Preparing a Resume When You Have Little to No Work Experience

Consult an Employment Agency to Help Optimize the Content of Your Resume

Many people are no doubt aware of the importance of making a positive first impression. This is a critical component in ultimately building strong interpersonal relationships in all aspects of life, whether the particular situation is personal or professional in nature; and perhaps with the exception of initiating that special bond with one’s eventual partner in life, first impressions may be no more influential than in the search for employment.

In the majority of cases, a resume may be the first point of contact with any perspective employer; even if the applicant knows or is referred by someone within a company, they will still need to sufficiently impress the hiring manager and/or any decision-makers just to get an interview, let alone receive a job offer. But for many people with limited to no work experience, this can pose quite a challenge: how do they get an employer to notice them when they are likely competing for the job against several experienced candidates?

To begin, it will be important to keep in mind that everyone has essentially lacked work experience at some point in time, yet they have all managed to secure their first job as a means of establishing a career. This should provide strong motivation for those who are currently less-experienced to dismiss any such concerns that could be holding them back from applying for various positions of interest.

With this positive mindset firmly in place, the following suggestions are offered to help in optimizing the resumes of those who might lack an appreciable level of work experience:

• Employment History
  • Include paid positions only – full-time, part-time, seasonal, etc.
  • List in reverse chronological order i.e. begin with the most recent
  • Briefly describe responsibilities – link to those included in job posting
• Volunteer Activities
  • Focus on charity work, community work, event planning, fundraising
  • Avoid causes that might be sensitive in nature (e.g. politics, religion)
  • Highlight transferable skills learned that would be applicable to the job
• Summary of Qualifications
  • Include specific skills and accreditations applicable to the position
  • Describe personal strengths that would be beneficial to the employer
  • Emphasize any leadership activities as well as social media skills/links
• Accomplishments/Recognition
  • Educational background – degrees, diplomas, scholarships, internships
  • Individual awards, performances, publications, letters of appreciation, etc.
  • Select the most pertinent examples only; list in reverse chronological order
• Other Content and Formatting
  • Presentation should be clean/uncluttered – easy-to-read font style and size
  • Utilize bullet points and succinct statements rather than complex sentences
  • Ensure proper use of grammar and punctuation – proofread (not spell-check)
  • Dates and timelines should be clear and consistent, not open to interpretation
  • Provide all means of contact as well as any links to online professional profiles
  • Keep to one page if possible – no need to include career objective or references

In addition to the above suggestions, job seekers with limited to no experience who want to prepare an impactful resume may find benefit from the professional services provided by an employment agency like Winters Technical Staffing in Toronto, a recognized leader in job placements for entry-level candidates across a broad range of industry specialties.

How Employment Agency Professionals Can Help Polish and Tailor Your Resume

When preparing a resume, it will be important to focus not only on the content itself, but also on how that content will be perceived by the prospective employer – in other words, what type of first impression will it make and what impact will it have on advancing the applicant’s chances of securing the position.

This takes on added significance when the candidate in question has little to no relevant work experience; and it also underlines the need to consider the professional services of an employment agency like Winters Technical Staffing. The knowledgeable consultants at Winters Technical Staffing can provide insightful and valuable guidance on preparing a resume in the following ways:

• Overall content
• Formatting and length
• Accuracy of the information
• Structuring for greatest impact
• Inclusion of appropriate keywords
• Grammar, tense, punctuation, spelling
• Exclusion of all non-relevant information
• Applicability to the job, employer, industry

Capitalizing on the resume preparation services offered by an employment agency can significantly help job seekers in polishing and tailoring their written communications to prospective employers – and making an effective and impactful first impression – even if the candidates have limited prior experience.

Contact Winters Today

Consider the professional services offered by an employment agency to help in preparing your resume. Call the experienced consultants from Winters Technical Staffing today at 416-495-7422 to request further information.