How to get an entry level job with no experience
Employers receive thousands of applications per week for entry-level openings and use prior experience to quickly narrow down the pool. Because companies often decide that training newcomers is not worth the effort, applicants with zero background are left competing against overwhelming odds.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Shotgun blasting resumes and being willing to relocate
- 2completing unpaid internships
- 3relying on family money to afford entering the field
- 4starting in unrelated entry-level maintenance or support roles and applying internally
- 5leveraging school work-study experience
- 6Reorganizing sections so education and professional experience appear first
- 7Removing objective statements and substituting them with projects or expanded points
- 8Moving honors and awards to the bottom of the page
- 9Getting any office job in accounts payable or bookkeeping
- 10Passing the CPA exams before applying
- 11Pursuing a master's degree
- 12Reaching out to alumni and applying to small firms
- 13Looking for volunteer work to add experience to the resume
- 14taking community college classes and saving the money
- 15working for someone locally
- 16Volunteering or offering free services
- 17Studying for certifications like the CCNA
- 18Applying to managed service providers
- 19Reaching out directly to higher-ed IT departments or campus helpdesks
- 20Looking for remote or relocation jobs in remote areas
- 21Volunteering for VITA (volunteer tax preparation programs)
- 22Changing positions within an existing company
- 23Applying to local government positions and small firms
- 24Shifting focus to industry roles like staff accountant, AR, or AP
- 25Using employment agencies like Robert Half for temporary placement
- 26cold emailing accounting firms and companies directly instead of only applying to posted jobs
- 27enrolling in online degree programs or schools
- 28looking for rare entry-level or AP/AR positions
- 29Returning to school to earn a different technical degree
- 30Switching career fields entirely
- 31Altering and tailoring resumes for every application
- 32Seeking feedback on resume formatting and structure
- 33Exaggerating experience or pay on resumes and during interviews
- 34Emphasizing a willingness to learn and work ethic rather than claiming to be an expert
- 35Doing volunteer work and homelabbing to build experience
- 36Considering working at an MSP handling helpdesk tickets
- 37Searching through standard job sites like LinkedIn or Indeed
- 38applying to bank teller jobs
- 39taking unrelated service jobs like waiter or takeout phone roles
- 40studying for professional exams using college textbooks independently without paying for formal prep courses
- 41taking unpaid or low-pay government jobs to build initial experience
- 42Getting bookkeeping certifications
- 43Doing simple bookkeeping contract jobs
- 44Working for tax preparation chains like H&R Block
- 45Doing volunteer tax work
- 46Considering employment with the IRS
- 47planning to get a bachelors degree later
- 48networking through local community colleges and linkedin
- 49looking into clerical positions or small tax firms
- 50taking time to breathe and decompress
- 51applying for unemployment
- 52updating the resume and starting to apply
- 53using staffing agencies as resources
- 54looking at smaller companies that care less about credentials
- 55Highlighting general people skills, marketing experience, and computer familiarity on the resume
- 56Emphasizing readiness to learn and a bubbly, positive attitude during interviews
- 57Showing up to companies in person
- 58Studying on YouTube and open book sources to keep up knowledge
- 59Leveraging related extracurricular activities, networking, and relevant work experience or internships
- 60Applying to smaller or mid-sized firms and industry roles that have lower GPA cutoffs
- 61Obtaining professional certifications like the CPA
- 62Applying to volunteer tax programs
- 63Reaching out to connections for referrals
- 64Asking for tips and advice via direct messages
- 65Cold emailing firms to ask for unpaid volunteer work
- 66Leveraging personal connections and friends at big 4 firms for referrals
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I was literally just stressing about getting accounting experience 😭”source ↗
“I have no previous accounting experience and I’m still finishing my degree”source ↗
“if you’re struggling to get your foot in the door”source ↗
“Despite my 3.8+ GPA, I have been unable to secure a job.”source ↗
“I owe 25k in student debt. If I had gotten a decent accounting job, it would be a blip on the radar. However, now the debt is really worrying me.”source ↗
“One issue is that whenever I post an entry level job I get somewhere in the ball park of 1000 applications a week. I have to narrow it down somehow and looking for applicable experience is the obvious place to start.”source ↗
“all my previous experience and resume is tailored towards healthcare. How do I get any tax or accounting hands on experience to put in my resume. All I see on indeed is a very few AP/AR job post that require a minimum of two years experience.”source ↗
“almost everyone's either only hiring seniors who know their stuff or MSP'S with L1/2/3 helldesk tickets.”source ↗
“So yeah, I acknowledge it is very hard for someone with absolutely no experience in the field to get an entry level job because of the competition.”source ↗
“In 9 months I'll be graduating with a Master Degree in Accounting, hopefully 4/4 CPA exams passed, and NO INTERNSHIPS. Do mid-sized firm hire graduates without any real experience? Where should I be looking? What should I be doing?”source ↗
“Currently working towards my associate in accounting and plan on getting my bachelors once I have an entry-level job in accounting.”source ↗
“I know AI is taking over basic bookkeeping and roles with repetitive roles such as AP/AR. I am planning to finish my associate on Dec 2027. I know AI is taking over fast but despite that do y’all think I still have a chance?”source ↗
“I have a 4.0 GPA, but unfortunately, I have not been able to secure an internship or an entry-level accounting position yet.”source ↗
“I have been actively applying for about a year now. I’ve had many interviews where I made it through two or even three rounds, only to receive an email afterward letting me know that I was not selected.”source ↗
“Resume template given by accounting advisor. No experience really, want to pursue auditing. First resume. Be brutal. I need to land an internship.”source ↗
“And most states don’t just offer that for free. I am also under the belief that there are plenty of jobs that someone can be trained for and mentored in and will succeed in. But for most companies it’s not “worth it” for them.”source ↗
“Since I lack experience, I’m having a hard time getting my foot in the door.”source ↗
“I denied for HR intern and another entry level position.”source ↗
“Does GPA matter when trying to get my first accounting job? Keep in mind I've done an internship at a really good firm, so is my GPA holding me back from getting my first offer? I finished with a 3.0/4.0.”source ↗
“I just booked a sysadmin job (1D7X1B) in the Air Force. I don’t have an IT background but I’m really excited for this opportunity and want to make the most of it. What should I do while I’m in to set myself up for future success? I’ll likely get out of the military after 4 years but if I enjoy it enough I may stay in. What advice do you have for someone starting this career from zero?”source ↗
“For anyone else who started late, how were you able to get a role in accounting without the free time to secure an internship?”source ↗
“After completing my bachelors, I now realize I’m at a huge disadvantage by going to school online and not doing any internships, as I was unable to because I was in the military that whole time.”source ↗
“I also have no internships or volunteer work at all.”source ↗
“So how am I supposed to get into accounting firms then since I already graduated?”source ↗
“Am having trouble looking through job sites and don't really have any referrals to help.”source ↗
“During junior year I tried looking for internships but couldn’t continue my search as I had onset of autoimmune disease, went to the hospital 3x, felt terrible all while trying to navigate school and work.”source ↗
“During my sophomore year I tried applying to very entry level roles even as far as night audit positions at hotels. No luck.”source ↗
“I literally applied to as many entry level/internships as I could, some kept asking for experience I still applied to those.”source ↗
“Is there anything that she can do to her resume to increase her chances of getting interviews since she doesn't have experience in leasing”source ↗
“I however do not have a degree and do not yet qualify to take the PHR.”source ↗
“I feel sad and I feel lost.”source ↗
“I’ve been searching for an HVAC job for almost two years with no luck.”source ↗
“nobody seems willing to give me an opportunity.”source ↗
“I wouldn't advise going back to school for accounting if the end goal isn't a CPA in this market. She is right, entry roles are hard to get currently.”source ↗
“I still have a couple months but it’s definitely stressing me out at the moment”source ↗
“It was Hell 3 years ago for me and by the sound of it, even harder now. I probably applied to every listing in my city and two nearby cities and only got one temp job through robert half”source ↗
“I’m not even landing Hr assistant positions”source ↗
“I don’t think it matters because I’m not landing anything. Not even assistant jobs”source ↗
“I feel like it's almost impossible to find anything through a job source like Linkedin or Indeed.”source ↗
“I’m a junior and still haven’t been able to land an internship. I’ve applied countless times, tailored my resume extensively, attended career fairs, networked, and still nothing.”source ↗
“I’m also worried about graduating into unemployment.”source ↗
“Yes some companies have an initial cutoff like they won’t interview below 3.4 or 3.6…. These are often for some of the higher paid opportunities. Many have a 3.0 or 3.2 cutoff.”source ↗
“I myself also had a 3.0 gpa with a few Cs on my transcript and am currently working at a Big 4 firm.”source ↗
“at this point. Im trying everything. It's tough out there bro.”source ↗
“It’s over for me then”source ↗
“It's just that she's been applying for months and struggling to get to the interview portion. So she was worried that maybe her resume is getting her stopped.”source ↗
“Getting laid off is one thing but having it handled poorly by a bunch of HR people just adds insult to injury”source ↗
“I haven't but when I applied for apprenticeships they repeatedly told me I lack experience....”source ↗
“my issue is basically people want hires that have years of experience but that’s not possible if no one is giving me it”source ↗
“looking at the extremely challenging helpdesk market in my area, I want to volunteer as an admin or helpdesk to get some experience.”source ↗
“no matter how much I apply, I don’t get an interview.”source ↗
“It’s sad no one even wants me as a free helpdesk, I even worked with M365 before.”source ↗
“I feel discouraged 🫤”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 7Why are job boards full of impossible roles and ghost listings?
- 4How do I find a job when my network is tapped out?