Your first resume is the hardest one. There's no job to list yet, and the page looks empty before you start. But a first resume isn't really about jobs. It's about showing what you've done so far: school, projects, volunteering, the skills you already use. This guide covers which sections to lead with when you have no work history, then how to build one with Resume Cat, our resume builder for iPhone. For templates and sending the PDF, see how to make a resume on iPhone.
What to put on a resume with no experience
The usual advice for a first resume is to lead with what you have, not with what you don't. These sections often do the work that jobs do on an older resume:
- Education. Your school, what you're studying and when you expect to finish. Good grades, honours, relevant courses and clubs belong here too.
- Projects. Anything you built, organised or led: a class project, a club event, a website, a small business plan. Say what you made, the tools you used and what came of it.
- Volunteering. Unpaid work counts. Write it like a job: your role, the organisation, the dates and what you did.
- Skills. The tools and strengths the job asks for, in the job ad's own words.
- A short summary, if you like: two or three lines on who you are and the job you want.
You may have more experience than you think: part-time jobs, internships, summer work and babysitting all count. Whatever you include, keep it true.
Start your first resume
On the home screen, you have two ways in:
- Start from an example. Tap Start from an example and pick Student / first job, the one for "Little work experience yet: school, projects, volunteering". It opens a finished one-page resume with a summary, then Education, Experience, Projects, Volunteering and Skills, in that order. The person and details in it are made up, so replace them with your own and remove what you don't need.
- Start from scratch. Tap Start from scratch (it says New resume once you have one). A blank resume starts with three sections, Experience, Education and Skills, under About you for your name, the job title you want, email, phone and city.
Every change is saved as you type.
Lead with your strongest section
On a resume with no jobs, Education or Projects usually goes near the top. Each section has a menu at the right of its heading:
- Move up and Move down move the section one place.
- Reorder sections… opens the full list, so you can drag every section into place. Its note says it plainly: "Students often put Education first. Once you've worked a few years, Experience leads."
- Remove section takes out a section you don't want.
- Rename heading changes the title, though the app suggests keeping standard headings.
- Writing tips shows advice for that section.
No jobs for the Experience section? You don't have to remove it: a section with nothing in it doesn't print.
Add the sections that show what you can do
Tap Add section at the bottom of the form. The menu lists what you can add, each with a short note, such as Projects ("Things you built, organised or led"), Volunteering ("Unpaid work and causes"), Summary, Certifications, Languages, Awards and a section with your own heading. A new section goes to the end of the resume, and a summary goes to the top. Then move each one where you want it.
Education
Tap Add school. Fill in the degree or qualification and the school. Still in school? Turn on Still studying, or pick a date under End (or expected). The extra line, GPA, honours, focus (optional), is for grades or honours. You can add bullet points here too, for a club role or a result you're proud of. The section's tips suggest adding your GPA only if it's 3.5 or higher, along with honours and relevant courses or clubs.
Projects
Adding the section opens a new project for you (tap Add project for another). Give it a name. The extra line is for Tools or link (optional). The tips call projects "great when you're short on work experience".
Volunteering
Adding the section opens a new role (tap Add volunteer role for another). Fill in your role, the organisation and the dates. Treat it like a job.
Skills
Type a skill and tap return, or type several at once with commas between them. The tips suggest using the same words as the job ad, being specific, and that 6 to 12 skills is plenty.
Write bullets that sound like work
A bullet point under a project or volunteer role works the same way as one under a job. Tap Add bullet point, then tap Verbs for a list of action verbs, grouped by what you did: led, achieved, built, helped, organised, communicated and analysed. "Organized a book drive for 40 families" says more than "Helped at a book drive".
The bar at the bottom of the editor shows Fits on 1 page or your page count, plus a count of writing tips. Tap it for the writing check, which points out things like bullets that don't start with a verb, and "I" and "my". It's advice only.
When it reads well, tap Preview & PDF to pick a template and share, print or copy it.
Next steps
Once you have a job to add, tap Add job under Experience. New jobs and schools go to the top of their section, so the most recent comes first. Then move Experience up when it's ready to lead. Applying with a letter too? See how to write a cover letter on iPhone.
What it costs
Building resumes, the examples, the writing tips and check, all six free templates and the PDF are free, for as many resumes as you like. There's no watermark, no ads, no account and no subscription. Resume Cat Pro is an optional one-time purchase with three extras: two designed templates, a cover letter for each job, and where you sent each resume. More on the Resume Cat page.
Your resumes are kept on your device and in your own backups unless you share, save or print them. There's no AI service in it: you write the words.
Quick answers
What do I put on a resume if I've never had a job?
Education, projects, volunteering and skills, with your strongest section first. Part-time work, internships and babysitting count as experience if you've done them.
Should Education go first?
On a first resume it often does. In Resume Cat, use Move up or Reorder sections… from a section's menu to put it on top.
Do I have to delete the empty Experience section?
No. A section with nothing in it doesn't print. You can still tap Remove section if you'd like it gone.
Try Resume Cat
Try Resume Cat: free, no watermark, no sign-up → iyio.com/apps/resume-cat