What you need for a first job

Hi

I have never had a job before and have had very limited work experience (couple of days at a charity shop) but want to get a part time job. I am currently 16 years old in year 12 at sixth form, but I dont have a clue what I even need to have to get my first job.

I know you need your national insurance number, and a bank account???
Any help would be appreicated so much
Also, any advice on where to get my first job?
Thanks

Hi,

I remember getting my 1st job in year 12 (a couple of years ago). Common jobs included retail, supermarket work, waitressing. Before I started applying, I put together a basic CV with contact details, qualifications and any previous experience, and my main skills. Some jobs have application forms - paper or online and for others they'd like a paper copy of your CV. Either on the application form or if and when you come in for an interview you'll most likely need: NI no., passport, proof of address e.g. bank statement and maybe your birth certificate but it varies between companies.

I work at House of Fraser and love it there plus you get paid £7.60 an hour!!

Hi

I have never had a job before and have had very limited work experience (couple of days at a charity shop) but want to get a part time job. I am currently 16 years old in year 12 at sixth form, but I dont have a clue what I even need to have to get my first job.

I know you need your national insurance number, and a bank account???
Any help would be appreicated so much
Also, any advice on where to get my first job?
Thanks

My Experience:
I started my first job when I was 15 (start of Year 11), as a Pharmacy Assistant, which is a pretty rare job for a teenager, so I don't know if it's that similar to other jobs. I personally visited all the Pharmacies in my town with a paper CV, asking if they had any jobs for 15 year olds. Most didn't because of my age, but one took in my CV. After a couple of weeks, I phoned them (which you might feel awkward about, but trust me, it's a good idea after a few weeks), and they invited me in for an interview. It was fairly relaxed, and they basically just explained the job to me and we discussed which hours I could do. Then they gave me a few forms to fill out (name, age, address, qualifications, any past experience/jobs, referees, etc.) and offered me the job. I currently do 6 hours a week - 2 afterschool on Fridays and 4 on Saturday mornings. This is probably the maximum I could do, but the weekend shift is definitely easier than weekdays.

CV
If you want, I can send a copy of my CV for you to look at. I used a pretty basic layout. My name, address, phone numbers and email at the top. Then I had 4 lines about me, mentioning where I study, what I want to be when I'm older - only if it's relevant (for me, a doctor) - and what I want to get out of the job, e.g. experience and confidence when handling medications and talking to patients... Then I had my 'employment history'. Here, I put a summary of the volunteering positions I'd completed. So I was a leader at my Church's children's liturgy and a shop assistant for a charity shop. I mentioned these and said the months I'd worked there and wrote 3-4 lines about what I did in that role. If you don't have much experience, you could either skip this section, or write about a school responsibility e.g. prefect. You said you'd worked a couple of days in a charity shop, so you could mention this and say what you did there and what you learnt from it, etc. I then had a qualification section - although I only had two early GCSEs and 1 sports leadership qualification at the time. This may be just me, but I always put my best grades at the top and two at the bottom, with my lower grades in the middle, because it makes them look better at a quick glance. I then had another 5 lines or so where I mentioned my hobbies and extra-curricular e.g. clarinet, fencing, learning British Sign Language. I also mentioned DOFE and First Aid training I'd done. Lastly, I add 'references on request' in bold at the bottom.

What do you need?
You'll need a CV, however some places give you an application form to fill in specially. When I filled out the forms for my pharmacy, there were spaces for my bank details (e.g. sort code) and my national insurance number. However, my friend started working there before she had her N.I.N.O. number, and that was fine. You may also need to bring a Passport with you to the interview, however this wasn't necessary for me. You shouldn't need anything else, but if you do, the business should tell you at the interview etc. If they offer you an interview via phone or email, you could ask if there's anything you should bring.

Where to get a first job:
So, as I mentioned, I work in a pharmacy, however this is fairly difficult to get. Common teenage jobs that I've heard of include: waitress, swimming instructors/assistants, tutors (including at organisations e.g. Explore Learning), Primark, McDonald's/KFC/Subway, cafes, any shop job, really. I've heard House of Fraser is a really good place to work at, assuming you're good with customers, and Marks and Spencer's pays well.

I hope this was useful. Good luck!

Thanks so much! That has helped loads. And if u dont mind, could you send me your CV because I dont know exactly how other people set it all out. Thanks... my email is : [email protected]