How Your Teen (Aged 14 to 16) Can Write a Standout CV Without Job Experience

In this post from our nimbl collaboration series, we’re turning our attention to teens aged 14 to 16 who want to start preparing for future jobs.

Many teenagers at this age are ready to earn money, but they often lack formal work experience. That’s where a first CV (curriculum vitae) and a few clever volunteering opportunities can make all the difference.

Here’s how to help them build confidence, gain experience, and create a CV that gives them a head start.

Does a Teenager Really Need a CV?

Yes, especially if they want to apply for part-time work, first jobs, weekend jobs or even college placements.

Now that might sound a bit weird, after all, how does someone who hasn't actually had a job before fill out a CV for potential employers? Surely they have nothing to say?

Having a simple CV shows that your teen is serious, organised, and ready to take responsibility. Even if they haven’t had a paid job, they’ve likely got more experience than they think.

It also helps them stand out from the crowd, even school leavers can write a meaningful CV by focusing on transferable skills, volunteering and achievements. Employers want to see enthusiasm, not just experience.

Creating a CV early also gives them a chance to reflect on their strengths and consider what areas they might want to improve, a helpful step in becoming work-ready.

These strengths are known as soft skills, and they are personal qualities that enable individuals to work effectively with others and adapt to various situations. Examples include communication, teamwork, timekeeping, and problem-solving. These are the types of skills employers value most, especially in young people.

What Should a Teenager Put on a CV?

Here’s what a good first CV might include:

Name and contact information

Always include a professional email address! This is often the first impression an employer gets. I've employed many people before, and I've seen some email addresses that've immediately resulted in the application not being taken further. So, consider whether that email address truly portrays the applicant in a positive light. A Hotmail or Gmail type address is fine, but make the address relevant, eg, fred.bloggs@hotmail.com, rather than using a less relevant email address such as freddyb.lovesspongebob14758@hotmail.com!  It makes sense to set up a new email address specifically for sending and receiving job-related emails. Also, double-check that the contact details are spelt correctly, and ensure that any phone number is accurate, and that their answer machine greeting is professional. Employers often call during school hours, as that's when they work, and they'll likely get the answering machine. So, it helps if the greeting sounds polite and to the point. I've heard some terrible messages in my time!  Similarly, some employers use social media to gauge a person's true character. Potential employers can legally review any publicly visible content on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or LinkedIn to understand the candidate's character. They may check to see if a candidate presents themselves responsibly or to spot red flags, such as offensive language, bullying, or discriminatory comments. Therefore, it's a good idea to conduct a 'quality check' on their personal profile page on their social media accounts!  The employer may be recruiting for a low-level part-time job, but they often receive a large number of applications, and they will only offer work to those individuals they believe will be an asset to their business. They'll use all means at their disposal to vet the applicant; recruiting and training are expensive, so they don't want to recruit and then find out the applicant wasn't what they appeared to be.  

Short personal statement

Two or three lines about their attitude, interests, and what they’re looking for. Keep it confident but not boastful. e.g. “I’m a reliable and friendly 15-year-old student looking for part-time weekend work. I enjoy working with people and want to gain experience in customer service.”

Education details

Include school name, year group, GCSE subjects (if applicable), and predicted grades. This helps employers understand their current commitments.

Skills

This is where teens can shine without work experience. Skills such as teamwork, time management, creativity, communication, and digital literacy all count. For example:

• Communication: Helped lead a school debate team

• Digital skills: Created social media posts for a school event using Canva.

• Interpersonal skills, which are the abilities we use to get along and communicate well with others, are exactly what a hiring manager will be looking for. For teens, this might include:
  

• Listening carefully during group work

• Being polite and respectful to adults

• Sharing ideas clearly and confidently

• Understanding how to work with different personalities

• Resolving disagreements calmly

• These skills are essential because almost every job, from retail shops to offices, involves interacting with people. Even without job experience, teens often develop strong interpersonal skills through school, clubs, or family life. They’re a great addition to a first CV, and may well help the applicant get a job interview.
  

  Experience

  The work experience section can be challenging to complete if you haven't had prior work experience, so think outside the box. Babysitting, helping at a family shop, volunteering at a local event or sports club, it all counts, as it shows you've been trusted to perform that task, and that's half the battle, proving to someone that's never met you, that you are trustworthy enough to turn up, do the job and be a responsible member of the team!
  

• Bullet points should highlight what they did and what they learned. This not only shows the activity itself, but also the value of the experience. For example, instead of simply saying "Helped at school bake sale," they could write:
  

• Organised pricing and labelled items, which helped improve my attention to detail

• Worked on the till and gave change to customers, gaining confidence with money handling

• Welcomed visitors and promoted the stall, building communication and customer service skills
  

By adding a brief note on what they learned, each point demonstrates growth and makes the CV feel stronger, becoming more purposeful and impressive, even without a traditional job. 

Hobbies and interests

• Especially those that demonstrate commitment, creativity or leadership, such as playing for a football team, acting in school plays, writing, coding, or running a YouTube channel.
  

  Why it matters: Employers understand that teenagers might not have formal work experience yet. By listing hobbies that involve teamwork, dedication, or self-motivation, your teen can demonstrate the kind of traits employers look for: reliability, passion, and the ability to persevere. For example:
  

  • Playing for a football team shows teamwork, discipline, and punctuality

  • Taking part in school theatre shows confidence, memory, and public speaking

  • Writing regularly builds focus and creativity

  • Coding demonstrates logic, problem-solving, and self-teaching

  • Running a YouTube channel shows initiative, content planning, editing, and communication skills
    

These hobbies often reveal a teen's strengths and potential most clearly, and they help employers gain insight into their personality and drive beyond grades or experience.

References available on request​

This is a standard line to include on a CV, especially for teens who may not have built up formal contacts yet. It shows that you're prepared to provide a reference if asked, without taking up space listing people unnecessarily.

If a potential employer does ask for references, suitable examples could include:

• A teacher or form tutor who knows your teen well

• A sports coach, music tutor, or club leader

• A neighbour or family friend your teen has babysat for or helped regularly

• A supervisor from a volunteering role (e.g. charity shop, school event)

• Make sure the person you list knows they might be contacted, and is happy to say something positive about your teen’s attitude, reliability and behaviour. Employers are typically looking for someone who can vouch for their character and basic soft skills, rather than a lengthy work history.

  
  

Encourage your teen to keep their CV clean, well-formatted and no longer than one page. A cluttered CV will be overlooked.

Where Can a Teen Gain Experience Before Getting a Job?

Your child doesn’t need a formal job to start building their CV. These options work just as well:

Volunteer in the community

• Local charity shops often accept volunteers aged 14+. Volunteer work, although unpaid, is valued by employers as real-life experience and demonstrates a willingness to work hard, even without financial reward. 
  

• Animal shelters, community gardens or food banks may offer short-term opportunities.
  

• Look for schemes like the Duke of Edinburgh Award, which includes volunteering as a core section, offering a wide range of valuable skills and relevant experience that can be a first step towards demonstrating to a potential employer that you possess transferable skills.

  
  

  

Why it matters: Volunteering demonstrates initiative, commitment, and a willingness to learn, qualities that employers value.

Join school committees or clubs

• Drama, debate, Eco-Schools or student council.

• These build skills in leadership, planning and public speaking.
  

Why it matters: Involvement in school activities demonstrates teamwork and time management. It also shows your teen cares about their community and has a strong work ethic.

Help out at events

• Local fun runs, community events, fairs, or fetes often need volunteers. Even selling programmes at a local amateur theatre show is good experience! 

• Teens can assist with setting up, stewarding or handing out flyers
  

Why it matters: These roles can be included under ‘experience’ and show practical ability and community spirit.

Look after younger children

• Babysitting for friends or neighbours

• Helping siblings with homework

• These show maturity and responsibility
  

These activities show maturity, patience and a high level of trust. They also demonstrate that your teen can follow instructions, handle responsibility, and deal with real-world challenges, qualities that employers value in any role.

Why it matters: Informal caregiving is a strong indicator of dependability. If someone is trusted to look after children, it suggests they’re capable of managing tasks independently and behaving responsibly, both essential traits in any job. It also helps develop crucial soft skills, such as communication, time management, and problem-solving, in a practical setting.

Create their own mini-project

• Organise a charity event at school, such as a non-uniform day or sponsored walk, to raise money for a local cause.

• Highlight a school project that they were heavily involved in and talk about their role, and how it went.

• Start a small business offering revision help or tutoring for younger pupils in subjects they enjoy

• Build a personal website or blog to share reviews, creative writing, or photography to show initiative and digital skills

• Create a YouTube or TikTok series offering how-to guides on a personal hobby like cooking, drawing, or tech tips (with supervision)
  

Why it matters: Personal projects show self-motivation, relevant skills, creativity and independence. These are often overlooked but can stand out as relevant work experience or hands-on experience.

Forums often share real-life CVs from teens, where candidates list skills such as coding, blog writing, content creation, or even moderating online communities. These count as valuable digital skills, especially in marketing or media jobs, but even if you're applying to work in a supermarket, a role that likely has zero likelihood of you performing the same tasks, any experience you can show a potential employer, can help build up a track record of organisational skills and a 'can do' attitude, which goes a long way in an employers eyes! 

These activities might not come with a payslip, but they absolutely count as experience and can, and should be described on a CV.

Ask others to check and provide feedback on the CV.

Once their CV is ready, encourage them to:

• Ask a teacher or another parent, family member, or check it for spelling or formatting.

• If you know someone who works in recruitment or is a business owner, ask them to give it a quick once-over to see if they can identify anything that they think could be changed, removed, or added. 

• Save the CV as a PDF so that it can be quickly emailed to employers. 

• Update it regularly as they gain more experience; it's easy to forget things they've done when a need arises to update the CV, so update it as things happen or change.

• Use it when applying for part-time jobs or summer roles.
  

Even if they’re volunteering or helping family friends, tracking and reflecting on these small wins will help them build confidence and learn to present themselves professionally.

Regularly reviewing their CV helps them track their progress, keeps it up to date when a new opportunity arises, and allows future employers to see more relevant information. 

How nimbl Can Help Build Money Confidence

Even without a formal wage, teens can use nimbl to practise managing any income they do get, from pocket money, selling things online, or doing chores.

With nimbl, they can:

• Track savings towards a laptop, phone or new clothes

• Set spending limits for online purchases

• Get used to using a debit card in shops

• See a record of how and where they spend
  

Why it matters: Developing money management skills early helps teens avoid impulse spending and builds healthy financial habits for life.

And once they get a part-time job, nimbl becomes even more useful:

• They can split wages into savings and spending pots automatically

• Set goals for short-term rewards (like new trainers) and long-term goals (like driving lessons)

• Learn to check their balance before buying something, helping avoid going over budget

• Understand income and outgoings through real-world experience
  

Getting paid is one thing. Knowing how to manage that money is a whole other skill, and one that can take years to master without help. Tools like nimbl help teens start that learning early, in a safe and simple way, and make handling their money once they have a job easier and less likely to go wrong.

This is a collaborative post in conjunction with nimbl, the pocket money card and app for children 6-18