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Student CV: Template + 20 Examples [Also With No Experience]
Think getting a job as a student with no experience is impossible? Think again. You just need a great CV. Follow our expert advice & you'll be hired in a flash.
School’s out, the world of work awaits. Stop worrying about your lack of experience and learn how to write a school leaver CV recruiters will love.
You’ve learned a lot at school but there’s one thing they didn’t teach you. The best way to write a CV.
That’s understandable, your teachers weren’t all career experts. But thankfully, we are, and you’re about to learn how to write a school leaver CV designed to show off your strengths and impress recruiters.
Don’t be worried about your lack of experience. You don’t need decades of work history to write a good CV. You just need to learn some simple strategies to create a CV that’s professional and on point.
Read on and you’ll see a school leaver CV example you can adjust and make yours. Plus, you’ll learn an easy formula for writing a cv for school-leaver jobs that will land you 10x more interviews than any other school leaver CV template out there.
Here’s a school leaver CV example made with our builder.
Want to save time and have your CV ready in 5 minutes? Try our CV builder. It’s fast and easy to use. Plus, you’ll get ready-made content to add with one click. See 20+ CV templates and create your CV here.
School-leaver CV made with our builder—See more templates and create your CV here.
Looking for more detailed advice or guides for specific careers? Read more here:
Emma Watts
Ph: 0777 777 7777
Email: emmawatts_zety@gmail.com
Energetic and eager to learn student in final year of A-levels seeks opportunity to gain experience in customer support. Hands on experience in customer service through Prince’s Trust Volunteering and a dedicated, ‘can do’ attitude. Looking to develop my skills as a customer support trainee with Ataco Inc.
Education
A-levels: English Literature, History, Art. September 2018–June 2020 (expected graduation date)
Wollaston Academy, London, UK
9 GCSEs including Mathematics and English, September 2016–June 2018
Wollaston Academy, London, UK
Work Experience
Princes Trust Sports Volunteer—Cycle Hire Assistant
Osterley Park & House, Isleworth, London
April 2019—Present
Skills
Hobbies and Interests
I’ve just told that you need to write a CV if you want a job. But if you’ve never written one before you’re probably wondering what a CV exactly is.
A CV, which is short for curriculum vitae, is a document that contains information about you that tells employers about your education, skills and experience.
You then send your CV to employers when you make a job application, and they read it and use the info you included to decide whether or not they want to interview you for the job.
So now you know what a CV is, it’s time to learn how to write one.
Here’s how to write a school-leaver CV:
A school-leaver is a person who has just left or is about to leave school, having completed their studies. The purpose of your school leaver CV is to show that you’re an excellent candidate for employment despite your lack of experience.
Youth unemployment remains high and is currently increasing. It’s a tough job market. But there are a few things you can do that will instantly give you the edge over the competition. Graduate at the top of your job-hunting class by creating a professional first impression. Here’s how.
Pro Tip: Check, check, and check again. Spelling and grammatical mistakes can ruin your chances. Use your word processor’s built-in spell checker, run your CV through a writing app like Grammarly and have a friend check your work. A perfectly presented CV is instant proof of your writing proficiency, one of the top soft skills employers want.
Your CV header is the very first lines of text that contain your name and your contact information. Here’s what to include.
You don’t have to include your residential address. It’s not relevant and it just takes up space you could use for more important information.
Read more: What to Include in a CV: Essential CV Sections
Remember your English classes? When it came to creative writing the most important thing they would've drummed into you is writing an exciting introduction. You need to grab the reader’s attention and hold it so they’ll keep reading all the way through. That’s exactly what your school leaver CV personal statement does. It acts as the crucial intro to your CV story.
3–4 sentences is all you’ve got to make the hiring manager take notice. But don’t let that scare you, just use these three simple questions as your formula and you’ll make the recruiter hungry for more.
Answer these questions differently depending on whether you have any experience or not. If you’re like most school leavers and you don’t have any experience, then do this.
If you’ve had some work experience while you were at school and you’re applying for a job in the same industry, then do this.
Regardless of your experience, this section is easier to write if you leave it until last. It’s much faster when you’ve got everything else all set out and ready to refer to.
Remember: Don’t make it about you, make it about the employer. Applying for a retail job? Don’t just talk about how much you love that particular shop, that’s about you. You’ve also got to mention how you could offer great customer service and improve sales, that’s about the employer.
Check out this guide for even more tips on how to write your personal profile: How to Write a CV Personal Statement [20+ Examples]
When making a CV in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional CV template here for free.
When you’re done, Zety’s CV builder will score your CV and tell you exactly how to make it better.
Usually this section would come after your work experience. But on a CV template for a school leaver it’s best to put your education first. At this stage of your career it carries more weight than your work history.
If you have no experience whatsoever then feel free to omit this section. However, it’s vital to include any experience you do have. Any work experience at all is a big advantage when you’re writing a school leavers CV. Here’s how to do it right.
Let me explain that last point in more detail. It’s a simple way of adding more impact to your bullet points. A way of showing the hiring manager you’ve got the ability to make a positive contribution. Look at this example:
There’s a challenge, too much money is being spent on office supplies. An action, negotiating a discount. And a result, an impressive monthly saving. It quantifies that saving too, and that just means saying how much it was by writing the actual number. It’s another important way of showing an employer exactly how you can help
Pro Tip: If you have no experience at all then be proactive. There are plenty of ways to gain that all important experience. Try volunteering for a local charity. Check if your school or college organises work experience placements or contact the Prince’s Trust. Any experience you can get will be a boost to your CV.
Want even more good CV advice? Check out our guide: 20+ CV Tips and Advice for Job Application Success
When writing a CV for a school leaver you need to highlight your skills. And I don’t mean your ability to down 30 Nando’s extra hot chicken wings in 30 minutes. This is all about skills that’ll impress employers. Here’s what to do.
These skills would look great on a school leaver CV.
Read More: Best List of Skills to Put on a CV [Top Skills & Examples]
There’s one big problem with your average school leaver CV. They all look pretty similar. There’s no career history to distinguish between each candidate and that makes it tough to stand out. But there’s an easy way of customising your CV to stop you getting lost in the crowd. Add some additional sections. Here’s how.
Read more: Best Hobbies and Interests to Put on a CV
I know what you’re thinking, who actually writes a letter these days? But in the world of recruitment, cover letters are still a pretty big thing. More than half of employers still say they’re a must-have. Writing a cover letter to accompany your school leaver CV is another great way of making your job application stand out.
Here’s how to write a cover letter in no time.
Read more: What to Include in a Cover Letter for a Job [15+ Examples]
One last tip for you. Follow up your job application. If you haven’t heard back within a week, contact the employer by email or phone about the status of your application. It’s a great way of improving your chances of landing an interview. In fact, 22% of hiring managers are less likely to hire a candidate who doesn’t follow up.
And that’s it. You’re all set to write a school leaver CV that’ll get your working life off to a great start.
Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:
See more cover letter templates and start writing.
Thanks for reading. Have I covered everything you need to know about writing a CV for a school-leaver? Do you need something more specific, like a cv for 16 year old school leaver template? How about more cv examples for a school leaver? If you’d like to know anything at all about how to write your first CV, let me know in the comments section and I’ll be happy to help.
Think getting a job as a student with no experience is impossible? Think again. You just need a great CV. Follow our expert advice & you'll be hired in a flash.
Write a CV that’ll get you a job before the ink on your degree is dry. With templates and expert tips to get you hired fast, even without experience.
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