What's the Best Resume Format for Freshers in 2024?

What Is a Fresher Resume?

A fresher resume, also known as a freshman resume in the US, is a resume for a first-year university student.

Typically, fresher resumes have limited work experience, if any at all. They tend to focus on academic or extracurricular achievements and transferable skills gained from school projects or volunteer work.

Fresher students are usually looking for one of two types of opportunities: part-time jobs to support themselves during their studies or internships to gain experience in their chosen field.

So, these resumes need to highlight the student's potential, enthusiasm, and willingness to learn, instead of an extensive work history.

In this article, we're going to focus on fresher resumes for students looking to find a part-time job while they're studying. If you're interested in landing an internship related to your chosen field instead, check out our corresponding article for a guide to that.

Fresher Resume Example

The resume above is an excellent example of what a fresher resume should look like.

Let's look at what it does right:

• Uses a professional design. The resume maintains a simple, easy-to-read look that's appropriate for any type of job application.
• Sticks to the reverse-chronological resume format. This format highlights your most recent work experience and achievements first, which makes it a favorite amongst hiring managers worldwide.
• Lists relevant contact details. The contact information section includes the candidate’s full name, phone number, email, and location, so the hiring manager can easily contact them.
• Includes a resume headline. At the top of this resume, there is a resume headline that captures who the candidate is, along with their experience and key skills, at a glance.
• Highlights transferable skills. The resume emphasizes both hard and soft skills that are relevant to the position, such as cash handling, customer service, and teamwork.
• Showcases relevant experiences. Despite the candidate's inexperience, this resume effectively presents their previous work experience and extracurricular activities in a way that shows they’re the right fit for the job.
• Includes education details. The education section isn’t too detailed since the candidate has enough non-academic experience to fill up their resume.
• Leverages additional sections. This resume uses up any leftover space to add sections for languages, hobbies, and interests. These can provide a well-rounded picture of what the candidate is like and what they can do, which can tip the scales in their favor for some employers.

9 Steps Toward a Flawless Fresher Resume

You know what a great fresher resume looks like. Now, it’s your turn to make one.

Just follow these steps and you’ll be done in no time:

#1. Choose the Best Format

How you organize your resume affects how the hiring manager sees you.

So, start by choosing a resume format.

There are three main types of resume formats:

• Reverse-chronological (also known as chronological)
• Functional (also known as skill-based)
• Combination (which mixes elements from both of the above)

For your fresher resume, we suggest using the reverse-chronological format. It's the most popular with employers worldwide!

In fact, that’s the format hiring managers expect to see. It puts your most recent experiences and achievements first, so it helps employers quickly get an idea about what you've done so far and what your top skills are.

Here’s what the reverse-chronological resume format looks like in action:

#2. Adjust the Layout

You know you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but you can’t help it - if the cover looks interesting, you’re more likely to pick up the book and see what it’s about.

Your resume’s layout works the same way. It determines if your resume is eye-catching and easy for the hiring manager to read.

Think about it – if your resume looks messy or cluttered, the hiring manager might not want to read it at all.

So, your goal is to make your fresher resume as visually appealing and readable as possible through the layout.

Here's how:

• Set appropriate margins. Use one-inch margins on all sides. This gives your resume a clean, balanced look without wasting space.
• Adjust the line spacing. Ideally, the line spacing should be 1.0 between text and 1.15 after subheadings. Make sure to keep it consistent throughout your entire resume.
• Choose a good font. Use a professional, easy-to-read font. We recommend choosing a classy but not overused font, something like Lora, Ubuntu, or Roboto.
• Keep it simple. As a fresher, you should focus on a clean, straightforward design. Avoid excessive colors or too many graphics that might overshadow the contents of your resume.
• Use the right file format. Save your resume as a PDF unless the job listing specifies otherwise. This ensures your layout remains consistent across different devices.

Or Just Use a Professional Resume Builder

Creating your fresher resume from scratch can be challenging.

You must adjust the margins, choose an appropriate font, figure out your resume’s design, and ensure everything fits on one page.

Luckily, there's a shortcut that can make things much easier for you.

Just use one of our professionally designed resume templates!

Each of our templates is made in collaboration with leading HR managers from around the world, which means your resume will meet industry standards and look stylish too.

Here's how a professional template might compare to a basic text editor  document:

#3. Include Relevant Contact Information

Now that you've sorted out how your resume looks, it's time to start filling in its contents. The first and easiest section to write is your contact information.

Here’s what this section should include:

• Full Name. (E.g. Daniel Lawson)
• Title. As a fresher, you can use a title like "University Student", "First-Year Economics Student" or the job title you’re applying for. (E.g. Cashier)
• Phone Number. Be sure to include the dial code in front of your phone number if you’re applying for a job abroad and double-check for any typos.
• Email Address. Use a professional email address instead of something quirky you made as a teenager. (E.g. daniel.lawson@novoresume.com, not danielthepartyman@hotmail.com)
• Location. Your city and country are usually enough, so don’t add a full postal address.

The most important thing you should remember about this section of your resume is that information needs to be factually correct.

This means that you have to proofread everything carefully for any typos, especially when it comes to your email address or phone number. It won’t matter how great the rest of your resume is if the hiring manager can’t contact you because a single letter or number is out of place.

Let’s look at some examples:

#4. Add a Resume Headline (Summary or Objective)

On average, you have less than six seconds to impress a hiring manager.

That’s because hiring managers go over hundreds of resumes every day, so they only spend a few seconds on each before deciding if the candidate is worth reading about.

If you want your resume to make the cut, you have to give them something worthwhile right off the bat.

This is where your resume headline comes in.

You should always include a brief paragraph at the top of your resume that lets the hiring manager know what they can expect from the rest of your resume.

Depending on how experienced you are, your resume headline can be:

• A resume summary. The resume includes your amount of experience in the field, most impressive skills, and any standout achievements. We recommend using this if you have previous work experience.
• A resume objective. Includes your career goals, relevant skills, and enthusiasm for the role. Use this if you don’t have any work experience yet.

Here are two examples:

That’s a pretty good resume summary! It includes all the details that can sway a hiring manager to read more of the applicant’s resume, like their experience with customer service.

Now, let’s see how a resume objective looks:

Even without work experience to back them up, this candidate wrote a great resume objective.

#5. Emphasize Any Work Experience

The bulk of any resume is the work experience section.

Even if it’s limited, it’s still a crucial part of your resume. It shows potential employers what skills you've developed and how you've applied them.

So, here's how to format this section:

• Use reverse chronological order. List your most recent experiences first and work your way back to older ones.
• Be honest about your role. If you were a "Volunteer," don't call yourself a "Team Leader" unless that was your actual role.
• Provide organization details. Include the name and location of the organization. You can also briefly describe what it is if you think it’s necessary. (E.g. “XYZ Org is a youth organization dedicated to teaching schools First Aid and emergency response techniques.”)
• Mention the period. Use the mm/yyyy format consistently throughout your resume.
• List responsibilities and achievements. Describe what you did in your role. Use five to six bullet points for your most recent experiences, and three to four for older ones.

Those are the basics.

But if you want to make your resume really stand out, here’s how:

• Tailor your work experience. Emphasize aspects of your previous experience that relate more to the job you're applying for. For example, if you're applying for a retail job, highlight your customer service skills from your volunteer work.
• Focus on achievements. Instead of just listing what you did, try to show what you accomplished while you were there. This proves you can add value to the team and it makes a much better impression on the hiring manager.
• Use specific examples. When it comes to achievements, try to quantify them where possible. For example, "Organized a school event for 200 students" is a lot more impactful than "Helped organize school events."
• Use action verbs. Avoid passive or cliche language. Instead of talking about how you “helped” with something, start each bullet point with a strong verb like "coordinated,” or "created" to show initiative.

Here’s an example of how this can look on your resume:

What if I Don't Have Work Experience?

As a fresher, there’s a chance you’re looking for your first job.

This means since you don’t have any work experience, you might not know what to do with this section. After all, isn’t it supposed to be the focal point of your resume?

Thankfully, there’s no need to worry!

Employers understand that students can’t have extensive work experience fresh out of high school.

All you have to do is focus on filling up your resume with any relevant or interesting experiences other than work. These can include:

• School projects
• Volunteer work
• Extracurricular activities
• Personal projects
• Academic achievements
• Relevant coursework

For example, if you organized a school event or led a group project, that can demonstrate valuable skills like leadership, organization, and teamwork.

Let’s look at an example of how you could format something like that on your resume:

#6. List Your Relevant Skills

Next, it’s time to list your most important skills.

This is one of the most important sections on your fresher resume because it tells potential employers what you can do and how quickly you might adapt to the job.

But that doesn’t mean you should just list every skill you can think of. Instead, your skills section should be tailored precisely to the job you're applying for.

For example, if you're applying for a retail position at a clothing store, your customer service skills are way more important than your computer skills or knowledge of video games.

Here are some tips on how to list your skills properly:

• Highlight what the employer wants. Carefully read the job description and identify the required skills. Then, include the ones that apply to you in your resume.
• Research in-demand skills for the position. Look at similar job ads to see what skills are commonly required for this type of position and include ones you have.
• Separate your soft and hard skills. This makes it easier for hiring managers to quickly find what they're looking for. Soft skills might include communication or teamwork, while hard skills could be specific software knowledge or language proficiency.
• Be honest. Only list skills you actually have. It's better to have a few genuine skills than to exaggerate and risk being caught out in an interview.

Keep in mind that, as a fresher, you probably have a lot to learn before you can show off too many impressive hard skills. In that case, it’s fine to focus more on soft skills or keep both types of skills listed together.

#7. Expand on Your Education

Your education is likely one of your strongest assets as a fresher.

So, while we usually advise experienced professionals to keep their education section short and sweet, you can be more detailed.

Here's what to include here:

• Degree Name. The degree type and your major's name should be on top. (E.g. “BA in Economics”)
• University Name. Include the full name of your institution. (E.g. “St. Mary’s University”)
• Location. The city and country are usually enough information. (E.g. “London, UK”)
• Period Attended. Include your start date and, optionally, your expected graduation date. You can stick to the mm/yyyy format for consistency, or even just use the year.
• Relevant Coursework. If you've taken any courses pertinent to the job, you can list them.

Make sure to include your secondary school education right after you add the degree you’re currently pursuing.

Here's an example of how your education section might look:

#8. Include Optional Sections

By the time you get here, you might be thinking, “Is that it? My resume still looks empty!”

Don’t worry! This is where the optional resume sections can come in.

These sections aren’t near as crucial as the main sections we already discussed but, used right, they can help you stand out.

Some sections you might consider include:

• Academic Achievements. High grades in relevant subjects, academic competitions you've won, or any scholarships you've received are worth mentioning.
• Relevant Coursework. If you've taken any classes that are particularly relevant to the job you're applying for, you can dedicate a separate section to them.
• Volunteer Work. Any volunteering you've done shows initiative and community spirit, and it can prove employers you can work as part of a team.
• Languages. If you speak multiple languages, this can be a valuable asset in different customer service roles.
• Extracurricular Activities. Involvement in clubs, sports teams, or student organizations can show leadership or time management skills.
• Hobbies and Interests. Some employers like to see this to get a sense of your personality and appreciate some extra information about you. Just make sure to keep it professional and, if possible, relevant.

Let’s look at some examples:

#9. Include a Cover Letter

Sometimes, something that looks like a small detail can make a huge difference in your job search.

In this case, that detail is writing a cover letter.

Even for part-time jobs, a well-written cover letter can set you apart from other applicants. 

Writing a cover letter shows the employer that you're genuinely interested in the position, you've put effort into your application, and you're worth considering for the job even if you have limited work experience.

However, a lot of freshers struggle with writing cover letters. After all, they’re not exactly like motivational letters, which you likely had to write to get into university.

Thankfully, writing a cover letter can be super easy – so long as you have the right approach.

Before we move on to some crucial cover letter tips, let’s look at what a great fresher cover letter looks like:

• Add your contact information. Your cover letter's header should match your resume, including your full name, phone number, and email address.
• Address the employer. Try to find out who will be reading your application. If you can't find a specific name, use a general title like "Dear Hiring Manager" or "Dear Company XYZ Team". Just don’t use something generic like “Dear Sir/Madam” or “To Whom It May Concern,” because those are too impersonal.
• Create a strong opening. In your first paragraph, mention the specific position you're applying for and briefly explain why you're interested. Depending on how it relates to the job, you might want to mention your major or any relevant skills you've developed.
• Expand on the details. Use the body of your cover letter to highlight any relevant experiences and explain how they’ve prepared you for the role. Show enthusiasm for the company and focus on your eagerness to learn and contribute to the team.
• End your cover letter effectively. Conclude by reiterating your interest in the position and your enthusiasm to contribute to the company. Include a call to action and a formal closing line, like "Sincerely" or "Best regards," followed by your full name.

FAQs on Fresher Resumes

Still wondering something about fresher resumes? Check out the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions below.

Key Takeaways

You’ve made it to the end of our article!

By now, we’re confident you can write a great fresher resume.

But before you go, let’s quickly recap what we’ve learned so far:

• Choose a clean, professional resume template to make a good first impression without worrying about the layout.
• Write a concise resume objective that showcases your enthusiasm, relevant skills, and career goals, so the hiring manager can see what you offer at a glance.
• If you don’t have any work experience, highlight achievements from your studies, extracurricular activities, or volunteer work.
• Always tailor your skills section to match the job description, and include both hard and soft skills.
• Use optional sections to fill up space on your resume. Categories like “Academic Achievements” or “Hobbies and Interests” are a great choice because they let you paint a more comprehensive picture of yourself as a candidate.
• Include a well-written cover letter to complement your resume, explaining your interest in the position and how your unique experiences make you a good fit.