How to Write a CV With No Experience: A Student Template
Build your first student CV with a copy-ready template, honest project examples and a checklist for applying to internships with no work experience.
To write a CV with no work experience, lead with your education, relevant projects and responsibilities you can explain. You do not need to invent an internship to make a useful first CV. This guide helps college students turn actual work—from a class assignment to a college fest—into a clear application.
You’ll leave with: a copy-ready structure, three example bullets and a final check before you apply. Set aside about 30 minutes for a first draft.
1. Find experience you already have
Open a blank note and answer these questions. Use only things you actually did:
Did you research a topic, compare options or present a recommendation for a class?
Did you write posts, edit a video, design a poster or manage registrations for a college society?
Did you volunteer, tutor someone or help with a family business?
Did you create something independently that relates to the role?
Choose two or three examples that connect to the internship’s tasks. A college fest registration tracker may be relevant to an operations role. A class research brief may be relevant to a research internship. Being a society member alone tells less than describing what you contributed.
2. Copy this first-CV template
Replace every bracketed item. Remove sections you cannot fill honestly.
[YOUR NAME]
[City] · [Professional email] · [Phone, if appropriate] · [Portfolio link, if you have one]
EDUCATION
[Degree and subject], [College] · Expected graduation: [Month, Year]
[Relevant coursework or academic achievement, if useful to this application]
PROJECTS AND RELEVANT EXPERIENCE
[Project or responsibility] · [Course project / Volunteer work / Society role / Self-initiated] · [Dates]
• [Action you took] using [tool or method] to create [output].
• [Another contribution or an outcome you can verify].
SKILLS
[Tool or method] — [A short example of what you can do with it]
For a first draft, aim for one readable page. Use clear headings and a simple layout. Follow the employer’s file-format instructions. If no format is specified, check that your exported file opens correctly and its text can be selected. Leave out your Aadhaar number, bank details and full home address.
3. Turn a vague responsibility into a useful bullet
The examples below are illustrations, not achievements to copy. Adapt the structure to your own work.
Instead of “helped with college events”: “Created a registration spreadsheet, checked duplicate entries and prepared the attendance list for a college workshop.”
Instead of “good at social media”: “Wrote three draft captions and designed a poster for a student society’s event announcement.” Use a number only if it is true.
Instead of “worked on a research project”: “Compared public information from three organisations and presented the findings in a course report.”
Use this formula: action + your contribution + output or verified result. If a team made the whole campaign and you wrote the captions, say that. If you did not measure a result, describe what you delivered instead of inventing a percentage.
4. Tailor the draft to one actual internship
Underline three tasks in the role description. Beside each, write one example that shows you have practised something related. Move your strongest relevant evidence higher on the CV. Use the employer’s language where it accurately describes your work; do not add tools or skills just to match keywords.
If you cannot find any evidence for a core task, that is a useful signal. You may need a small practice project or a different role before applying. Our student portfolio guide includes four starter briefs and a case-study template.
Before you send: the five-point check
Can you explain every bullet in an interview?
Are names, dates, numbers and contact details correct?
Have you labelled course and self-initiated projects clearly?
Do portfolio links open without asking the recruiter for access?
Have you followed the application instructions and removed all template brackets?
Common first-CV questions
Can I include a group project? Yes. Explain the project briefly and separate your contribution from the team’s result.
What if I have no certificates? Start with relevant work you can show. A certificate is not a substitute for explaining a skill or project.
Should I list every tool I have tried? Choose tools relevant to the role that you can demonstrate. Describe your level accurately.
Your next step: save this draft, pick one real internship and spend ten minutes tailoring it. No CV can guarantee an interview, but a truthful, specific one gives someone a clearer view of what you can contribute.
Further reading: Harvard’s guide to creating a strong resume. CampusGal’s template and examples above are original illustrative materials.
