A CV for work experience introduces you to a placement provider when you may not have had a paid job. Explain what you are studying, what interests you about the placement and what you have already done that demonstrates useful habits.
This guide focuses on a first school or college placement. If you are updating the employment history on an established CV, use the work history guidance instead.
Student work experience CV example
This is a fictional example for learning. The school, activities and details are placeholders; replace them with your own facts.
[YOUR NAME]
[Town or city] | [Appropriate contact phone] | [Professional email]
PROFILE
Year 10 student interested in a work experience placement in an office
or community organisation. Enjoy researching information and presenting
it clearly. Through a school group project, practised sharing tasks,
checking sources and meeting a deadline. Available [agreed placement dates].
EDUCATION
[School name] | [Dates]
Studying: [Your actual subjects]
Relevant interests: [One or two subjects linked to this placement]
[Include predicted grades only if provided by your school and relevant;
label them clearly as predicted.]
PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES
School local-history project | [Term and year]
• Researched information from the sources agreed with our teacher.
• Wrote a short section of the group presentation and checked the dates.
• Rehearsed with the group and updated the slides after feedback.
School event volunteering | [Month and year]
• Helped set up signs and materials using the organiser's instructions.
• Welcomed visitors and directed questions to a member of staff.
SKILLS
• Written communication: produced a clear summary for a school project.
• Teamwork: agreed tasks and shared progress with the group.
• Digital skills: used [software you can actually use] for [specific task].
INTERESTS
[An interest you can explain, especially if relevant to the placement]
The example does not invent a job history. It gives the employer evidence of how the student works and what they want to learn. You can use an editable CV template and rename its employment section to “Projects and activities”.
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What goes on a first-placement CV?
Start with these six sections:
- Contact details: your name, town or city and suitable contact details.
- Short profile: your current studies, placement interest and relevant evidence.
- Education: your school or college, subjects and qualifications accurately labelled.
- Projects, activities or volunteering: things you have actually done.
- Skills with examples: a small selection relevant to the placement.
- Interests: optional, particularly where they explain your interest in the work.
One readable page is usually enough for a first draft. You do not need to fill it with claims such as “highly experienced professional” or a long list of personal qualities.
For a school-arranged placement, follow your school's process for contact details and submission. Do not include identity documents or private information about classmates. Ask before sharing someone else's contact details as a referee.
Write a profile that fits the placement
Use three ideas: what you are doing now, why this placement interests you and one piece of relevant evidence.
Fictional office-placement profile:
College student studying business and seeking a placement to learn how an office team handles enquiries and organises information. Used spreadsheets to compare costs in a class project and presented the findings to the group. Interested in observing administrative work and helping with suitable tasks under supervision.
Fictional creative-placement profile:
School student interested in design and a placement with a creative team. Developed a poster for a school activity, revised the layout after feedback and prepared the final file for printing. Keen to learn how designers turn a brief into finished work.
Neither example claims professional expertise. For more starting points, see student CV summary examples.
Find evidence when you have no paid work
Make a list before writing full sentences. School projects, clubs, volunteering, hobbies and responsibilities may all provide evidence. Choose examples you are comfortable discussing.
| Activity | Useful evidence | Avoid claiming |
|---|---|---|
| Group presentation | Research, agreed tasks, revisions after feedback | Managing a professional team |
| School event | Preparing materials, following instructions, helping visitors | Running the entire event unless you did |
| Personal coding or design project | What you made, tools used and changes you tested | Commercial client work that did not happen |
| Sports or music group | Practice, preparation and working with others | Unsupported leadership or performance statistics |
A useful bullet follows action + task + detail. For example: “Checked the dates in our history presentation against the agreed sources and corrected two slides before submitting it.” Use the number only if it is true; a precise action works without a metric.
Tailor the CV for each placement
Read the organisation's description and any placement instructions. Select two or three relevant examples, then adjust your profile and order of sections. You do not need a completely new life story for each application.
For an office placement, organisation and clear writing may be useful. For a workshop placement, an example of following instructions and checking your work may be more relevant. For a creative placement, link to an appropriate project only if it is yours and you are comfortable sharing it publicly.
State your agreed placement dates where requested. Check eligibility, location and application instructions with the provider or your school. A CV does not replace any required placement arrangements or application form.
Format and send it clearly
Use clear headings, ordinary text and enough space between sections. Keep dates consistent. Export to the format requested by the provider; if none is specified, check what they accept. Open the final file and confirm that text is readable and links work.
Use a sensible filename such as FirstName-LastName-Work-Experience-CV.pdf. When emailing, briefly introduce yourself, name the placement you are asking about and mention the attached CV. Follow your school's arrangements where applicable.
Before you submit
- Is the placement interest clear in the opening paragraph?
- Are all qualifications and predicted grades labelled accurately?
- Can you explain each project and your own contribution?
- Have you removed invented job titles and exaggerated skills?
- Are dates and contact details correct?
- Does the exported document fit comfortably on the page?
- Have you followed the provider's and school's instructions?
Common questions
Do I need a work experience section if I have never had a job?
No. Use “Projects and activities” or “Volunteering” when those headings accurately describe your experience. Do not create an empty employment section or invent work.
Should I list every school subject?
You can list your subjects briefly, then give more space to those relevant to the placement. Keep achieved qualifications separate from subjects you are still studying.
Can I use the same CV for different placements?
Keep a factual master copy, then tailor the profile and evidence order for each application. If you are short on time, follow the 15, 30 and 60-minute CV plans.
Can CV Anywhere help me build it?
You can use CV Anywhere to organise your own information into a CV. Check the current plan allowances, and review any suggested text so it does not add experience or qualifications you do not have.