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How to write CV work experience - with tips and examples

10 min read · Updated on January 12, 2024

Elizabeth Openshaw

Learn how to meticulously showcase your professional journey to impress employers

Documenting work experience on your CV, to showcase your talents to prospective employers, is no mean feat - especially when you only have two pages to play with.

But have no fear.

In this article, you'll learn what actually qualifies as work experience - and then you can follow our step-by-step approach to crafting the work experience section of your CV, complete with examples as well as an easy-to-use template.

What is CV work experience?

First things first. It's a good idea to know exactly what constitutes work experience when talking about CVs. It's any time spent in a work environment, in any sector or industry, where you gain first-hand skills from working on the job. Most people acquire work experience via their own professional experience , i.e. formal employment. However, volunteering, internships, and work shadowing all count as well in these circumstances.

Types of CV work experience

In addition to professional employment, there are eight other forms of work experience, believe it or not, that you can add to your CV. They are:

School work experience placements

Coursework placements

Work shadowing

Internships

Sandwich university courses

Insight events or open days

Employment workshops and classes

Volunteering

Why is work experience important on a CV?

Employers need to understand what your experiences have been in a work setting in order to gauge what your professional capabilities are. They're looking to see if you have any experience related to the role you're applying for, as this would suggest that you have the right skill set with which to do the job. 

If your previous work experience is directly related to the role you're applying for, you can show off your hard skills and achievements on your CV. You can also showcase any soft skills or transferable skills, which are extremely valuable in all forms of employment, regardless of the job title or industry.

How to write CV work experience

It's all very well having work experience of some form, but it's how you present it on your CV that counts. Writing it incorrectly or badly is equal to not having any at all.

So, here's a step-by-step approach to collating, organising, and writing work experience on your CV so that it looks professional and ensures you're seen by the right people.

Document your employment history

Regardless of whether you've had zero formal jobs or 10, it's best to start by collating all work experiences that could contribute towards a comprehensive employment history. Start with your most recent position and work backwards through your experiences documenting:

Company name

Dates of employment (include the month and year if you can)

A short summary of the role

An overview of your key responsibilities

A handful of your accomplishments and successes

Reversing the timeline of an employment history will be a straightforward exercise for most people, but if you're in a position where you've had little or no work experience - for example, you're a recent graduate or returning to work after a long time away from the job market - it can be tricky to select what's appropriate. 

To combat this, reflect on the experiences from your education or hobbies that demonstrate your professional growth and capabilities. This can be when you headed up a group project at university to show leadership traits, or the time you dealt with a sticky situation during a volunteering role, showcasing your amazing problem resolution attributes .

With regards to including the month and date for each job role you've had, if you have any gaps that you don't want to draw attention to, it's perfectly acceptable to just put the years. This makes your experience seem more consistent, especially if you can put concurrent years throughout.

Additionally, if you've had any jobs that have no relevance whatsoever to the position you're applying for, it's fine to leave them off. If you do this, however, you must be prepared to face any questions in an interview as to why you've left them off, especially if it creates a huge gap in the work experience on your CV.

Select what to include in your work experience section

Once you have a list of all of your work experience, make a shortlist to include on your CV. 

If you've been in professional employment for a number of years, it's likely that you'll plump for a traditional CV format , which lists your work experience in reverse chronological order.

Top tip: Only include the last 10 to 15 years of work experience, or your last five to six positions within this timeframe, to keep your CV hyper-relevant to the prospective employer. 

However, if work experience is thin on the ground, you can opt for a functional CV format instead, which is designed to highlight skills and competencies instead of job titles and experiences. Read through the job description and write out the skills that you have which are essential to the job, to be included in your functional CV. Then prove that you have these skills. It's all about the show, not just the tell, on a CV.

Tailor and format each work experience for the role

Now that you have a draft version of your work experience section, take the time to tailor and polish it. 

Start the section with a clear heading, like “Work Experience,” “Employment History,” or “Professional Experience.” Then include a subheading for each role, including:

Dates of employment (month and year)

Using the short summary and responsibilities that you listed during the planning phase, concisely describe the remit of your role in two to three sentences. This is so the prospective employer gets a flavour of the scope and level of your role.

Under this, bullet point between three and six key achievements and accomplishments that demonstrate your value. Customising your CV to the role as much as possible will alert a prospective employer to the fact that you've taken the time and effort to really think about how your skills match the job description, and they'll be able to distinctly see how your talents align with their requirements. Don't forget to bolster each point with numbers and statistics to add tangible weight to your claims. Figures tend to really pop off the page, catching the eye of anyone reading your CV, and impressing them no end!

Typically, your most recent job should contain the most detail, as it's often the highest point of your career so far and demonstrates your peak skill set. As you work your way back through your career history, you can reduce the detail.

Top tip: Make sure you leave what's most relevant from your earlier jobs, to impress any prospective employer.

Adding your work experience section to the right part of your CV

The normal structure of a CV starts with your name and contact details, followed by your personal statement, key skills, and then your work experience. It's the top half of the first page that's seen as the most important part of the document, so you want to try to incorporate your work experience in this part as much as you can.

However, if you're crafting a CV for your first job , then you ought to consider moving your education and qualifications ahead of this section, as it's likely to be a stronger representation of your abilities.

Example CV work experience section

Here's an example of a work experience section on a CV for a candidate applying for a Head of Digital Marketing role at an ecommerce store.

Career Summary

XYZ Furniture Co., London                                                                        Jan 2020 - Present

Digital Marketing Manager

Overseeing all marketing initiatives and strategies and collaborating with cross-functional teams to drive brand awareness while increasing online sales. Maximising the potential and contribution of three Marketing Specialists by using consistent messaging on performance, quality, and standards. Adopting a calm and logical approach when dealing with any problems or issues, reaching rapid and satisfactory resolutions for all concerned to maintain excellent client and staff relations.

Key Achievements

Implemented a new social media advertising camaign which resulted in a 30% increase in website traffic and a 20% rise in sales within the first quarter of 2024

Launched a targeted email marketing campaign that led to a 15% boost in customer retention and generated £100,000 in additional revenue

Revamped the company website, optimising SEO and improving the user experience, leading to a 25% increase in organic search traffic and a 10% increase in conversion rate

ABC Digital Solutions, London                                                               Jun 2017 - Dec 2019

Senior Marketing Specialist

Managed lead generation campaigns, collaborated with the sales team to drive conversions, and analysed marketing data to optimise campaign performance.

Developed and executed a content marketing strategy that increased website traffic by 40% and generated in excess of 500 new leads

Led a successful product launch campaign, resulting in £1.2 million in sales revenue and surpassing the initial sales target by 15%

Used A/B testing on landing pages, leading to a 25% improvement in click-through rates and a 10% increase in lead-to-customer conversion rates

DEF Advertising Agency, Reading                                                        Jan 2015 - May 2017

Marketing Coordinator

Collaborated with clients on marketing strategies, managed social media accounts, and coordinated promotional events.

Coordinated a successful influencer marketing campaign that reached 1 million impressions and led to a 12% increase in brand followers on social media

Assisted during the organisation of a high-profile product launch event, resulting in over 200 media mentions and a significant sales boost for the client

Implemented a customer feedback survey, gathering valuable insights that helped to optimise marketing strategies and led to a 12% improvement in customer satisfaction

Work experience CV template

Here's a simple CV template to help you to draft your work experience section.

Company, Location                                                                          date - date

Day to day explanation of the role. Sell the relevance of the role towards the customer's goal. Three or four sentences should be plenty. 

Key Contribution or Accomplishment 1 - remember to quantify wherever possible

Key Contribution or Accomplishment 2 - remember to quantify wherever possible

Key Contribution or Accomplishment 3 - remember to quantify wherever possible

The takeaway

If you've been able to absorb all of the above, you'll be well on your way to including your work experience on your CV in a clear and organised manner. So, take the time and the effort now to crack on and make a splash with your CV!

Writing work experience on a CV is not that difficult when you have the know-how. However, you only get one shot at showing a prospective employer that you're the best candidate for the job. Enlisting the help of TopCV's professional CV writers could be a surefire way to head straight to the top of the interview list. Additionally, you can check out the free review of your CV to get some insider knowledge.

This article was originally written by Laura Slingo and has been updated by Elizabeth Openshaw. 

Recommended reading:

Breaking the taboo: discussing salary expectations with your employer

10 tips for creating a successful project implementation plan

Positive vs. toxic work cultures - examples and how to improve work culture in 2024

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See how your CV stacks up.

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StandOut CV

How to write your work experience in a CV

Andrew Fennell photo

Your work experience, or career history is one of the most important parts of your CV.

It gives you the chance to showcase your skills and knowledge, whilst proving how you apply them in the workplace – a great way to win over recruiters

This guide will show you exactly how to write your work experience section in your CV, including which roles to add, how to list them, and how to structure each job.

Which jobs should be listed?

  • Where to include your work experience

How far back should a CV go?

Which order should your jobs be listed, how to structure recent jobs.

  • How to structure old jobs

CV templates 

You’re not obliged to list your entire professional history when writing a CV – How many of your jobs you include will depend on how much experience you have.

If you have many years of experience – you will benefit from listing only your most relevant work, and you can leave out jobs from your early career

If you have very little experience – you should include all of your jobs to showcase as much as your experience as possible.

Work experience CV

Paid work is going to be the most important and typically largest section of your CV, as employers will be looking for candidates who already have experience and expertise in similar work environments. Paid work should always be prioritized over academic work or voluntary work on your CV.

Voluntary work

Voluntary work is great to add to your CV, especially if you have little to no work experience or have gaps in your CV . Voluntary work demonstrates initiative and an eagerness to work, both of which are highly desirable skills in any candidate. Voluntary work can even enhance your CV when applying for certain roles: for example, if you’re applying to work in a veterinary office, having volunteer experience working in an animal shelter will demonstrate your passion for animals and boost your suitability.

School or university placements

Placements undertaken during university or school are also great additions to your CV, especially if you’re at the debut of your career or have minimal work experience. Again, the key here is to highlight the transferable skills gained during these experiences. Don’t simply list that you were chosen for the placement – explain and demonstrate why these experiences were valuable, and how they enhanced your skillset.

Where to include work experience in your CV?

If you are an experienced candidate , list your work experience at the top of your CV, just underneath the profile or core skills – because recruiters will be most interested in your experience at this level.

If you have little experience , but lots of recent education (like a graduate or school leaver ) add your experience underneath your education section – because at junior level, employers will want to see your recent and relevant qualifications before your work experience which may be less relevant to the jobs you are targeting (e.g. part-time bar jobs or paper rounds)

How far back you go on your CV is a question of experience. If you have lots of senior-level experience, you should  highlight only your most recent roles, emphasising your skills and responsibilities in these areas – omitting some of your older, less relevant work.

But, if you’re less experienced, like a school leaver or graduate,  you might want to list all of your previous jobs to show an eagerness for work and a diverse spectrum of skills and knowledge.

Ideally you should try to get as much detail as possible into 2 page of A4 .

How long CV

However, don’t forget that the purpose of your CV is to demonstrate your skills and credibility to a potential employer. If you’re applying for a role as a junior financial analyst , you don’t need to include the 6 months you spent working in an ice-cream shop when you were a student – because it is irrelevant to your target employers.

Put simply, if an old job isn’t going to add value to your candidacy or demonstrate a relevant skill, you can leave it out.

Experienced candidates

For experienced candidates, hiring managers are going to be more interested in your last 1-3 years of employment than anything else. While you can certainly list your full employment history if you wish to, experienced candidates should use the limited space on their CV (around 2 pages) wisely to elaborate on their relevant and recent roles, especially roles that are relevant to the jobs you are applying for.

Don’t forget to always tailor your CV for the job you want: this means demonstrating that you have the specific skills the employer asks for in their job description. As always, prior research is essential.

Don’t forget that recruiters often receive an excess of 100+ applications for a single role: if you want to make your CV stand out, it should be precise, easy to read, and highlight the work experience that counts. In general, a CV for an experienced candidate should be no more than two pages long, so you can always use length as an effective metric: if your CV is over 3 pages long, you’re probably listing too many old jobs.

Juniors and students

If you’re a student or a junior employee at the beginning your career, your CV should include all (or most) of your former roles, including part-time work, student work, and maybe even your first ever job. Employers like to see evidence of a strong work ethic when hiring new graduates or young people, so it’s a good idea to demonstrate an early eagerness for the world of work.

When adding retail jobs or student jobs to your CV, the key is to highlight the transferable skills you gained while working in these roles. For example , if you worked in a high-paced call centre as a student, this shows a recruiter that you’re equipped to handle the demands of working in a corporate customer service environment. Or, if your first job was working in a local supermarket and taking stock, this demonstrates that you have experience in inventory management.

When it comes to writing a CV with minimal work experience, the formula is simple: show, don’t tell. Make it clear why you’re telling the recruiter about a former job – explain what the role added to your skillset, and why it would be beneficial in the role you’re applying for.

CV builder

When adding your work experience to your CV, you should list your most recent jobs first, and the rest of your jobs in reverse chronological order – meaning from newest to oldest.

This means that the oldest job you wish to include will be last at the bottom of your CV

Order of work experience CV

Don’t forget that recruiters and hiring managers are going to be most interested in your last 1-3 years of work, so make use of the space on your CV to highlight these jobs and how you excelled in these roles.

Structuring your work experience effectively is key to grabbing the attention of recruiters, and I will explain how to do this below.

When it comes to structuring your recent jobs, you want to make it as simple as possible for the recruiter to understand your current skills, your previous responsibilities, and the value that you brought to your former company or organisation. The formula below can help you highlight your previous employment effectively.

How to structure work experience on CV

Here, you want to briefly summarize your former role: what company or individual you worked for, what your role consisted of, and to whom you were accountable. Don’t go into too much detail here – you’re going to explain more in the ‘Responsibilities’ section.

Responsibilities

In this section, you have the opportunity to demonstrate your day-to-day responsibilities while highlighting your skills and competences at the same time. You should write this section in bullet points, so that it’s easy for the recruiter to read and digest.

Within your responsibilities, hiring managers will be on the lookout for the following:

  • Who you deal with – Do you work with clients? Is your role B2B or B2C ? Who do you report to on a daily basis? Are you in charge of other employees – if so, how many?
  • Technologies and tools – Do you use Microsoft office? Are you familiar with excel and spreadsheets? Do you use coding software? You can discuss various office tools and programs that you use frequently or on a daily basis.
  • Expertise – Recruiters will be on the lookout for someone who already has in-depth knowledge of their field – you can demonstrate your knowledge and expertise by using known acronyms, phrases, and discussing trusted work methods.
  • Portfolio / Projects – The nature of your portfolio will differ depending on your job. However, if your responsibilities entail producing physical work, you should discuss these in the responsibilities section. Your portfolio can include anything from annual reports to physical products that you helped build.
  • Your work environment(s) – Employers always want to know how well a new employee will be able to integrate into a new work environment, especially if it’s stressful and high-paced. You should discuss your previous work environments – were they busy, fast-paced, non-stop, or more slow-paced and analytical.

Achievements

In this section, you want to explain the positive impact you had on your former company or organisation, and how you brought value to the table. Again, this section should be written in bullet points to give the recruiter easily digestible, memorable information.

If you can list your achievements with accompanying quantifiable figures, it’s going to make an even better impression.

Here are some ideal types of achievements to include:

Financial Achievements : For example, successfully cutting costs and overheads, winning new clients, how your input resulted in increased profits (Figures and numbers should be inserted here where possible). Increasing productivity / creating effective new work methods could also be highlighted here.

Customer success : For example, did you create a successful marketing strategy for a customer, resulting in increased sales? Did you help your customer land new clients, resulting in increased turnover? Have you received or maintained high-quality, 5-star reviews from customers online? Your customer success stories = your success stories.

Media recognition : Did you contribute to any projects recognized in the media? Did your company (with your help) win any awards in the media?

Internal recognition : Promotions, being given extra responsibilities within your organisation, winning company awards etc.

How to structure old roles

old roles

When adding old jobs onto your CV, you don’t want to go into extensive detail and take up valuable space on your CV. Most hiring managers are going to focus on the upper quarter of your CV, where you detail your core skills and your last 1-3 years of employment.

When adding an old job, simply add the length of time spent in the role (mm/yyyy-mm/yyyy) the name of your employer, your job title , and a brief outline of the role. If your old job title is self-explanatory, you don’t need to give an outline of the role – i.e., “dog walker” “checkout assistant.” As always, highlight relevant skills where possible.

Work Experience on a Resume - How to List It Right

Background Image

Imagine you’re an HR manager for a second, and someone sends in their resume for you to go over.

What section do your eyes jump to first?

If you guessed work experience , then you’re right.

And if you spot a few relevant keywords in the past job experience section, then you’d continue on their background , contact information , and so on.

When applying for a job, the number one thing most recruiters want to know is if you can really do it right .

And one way to know that for sure is to look at your past work experience.

So, we know two things: most HR managers spend on average 6 seconds to go through a resume. And the work experience is one of the most important sections you can have.

Where does that leave us with?

Basically, if you want to get that call back for the interview, your work experience section really needs to be top-notch. 

Now, when it comes to writing a resume - the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Meaning, other sections need to be up to par as well.

But for now, we’re going to focus on arguably the most important section of any resume - the work experience.

listing work experience on a resume

How to Put Work Experience on a Resume [W/ Template]

How to stand out with your work experience section, 5 real-life work experience examples (for different fields), how to list other resume sections.

But before we dive right in, you’ll need the right tool to build your resume.

Want to save yourself the headache of trying to craft the perfect resume section-by-section from the ground up?

You can get a head start and use our resume builder instead.

work experience on a resume

Our templates were developed with recruiters and employers in mind, so that your resume format is easy to follow and scan. 

The work experience section is where you get to really sell yourself, so you have to make sure you really iron out the details and the formatting makes sense.

This is where you get to show off your best qualities.

Because, if the recruiter is going to pick between 10 different candidates, you know for a fact they’re going to narrow down the list starting with the most relevant experience.

To get your work experience to really shine on your resume, first, we’re going to cover the basic formatting , and then get to the best practices on how to stand out with your work experience section.

What’s that? You don’t have any experience to begin with? No problem!

Check out our no experience resume guide if you’re trying to get your first professional job.

Now, here’s what you need to know about structuring your work experience section.

Basic Formatting

A good resume tells a story of who you are, what your background is, and why you’re the perfect candidate for the job at hand.

Now, that doesn’t mean you should tell your whole life story, because after all, the ideal resume length is still 1 page .

Instead, this is where you sell yourself , brag about your past achievements and responsibilities.

When listing your previous job roles, you should follow a reverse-chronological order (though, also consider other resume formats ).

To make sure your resume is easy to follow, we recommend going with the standard work experience format, which looks a bit like this:

  • Job Title and Position
  • Company Name / Description / Location

Dates Employed

  • Responsibilities and Achievements

Or, here’s how it looks like in practice:

work experience on resume

Now, let’s explain what goes in each part:

Job Title / Position

Your job title goes first . 

When the HR manager scans through your resume, this will most likely be the first section they’ll check. 

Be prepared and make it easy for them to find this.

There is not a lot to say here except that your job title should be accurate to what you did.

To make things simple, you can use the exact name you saw in the original job ad.

  • Digital Marketing Expert
  • Online Marketing Magician

Company Name, Description, and Location 

If the position checks out, they’ll want to know more details. 

If the company isn’t famous, you can also describe in 1-2 sentences. And you should always mention the location of the firm, too.

Try to keep the total section under 3-5 jobs and only remove other job experiences if you’re running out of space and absolutely can’t remove any other part of your resume.

Achievements and Responsibilities

When listing achievements in your resume , you should add any specific change you made happen (we’ll explore how to do this more in-depth below) that the HR manager can apply to their company.

When possible, you should always list accomplishments over responsibilities. 

After all, the HR manager already knows what your responsibilities are - they’ve probably gone through similar resumes over 100 times now with the same bland responsibilities

  • Hit and exceeded monthly sales KPIs for 5 months in a row.
  • Carried out sales operations.

If that’s not possible because of the nature of the job (e.g. cashier , entry-level, etc.), however, you can simply list out your daily responsibilities and tasks.

While describing your job responsibilities, try to limit them within 6 bullet points at most.

Sounds obvious, right? 

Simply list how long you worked at your previous role for. And relax , if you don’t remember the exact day you got hired, you can give an approximate timeframe. 

The standard format for dates employed is mm/yyyy .

Digital Marketing Manager

06/2015 - PRESENT

June 20 of 2015 - PRESENT

If you decide to use the mm/yyyy format, aim for consistency and make sure your other work experience listings look the same way.

career masterclass

Work Experience Q&A

Have some questions on your work experience section?

Maybe you have a giant gap in your work experience, or you’re a recent graduate looking for a job with 0 work experience . 

In this section, we’re going to cover the most common questions about the work experience section...

Do You List an Internship?

Not sure if an internship belongs on your resume?

Well, are you applying for an intermediate or senior role?

If it’s either of the two, then you might want to leave out the internship you did 4-5 years ago.

Meanwhile, are you a recent college grad with not a lot of practical work experience?

If so, an internship is a great way to show some substance and that you’re serious about your career path.

Everyone has to start somewhere, and if you’re struggling to fill up your resume, you should definitely include any internships, even if you weren’t hired full-time afterwards, or the internship was in a completely different field.

What If You Don’t Have a Lot of Experience?

If you’re applying for an entry-level job haven’t worked a day in your life, you can focus on other ways to present yourself.

For example, you can focus more on your soft skills , university achievements , and other personal qualities .

If you’re a recent college grad, the recruiter is most likely not expecting you to have a whole page worth of work experience - so don’t sweat it.

Instead, you might consider including the following contents:

  • Summer Job - Ever worked a summer job? Include it! This can show the recruiter that you have SOME work experience, even if it’s not related to the job you’re applying for.
  • University Projects - Pretty much all team-based project exercises work. Created a mock product for a business class? Add it!
  • Personal Projects - Done anything interesting with your free time? Published videos on Youtube? Coded mini software applications? Add them to your resume!

How Do You List Gaps In Your Resume?

Gaps on a resume can be a red flag - only if you provide no explanation.

If the HR manager sees an empty gap in your work experience section, they’re going to assume the worst case scenario.

So, it’s better to ease their expectations and be honest.

In a line or two, explain what happened and move on, no need to dwell on it.

  • July 2018 - February 2019, due to my medical situation, I had to take time off to fully recover and focus on my health.

The good news is that you don’t have to tell the whole story, especially if it’s personal, but be prepared to briefly go over it if it comes up during the interview.

And now, if you really want to stand out from other candidates with your superior work experience listing, here’s what you can do.

Do you want to hear some good news?

When it comes to listing their work experience, many people simply mention their daily responsibilities and call it a day.

Want your application to stand out from the bunch? Do this:

Write Achievements Instead of Responsibilities

One of the best ways you can summarize your job experience is by showing your achievements .

In most cases, the HR manager can already guess what your responsibilities were. Especially if it’s anything like the one you’re applying for - they probably know the position inside out.

Instead, to stand out, what you can do is show your impact , in that role.

  • Increased landing page CTR by 4% in the first month through A/B testing and changing the copy.
  • Worked with email marketing and launched social media campaigns.

If you increased the overall revenue growth from 5% to 15%, and implemented a new marketing plan for the year, this is something recruiter will want to know.

They’re looking for information and any kind of quantifiable change that you can also apply to their company.

However, if you were in a position where you could not leave behind any notable achievements (e.g. sever in a restaurant, cashier in a supermarket, etc.), feel free to simply list your responsibilities and tasks .

Tailoring your work experience to a specific job

When reading a resume, the HR manager is looking for information relevant to that specific position, with its own unique requirements.

Because, guess what, if you send the same resume to every job ad you can get your hands on, it’s going to be very obvious that you’re using a generic resume, not optimized for any of them in particular.

To avoid that, show the recruiter that you actually took the time to read the job ad (which you should) , and that your resume is tailored to their requirements.

To do this, actually read the job ad in detail, not just give it a quick glance and call it a day.

For example, take this ad:

job ad example

They’re looking for someone:

  • With 5+ years of experience in creating digital experiences
  • Proficient in standard UX software
  • With specific knowledge of interface patterns for mobile, web, and responsive design (i.e. specific areas)
  • With good understanding of HTML, CSS , JAVA , and more

The point is that they’re looking for specific knowledge within the general position.

So in this case, they want someone with a B.A. degree , 5+ years of experience and with a good understanding of basic front-end development. 

You can mention how you excel at all this within your work experience entries…

  • Developed mobile applications with Java, optimized for both Mobile and Web

Now, with all that knowledge combined, let’s take a look at some exceptional real-life resume examples that work.

Not sure how to list work experience for your field?

Looking for some inspiration?

Here’s a few practical work experience examples:

Marketing Work Experience Example

marketing work experience example

As a marketer, you probably know all about the importance of tailoring your message to your target market.

So, your resume needs to reflect that.

Don’t be afraid of using some marketing-specific language and tools within your resume.

Look at your resume as an ad, with the intention of selling yourself .

The above professional experience section does a number of things really well.

They made sure to:

  • List their achievements in a clear way with a quantifiable number to it
  • Include only the previous positions that are relevant to marketing
  • Follow a clear, easy-to-read structure that the HR interview can skim through.

In terms of design, you might want to choose your approach based on the company. 

If they’re a tech startup that values creativity - you can use a template similar to the above one.

If not - go with a more conservative one.

Teacher Work Experience Example

teacher work experience example

Teacher resumes can be more complicated because of the formality behind it and the necessary certificates required.

Let’s take a look at the above example of a teacher resume applying and see what they did well:

In this example, everything under the teaching work experience is listed as responsibilities - which is fine, in this case .

Because, chances are, you won’t have a lot of achievements as a teacher.

  • Taught SO well that one of my students went on to become the president of the United States

Since the teacher’s only worked 1 job in this case, they also added a volunteering experience to the resume .

This is a great way to boost their chances and back up their qualifications. 

Though volunteering is not the same thing as teaching , it can still help you stand out from the rest of the applicants?

Cashier Work Experience Example

cashier work experience example

There are no essential credentials business owners expect to come up on a cashier’s resume .

Though, basic arithmetic and computer skills always help, so it’s a good idea to mention your educational background.

Customer service is another important area, which you can focus on in your work experience:

And this is one of those times where it’s perfectly acceptable to simply list out your daily responsibilities instead of any noteworthy achievements in your work experience.

The HR manager isn’t expecting a cashier to have changed the way the store works completely, increasing revenue by 20%. Instead, what they want to know is if you can do the tasks as expected.

Be direct and honest with your work experience here to show you’re qualified and you’ll be fine.

Software Developer Work Experience Example

software developer work experience example

Working within IT, there are also a lot of different ways you can list your work experience section - depending on the job, which might have been full-time or freelance work .

As an IT, you will most likely have to include achievements as well as responsibilities .

Though if you’re a developer, you might not be able to show your achievements through your code.

Instead, you can show the impact of your code (or software) through the frame of the bigger picture.

For example, let’s say you worked on an internal software project:

  • Developed a new internal HR approval software and significantly increased the speed for processing applicants in the company

Look into how you assisted the overall project development through your code.

When it comes to most tech jobs, your work experience is the single most important section on your resume.

Make sure you include all the relevant details, and try to keep your list of responsibilities up to six bullet points at most.

Feel free to also include any technical details and examples you can come up with (quantifiable data always helps), as the HR manager will have some knowledge of what you’re talking about.

But on the other hand, don’t fill up your work experience with jargon and buzzwords either.

For more examples, check out our guide to a software engineer resume .

Student Work Experience Example

student work experience example

Finally, what if you’re a student with not a lot of experience under your belt?

Then your work experience section might look a bit different, something like the above example. 

Yes, that’s only one listing under the work experience. And yes, that’s fine.

Why’s that?

Because no one’s expecting you to actually have 5+ years worth of experience as a recent graduate.

Your lack of work experience shouldn’t hold you back. Simply list any experience you do have , and move on.

Though, this is where your other type of experience can help.

Consider your volunteer experience or an internship you’ve gone through.

The HR managers typically are looking for people who are devoted and ambitious in student and graduate resumes .

So, don’t get too hung up on your actual work experience .

Your resume has other sections as well.

Here’s what you need to know about that:

While your work experience might be the single most important section of your resume, at the end of the day, it works in sync with all the other resume sections .

Even if they might not be relevant at first glance, your soft skills , personal qualities , and hobbies and interests can be the deciding factor between you getting the job or not.

There are going to be cases when the recruiter has to make a decision with candidates with near-identical work experience.

Here’s where the other resume sections come into play and how you can boost your chances of getting picked:

Conferences, Courses and Certificates

This can either go in your education section or in a category of its own, depending on the context.

Generally, your approach here should vary depending on the relevance and the importance of your certification or course.

For example, if you’re applying for a job in education , your certificates are probably going to be more important. Especially if you know you’re going to be working closely within those fields in your applied job.

certificates on resume

For example, if you’re going to be teaching social studies to high-school students, you might want to include your relevant certificates within the field.

Of course, any other general education certificated can also help.

The language section is particularly interesting, because while it might not provide any specific examples of how you do your job better, it’s still a good thing to have.

Simply because most companies are international nowadays, with clients all over the world. Being bilingual is a great way to stand out and offer a competitive advantage.

languages on resume

When listing your languages, consider how you can rate yourself. You can say that you are:

  • Intermediate

They’re not going to take up a lot of space in your resume, so you might want to include this section if you’re confident about your language skills.

Personal Projects

Everyone loves a side-gig.

It’s one of the best ways you can show your passion and dedication.

Any personal passion project you’ve been working on that is relevant to your current job position can help you stand out and show that you’re not making stuff up.

If you’re a student with not a lot of work experience, for example, you can use your personal projects section to back up your soft skills and your dedication.

personal projects on resume

How you spend your free time says a lot about you.

And if it’s spent focusing on what you’re truly passionate about, then the HR manager should know about it immediately.

Anything that’s not as relevant, however, like your 3rd grade lemonade stop project , should probably be left off to make space.

Key takeaways

To recap, your work experience section of the resume is arguably one of the most important parts of your resume.

So, you need to make sure you’re formatting it right and it’s easy for the HR manager to skim through it.

Here’s how you can do that:

  • First, stick to the following work experience order: job title, position, company name, description, location, achievements, responsibilities, dates employed
  • This ensures maximum readability and makes it easy for the HR manager to jump to the relevant keywords they’re looking for.
  • When listing your work experience though, make sure you’re custom tailoring it to the job ad and listing any noteworthy achievements whenever possible to stand out.
  • Within your job experience section, also consider if you’re going to include your internship , and how your other sections can help your overall resume format.
  • The whole is greater than the sum of its parts when it comes to your resume. Meaning, you can’t rely on your work experience along to get you the job and your overall resume needs to be in sync as well.

Now, if you’re looking for inspiration on how to craft a beautiful resume, for your specific dream job, be sure to check out our creative resume templates .

And if there’s anything else you want to learn about the job hunt process, you can always check out our career blog for the latest news.

Suggested reading:

  • How to Write a Resume & Land That Job [99+ Real-Life Examples]
  • How to Pick the Best Resume Format in 2024 [+Examples]
  • What to Put On a Resume (To Get The Job You’ll Love)

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  1. How to Add Work Experience to Your Resume (With Examples)

    1. Create a dedicated section for your professional experience First, choose an appropriate title like "professional experience" or "work experience" for the section of your resume where you'll list your past jobs. For each job, include the following information: Job title Company name Location of company (city and state)

  2. How To Include Work Experiences in Your CV (With Tips)

    1. Decide which jobs you want to include Before beginning your work experience section, decide which positions you want to include. You can choose to include every position you've worked in, or you may only include positions relevant to the job in which you're applying.

  3. Work Experience CV

    Work experience on a CV (example & template) Here's what a CV work experience entry should look like, followed by a template that you can copy and paste into your writing program: CV work experience example template (text version) 6 tips for describing work experience on your CV

  4. How to write work experience on a CV (Tips and example)

    1. Make a list of your employment history Making a list of your former companies and roles is a great first step that can help you better organise your work experience section. Consider taking a minute or two to reflect on each position and how it helped your professional growth.

  5. How To Highlight Work Experience on Your Resume

    1. Include detailed and relevant information The work experience section of your resume should contain specific information about your employment history, including: Companies you worked for Provide the full, official names of the companies for which you've worked starting with your most recent followed by the next most recent, and so on.

  6. How to write CV work experience

    First things first. It's a good idea to know exactly what constitutes work experience when talking about CVs. It's any time spent in a work environment, in any sector or industry, where you gain first-hand skills from working on the job. Most people acquire work experience via their own professional experience, i.e. formal employment.

  7. Your Resume's Work Experience Section: A Complete Guide

    The Right Way to Include Your Work Experience on a Resume (With Examples) by Jaclyn Westlake Updated 12/23/2020 recep-bg/Getty Images We all know resumes are important. They're your first impression. The highlight reel of your qualifications. The tool that you can use to land an interview (and ultimately a job). What's the best job for you?

  8. How to write your work experience on a resume [+ examples]

    Writing the work experience section Writing the resume work experience section is one of the most influential and often trickiest resume sections to get right. Some employers will even cut right past the summary at the top of a resume and scan the employers, job titles and work dates to see if the resume is worth reading in detail.

  9. How to Show Work Experience on a Resume—Full Guide

    Land you interviews? Then, the Work Experience section of your resume is one of the most crucial components of your job application. Does yours show quantifiable evidence of your successes, instead of just describing the work you did? Is it personalized to every job to match the requirements?

  10. What to Include in a Work Experience CV Section: Examples

    The key to an effective work experience CV section is to showcase your achievements not just list your responsibilities. You can't just say what you did, you have to show how well you did it. And if you want any chance of getting an interview you have to tailor your CV work experience section to every job you apply for.

  11. How to Describe Your Work Experience on Your Resume (With Examples

    1. Research the company you're applying for Researching the company provides you more information to communicate your experience effectively. Based on the information you find on the company's website, you can find a lot about the organization's core values.

  12. How to write your work experience in a CV

    How to write your work experience in a CV Andrew Fennell Your work experience, or career history is one of the most important parts of your CV. It gives you the chance to showcase your skills and knowledge, whilst proving how you apply them in the workplace - a great way to win over recruiters

  13. How to Write Experience in CV [+ Examples & Tips]

    Created by CakeResume In this article, we'll cover: What Is Work Experience in CV & Why Is It Important? How to Write Experience in a CV Work Experience in CV - Examples How to Make a CV with No Experience Experience in CV - FAQs The importance of the experience section in your CV can't be stressed enough.

  14. How To List Work Experience On A Resume (20+ Examples)

    1. Put it under a clear, legible heading. Make sure your work experience section is clearly visible and has its own heading. You can name this section "Work Experience", "Experience" or "Employment History". 2. Place it right under the resume summary or objective.

  15. Work Experience on a Resume

    Top ↑ How to Put Work Experience on a Resume [W/ Template] Basic Formatting Job Title / Position Company Name, Description, and Location Achievements and Responsibilities Dates Employed Work Experience Q&A How to Stand Out with Your Work Experience Section Write Achievements Instead of Responsibilities Tailoring your work experience to a specifi...

  16. How to write work experience on a CV (With examples)

    Limit your work experience section to two to three roles if you have extensive experience. Related: Creating modern CV templates (With template and example) 3. Place your work experience section appropriately Your CV has several sections including work experience, skills and education. Where you place each one depends on your expertise and ...

  17. Guide to Writing Work Experience on a Resume [+ Examples]

    Now, let's take a look at how to effectively write work experience in a resume. 1. The work experience format you utilize in resume matters. Irrespective of the resume format being used, your work experience column/section in resume has to be generally ordered in a reverse chronological order.This means that the most recent role is at the top.

  18. How to write work experience on a resume: what to include + examples

    Action verbs - Action verbs are considered strong and work well in a resume format. Use words like "transformed" and "pioneered" to make yourself sound good. This also helps you avoid tons of adjectives. Awards and honors - If you receive recognition at your job for great work, that's something you want to include.

  19. How To Write Experience In A Resume (With Examples)

    Just mentioning the city and the state is sufficient. If any of your past work experience was work from home, you can either mention your current location or simply write " remote work " in the job location part. 3. Specify the dates of employment. Next, you should mention the start and end dates of each employment.

  20. How to Write Your Work Experience on a CV (+ Examples)

    Update: 26/11/2023 In today's hyper-competitive job market your whole CV has to be spot on for you to stand any chance of being noticed. But there's one particular aspect that stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of its importance. Your work experience CV section.

  21. How to Write an Effective Work Experience Section on Your CV

    The experience section is the heart of your CV. The goal of a CV is to demonstrate your ability to do a target job and the experience section is the best place to demonstrate this ability. However, it is also the longest, most complex, and most challenging section to tackle.

  22. How to Write a CV for Work Experience Opportunities

    Use an expected graduation date as the end date if you're still studying. Write the name of your degree, but only mention honours if you've achieved or are on track to achieve a first or a 2:1. Include details of specific modules you've studied if they're directly related to the work experience you're targeting.

  23. How to Write Work Experience on a CV (With Examples)

    How to write work experience in a CV. Here are the steps you need to take when writing the work experience section of your CV: 1. Include relevant and detailed information. Include specific information about your employment history: Your previous employers. Provide the full name of your previous employers. Begin with your most recent place of ...

  24. Psychologist CV (Examples & Writing Tips)

    Here are three psychologist CV tips that'll help advance your job application through the recruitment process. 1. Open with a compelling personal statement. Your personal statement should push the employer to read your CV in full by outlining your experience, qualifications, and motivation for applying. Start with a succinct opening line ...

  25. HR Coordinators Resume Examples & Writing Tips (2024)

    Here you can find three HR coordinator resume sample summaries: Summary example for an HR generalist: HR generalist adaptable summary example. Results-driven HR generalist with 5+ years of experience driving talent acquisition initiatives that increased quality hires and reduced time-to-fill by 20%.

  26. How to write a marketing CV with no experience (and example)

    Here are a few activities to consider including on your first CV: volunteer work; internships; temporary or part-time work, such as promotional campaigns in your local area; extracurricular activities, such as taking part in local clubs or groups; Related: Writing a CV with no experience How to write a CV for entry-level marketing roles