Graduate CV Guide — What to Write With No Experience

The reframe

“No experience” almost always means “no job titles” — which is not the same thing. An employer hiring at entry level is not looking for a work history they know you don't have. They are looking for evidence that you can take on something, follow it through, and produce a result. That evidence exists in places a first CV usually leaves out or undersells.

What legitimately counts

Coursework and dissertation projects — with what you produced and what it showed, not just the module name. Part-time and seasonal work: a shift job proves reliability, cash handling, dealing with the public under pressure. Volunteering with a responsibility attached. Society and committee roles where you organised something real. Sport at a level that took sustained commitment. Caring responsibilities. Self-taught skills with something to show for them — a build, a portfolio, a certificate.

The test for every entry is the same: can you say what you did and what changed because you did it? If yes, it is evidence, whatever heading it sits under.

What order it goes in

Education first, while it is your strongest and most recent evidence — degree, relevant modules with outcomes, dissertation if it fits the role. Then a projects or experience section carrying everything above. Skills after that, kept to what you can demonstrate. This ordering flips later in a career, when work history takes over the top slot; a first CV that buries education at the bottom is copying the wrong template.

Before and after: the same entry, rewritten

Before

“Member of the university marketing society. Helped with events and social media.”

After

“Events officer, university marketing society (2024–25). Organised a 3-event speaker series end to end — booked speakers, ran promotion, managed the budget. Attendance grew from ~30 to ~90 across the series; handed over a documented playbook to next year's committee.”

Three changes did all the work: a named role instead of “member”, verbs that describe what was actually done instead of “helped with”, and a result with numbers. Nothing was invented — the evidence was already there; the first version just declined to present it.

What not to do

Don't pad with hobbies that carry no evidence (“socialising with friends”). Don't list every module — pick the relevant ones. Don't claim skills you cannot demonstrate if asked in the interview. And don't open with a personal statement that could belong to anyone; if it isn't specific, cut it and let the evidence open instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I have literally no jobs to list?+

Then your experience section is built from projects, volunteering, society roles, sport and coursework with outcomes — all legitimate evidence when written for what you did and what changed. Every employer hiring at entry level knows they are reading a first CV.

Should I include my school grades?+

Include them briefly while they are your most recent qualifications; compress them to a single line once you have a degree result and university coursework to show. If an advert asks for specific grades, state those explicitly.

How long should a graduate CV be?+

One focused page for most graduates. Move to two only when real experience — placements, substantial projects, part-time work — would otherwise be cut. One strong page beats two padded ones every time.

Do I need a personal statement?+

A short one earns its place only if it says something specific: the field you're targeting and the strongest evidence you're bringing. Cut anything that could open any graduate's CV — 'hard-working team player seeking a challenging role' is length without information.

Should I list every university module?+

No — name the two or three most relevant to the role, ideally with a project outcome attached. A full module list reads as padding and buries the ones that matter.

General guidance based on common hiring practice — sectors and employers differ.

Graduate CV Guide: What to Write When You Have No Experience