shop and suggested a reorder list that cut missed items
• Updated the food bank stock sheet so shortages were spotted earlier
Teamwork and communication
• Led a four-person project comparing solar and wind costs, and presented the findings to the class
• Trained two new volunteersEducation
Diploma in Business Administration, Example College, 2023 to 2026
Relevant modules: Business Communication, Office Software, Bookkeeping BasicsExperience
Weekend shop assistant, family grocery shop, 2022 to present
Volunteer, community food bank, 2024 to presentTools and languages
Spreadsheets (formulas, charts) · Word processing · Presentations · English (fluent) · Another language (conversational)
Notice the dated timeline at the bottom, so the reader sees when things happened, and that the page is one sheet with nothing there for decoration.
Country notes
The method above works anywhere, but norms for photos, personal details and section names differ. Our country guides cover the details, each with its own worked example:
- United Kingdom: graduate CV example for the UK with no experience.
- Pakistan: CV format for fresh graduates in Pakistan.
- India: fresher resume format for India.
- Nigeria: how to write a CV in Nigeria.
Applying somewhere not listed? Read the advert closely, look at how employers in that country describe their ideal candidate and follow their instructions over any general rule. See also CV vs resume.
Choosing a template
For a first CV, plain and well spaced wins. First Draft is a quiet, traditional design that puts education and a short experience section up front. Fresh Banner adds a clear header band and leaves room for projects. Both fit on one page and stay easy to read. Browse the rest in the template gallery.
Before you send it
Read it aloud, check every date and ask someone else to proofread. Then adjust the summary and the first two bullets for each job by reflecting the wording of the advert where it is true for you; our guide to writing a professional CV shows how. When you are ready, start building your CV free. Building is open to everyone, and you need a free account to download the PDF or Word file. The FAQ has more on how the builder works.
Frequently asked questions
Can I write a CV with no work experience at all?
Yes. Lead with your education or training, then add projects, volunteering, clubs and informal work, written as achievement bullets. A one-page CV built from true, specific evidence is enough for most entry-level roles.
Should I use a skills-led or a reverse-chronological CV?
Start with reverse-chronological, because recruiters and screening software expect it. Switch to skills-led if your history is scattered or your best proof comes from projects, and keep a short dated timeline so nothing looks hidden.
How long should a CV with no experience be?
One page. With little history, a second page usually means padding. Cut the oldest and least relevant items first.