# How to get a job with no work experience?



## achelle92

Does anyone here have any tips on getting a job when you have no work experience? I'm 21 and I've never worked or done any internships. I have babysat and volunteered in clubs but that was it. 

I've applied to a couple of jobs in the last few weeks and have gotten no replies. I know my empty job experience hurts my chances, but I have nothing to put. It's getting to the point where it's making me depressed. How can I have work experience without someone hiring me?


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## ineverwipe

You can use your volunteer work and babysitting as references. I too have no good work experience and that's probably why i went about 4 years without having a job. The job market is all competition these days. I hope you find something! Just keep trying, something is bound to pull through for you eventually.


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## MkMiku

Try and find places that don't require any experience and apply where/when most workers are needed. The key is to keep checking back on your status. One place I went to once a week for 4 months before I even got an interview. If they don't accept you, apply again in about 6 weeks.


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## Zeeshan

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## achelle92

Well I called two of the places I applied to, only to be told they're not hiring at the moment. This job-search thing is getting depressing...


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## dal user

Zeeshan said:


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whats the point, they'll find out and nobody wants to hire a liar.


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## Zeeshan

Rich91 said:


> whats the point, they'll find out and nobody wants to hire a liar.


How will they find out

Also your assuming that they have the necessary balls to confront. 97% people will do anything to avoid an confrontation


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## laura024

The job search gets more depressing than this, so be prepared. You need to apply to several jobs to increase your chances. A couple won't cut it. A lot of places aren't hiring, like the ones you called. Look for open jobs on Snag a Job, Indeed, Simply Hired, Monster, etc. Play up your babysitting and volunteer experience because it's all you have.

I ended up finding my current job on Craigslist.


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## dal user

Zeeshan said:


> How will they find out
> 
> Also your assuming that they have the necessary balls to confront. 97% people will do anything to avoid an confrontation


i know a guy who was confronted by a manager

he said he had loads of qualifications, he wrote them on his cv and the manager actually telephoned each place he said he'd gained these qualifications and the majority of them were lies and guess what he didn't get the job.

lying doesn't cut it in 2013 son.


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## Funkyfusq

attitude. people hire people primarily, not skills. If you're willing to learn and smile and work hard, your odds increase.


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## dal user

Funkyfusq said:


> attitude. people hire people primarily, not skills. If you're willing to learn and smile and work hard, your odds increase.


bollocks

i went for a job interview ages ago and explained to them that i didn't have many skills/qualifications but i said to them that i'd work hard and i get on well with people which i do cos im so quiet i don't cause any trouble and never have any issues with people, anyway i didn't get the job because the manager was a stuck up **** and i don't think he took me seriously.


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## pookedandy

count me in ... i am 25 years old and still no job....i even have a bad example for that i was applying for a java programmer trainee and we are 6 applicants, guess what, me and the other guy was told that they will call us on the next interview,but how come 4 of the other guys are sitting and they want us out... so ***cked up right... it's ok for me if they tell the fact that i am not qualified but they told us that they will call but to my dismay until now no such call happens.....


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## Bre1491

You might want to try for a seasonal temporary job like at a Halloween store. They have trouble finding people since its only for a short time, but it would give you some experience.


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## Grog

achelle92 said:


> Does anyone here have any tips on getting a job when you have no work experience? I'm 21 and I've never worked or done any internships. I have babysat and volunteered in clubs but that was it.
> 
> I've applied to a couple of jobs in the last few weeks and have gotten no replies. I know my empty job experience hurts my chances, but I have nothing to put. It's getting to the point where it's making me depressed. How can I have work experience without someone hiring me?


You could try doing a per apprentaship course ( depends on the work you want )
Or go to the work place you want to work in well dressed and with research on what they do , their company , why you want to work there use the key words longterm ,career, asset to ,team,and be very positive .take a resume with what you have done and all the above in it .and just ask for a go .ask todo some free work experience with them ( work your butt off ) its about getting your foot in the door and the right person to notice ( that's the hard part) you may have to do this to a lot of businesses and follow up on the ones you try at prove you want it ( hassle the **** out of them) even take the **** jobs they offer these are usually a test to see your character but your foot will be in the door and every one starts at the bottom ( turn up every day,on time,try be the last to leave,never complain or winge always be happy and positive ( even if you fake it I do ) this will eventually work and keep trying until it happens .hope this helps good luck


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## Snow Bunny

I had no experience at 21 and worked 4 months for free on work experience schemes. Got me a paying job in the end though.


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## JohnDoe26

How about applying at McDonalds?


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## IllmaticJJ

Bump


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## M28

Extra bump


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## Dexdere

achelle92 said:


> Does anyone here have any tips on getting a job when you have no work experience? I'm 21 and I've never worked or done any internships. I have babysat and volunteered in clubs but that was it.
> 
> I've applied to a couple of jobs in the last few weeks and have gotten no replies. I know my empty job experience hurts my chances, but I have nothing to put. It's getting to the point where it's making me depressed. How can I have work experience without someone hiring me?


Have you any volunteer experience? If not, it might be worth getting about 50+ hours in, as excruciating as that may sound. I haven't nailed my first official job yet myself, however, I have received some phone interviews back and the managers seemed fairly interested alone from my volunteer experiences.


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## Dexdere

Meant to say big volunteer work.


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## twilightmoon

Does it usually matter what *type* of volunteer work you have as experience in order for a future employee to consider you? Like, what if the volunteer work has absolutely nothing to do with the job you are applying for? Example: Working at an animal rescue organization, but applying for a retail job?


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## UK guy

It's prob been said, but you just need to lie and say you have experience in something really simple like customer service or basic admin stuff. Dont worry about references, they wont check them unless its a government job or something very high profile

Almost everyone lies, or at least complete exaggerate things on their CV.

I have 3 different CVs with different jobs in my previous experience, all used for when i was applying for different jobs.

Dont go wild and make lies about things which are unbelievable though

And dont listen to anyone who says lying on your CV is a bad idea, THAT is bad advise 

Employers will probably spend less than 30 seconds looking at your CV, unless you're going for very high profile jobs


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## BAH

To the humans who are telling her to lie...what worked for you may not work for everyone


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## inane

I just went on a job-hunting bout and will give my two cents on it. I have only ever job-searched twice in my life, one time seven years ago and the second time two years ago. This time is my third. For context, I am a 22yo woman applying for unskilled work, just something to pay the bills with.

While true that managers likely spend only seconds scanning your CV initially, if you catch their interest, some will spend much more time examining you... Yes, I was extremely surprised too. For example, one manager even read my cover letter, addressed my language concerns (I am an English-speaker who recently moved to a French-speaking part of the country), and even looked at my listed address to mention her own concern that my commute would be very long. My address was in tiny fine print font. I nearly fell off my chair when I realized that cover letters were actually read. 

So yeah, be careful about those "lies".


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## seaport

My sister was hired last summer at a retail store (at 23) and she had zero experience. She said that she added any experience (working in school groups, volunteer experience, school projects) that she could to her resume. She also looked up common interview questions and prepared responses (and used the STAR format to frame them) ahead of time. When she did the interview, she said that having questions for the interviewer made her stand out. Her reference was her old voice teacher. -- I know that she did A LOT of research (on how to make your resume effective, on the Taleo system, on how to dress for the interview [depending on the store], company websites, etc.) -- Its kind of mind boggling that you have to do so much for a minimum wage job but there it is. I'm starting job hunting soon myself (and I also have 0 experience and am pretty old to be starting out), hopefully we'll do okay 

Oh, my sister also tailored her skill set (on her resume) to the position she was applying to. So, for example, if you have volunteer experience, you might want to highlight tasks/skills that can apply or be transferred to the position you're going after.


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## TheaterofHope

Rich91 said:


> whats the point, they'll find out and nobody wants to hire a liar.


Let me amend this.

Dont lie, but explode exaggeration in your past experiences.

Make your crappy past volunteering/work experience sound like a work experience God might have given up on.

It helps.


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## twitchy666

All the posts make me feel better by not being alone in this. 

Stuck between office / non-office job choice expecting deemed unworthy between critical long-term experience and straight obvious ability and willingness


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## Darkness Evanescent

I'm having trouble with all of this job hunting with no experience myself, and have only had one job several years ago that lasted two months. I'm starting to think of volunteering somewhere.


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## DeniseAfterAll

Like this :


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## illage2

I think most people are in the same boat. You could try voulenteering, or better yet take any and every opporunity you get.


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## Jammer25

I'm in a weird situation. 

I have an MBA but have only had one career-type job, which I currently work at part-time. I don't have the work experience to match my education, and at the same time employers might think it strange why an MBA is willing to work a borderline entry-level job.

But hey, with this economy I would be willing to start at the bottom and work my way up.


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## illage2

twilightmoon said:


> Does it usually matter what *type* of volunteer work you have as experience in order for a future employee to consider you? Like, what if the volunteer work has absolutely nothing to do with the job you are applying for? Example: Working at an animal rescue organization, but applying for a retail job?


No it doesn't and shouldn't matter at all. As long as they see you've done something will likely sell yourself a lot more. Voulteering also shows dedication.


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## Juschill

if your apply online make a a very good cover letter describing why you would be good for the job and school history. i always made sure to make my cover letter awesome.


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## Bubblestar

Jammer25 said:


> I'm in a weird situation.
> 
> I have an MBA but have only had one career-type job, which I currently work at part-time. I don't have the work experience to match my education, and at the same time employers might think it strange why an MBA is willing to work a borderline entry-level job.
> 
> But hey, with this economy I would be willing to start at the bottom and work my way up.


Congrats for the MBA! I'm sure it shouldn't matter if you have can provide a valid explanation. I know someone with a degree in Architecture who had little to know jobs before becoming a housewife - and then got a job in a call centre with lots of bonuses available for good workers.


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## Jammer25

Bubblestar said:


> Congrats for the MBA! I'm sure it shouldn't matter if you have can provide a valid explanation. I know someone with a degree in Architecture who had little to know jobs before becoming a housewife - and then got a job in a call centre with lots of bonuses available for good workers.


Thanks for the reply! :yes

I think I'm still partly stuck in this mentality that I need to hold out for a certain job or position, given my education. But in reality, I've been feeling more and more open to just starting anywhere, even if it's temp so I can prove myself and get hired on full-time. I've been reading up on how a lot of MBAs are going that route these days, so that's given me some hope as well.


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## AxeDroid

My first job was through a staffing agency. After that, the small work exp/work history landed me my second job.


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## DeniseAfterAll

I've volunteered at 3 different places for 2 years , worked at dirty and humiliating jobs in construction with employment agencies .. got fired .

After that , I went on with my usual job search .. ... getting an average of 1-2 calls and/or job interviews every week . I still didn't get hired .

I did everything that I could .. changed my CV multiple times .. exaggerated my positive attributes .. always went to my interviews in a good mood .

People that I talked to in bars and clubs were absolutely baffled whenever I mentioned that I worked in construction .. so it couldn't possibly have been the fact that I was Ugly and Creepy .

I still , however .. managed to find a job . My parents went ahead and hired me for their new fast food business .. and I'll be working full time from the 13th of October on .

So my advice is : Be the lucky child of a business owner , and get your parents to employ you .

Otherwise .. good luck , keep rolling the dice .. and may god have mercy on your soul .

p.s.

**** capitalism

Yours Sincerely,
Dirty Commie


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## dayumro

I'm in that "21 and no job experience" position too! Well I've technically had 2 jobs, but can't mention them because I worked for a day at one and a week and a half at the other. My anxiety had me messing up basic instructions and I was a mess at the register so I quit before they could fire me lol I'll probably have to start somewhere at the bottom so I'm not crossing out lying on the application/resume. There are plenty of minimum wage jobs that won't go out of their way to check references. When I was in high school, everyone just put a friend as their reference. Right now, I'm just trying to bring up my people skills and look for some graveyard shift or back room/stocking job. I know if I try too much too soon (like retail or some other job with constant customer interaction), I'll end up quitting again and I feel pathetic enough as it is. Ideally, I'd try target as a flow team member or a mail sorter for USPS, but they drug test and I'm a supporter of medical marijuana. So now I'm on forums trying to get tips to beat my social anxiety, as I wait for my system to get clean. Best of luck to everyone on that job hunt!


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## smarticus

I had a really hard time finding a job right now, mostly because a lot of companies keep some of the temps they hired for Christmas. You still have a shot, but I suggest not to be picky about where you apply. Apply everywhere you possibly can. If a week or two go by and you haven't heard anything back yet, then call the companies, one by one, and "touch base" with them. Then apply to more places. It's a tough game for everybody, not just for those new to the working world. 

And you can definitely use the families you've babysat for and group activities as references and experience on your resume/application. Good luck!


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