Even though it may seem like the odds are stacked against you as you search for job vacancies which require no experience, there are thousands of options to explore in the job market.
Searching for junior, trainee or entry-level positions which are available in vast numbers of industries and sectors will help you refine your search. These positions and the salaries they offer may not reflect your long-term career goals, but they will allow better job roles to become viable and obtainable once you have accrued experience.
When looking for part-time job ideas for people who have yet to gain experience, it is important to keep your options as open as possible and be prepared to work your way up the career ladder. The entry-level positions you gain experience within may not be directly relevant to the career path you want to take, but they can provide job references, transferrable skills, and the opportunity to demonstrate your work ethos.
Part-Time Job Ideas for People With No Experience
1. Bar work
For job candidates aged 18+, the bar industry is a great option, especially for candidates with an outgoing and extroverted personality. While some bars, clubs, pubs and live music venues are happy to open their part-time bartender vacancies up to people who have yet to gain experience, in others, you may need to accrue experience in a barback position first.
As a barback, you will help the bartenders to work seamlessly by restocking the bar, preparing mixers, collecting bottles and glasses, changing beer kegs and keeping the bar area clean. You may also need to assist the bartenders during busier periods, allowing you to gain bartending experience.
To be attractive to employers, you must be able to work as part of a team in a fast-paced environment, be flexible in the hours you are available to work, have a basic understanding of items on the bar menu and have the physical fitness and strength to lift kegs and bottle trays.
The national average salary for a barback in the UK is £20k per annum, while entry-level bartenders can expect to earn an average of £24,948, which equates to £12.49, plus tips.
2. Events and Hospitality
Every year when festival season rolls around, there are ample part-time no-experience positions for people wanting to gain experience in the events and hospitality sector. However, working at festivals is far from your only option; sporting events and occasions such as London Fashion Week also call for bar staff, waiting staff, caterers and cleaners.
The industry allows those with only part-time hours to offer to find flexible work; to make up for your lack of experience, you will need to be highly approachable with exceptional customer service skills, have a strong work ethic, and be well-presented – especially if you are providing hospitality services for VIP guests.
Due to the nature of events and hospitality work, part-time workers are paid by the hour, and the average hourly wage is £12; if you prove yourself as a valuable team member, you could earn more by becoming a supervisor or a team leader.
3. Office Temp Work
What office temp roles lack in security and stability, they make up for in their ability to provide you with a wealth of experience in different office settings. Once you are on the books at a temping company and you prove to be valuable to the employers you work with briefly, you could be offered up to £15 per hour to work in customer service, admin and sales.
As temp workers only hold their positions for a short period, the general duties tend to be simple, such as data entry, filing, greeting clients and answering calls for senior staff members.
Part-time positions for candidates with no experience frequently become available; however, you must be flexible with your availability. You may not be able to accept every temping job, but turning them down repeatedly will mean that you won’t be the first choice with the temping agency.
Part-time office temp work is best suited to people proficient in basic IT skills, who can input data with exceptional accuracy and are fast learners. In some positions, you may need to prove you have adequate customer service skills if you will be speaking to members of the public.
4. Retail Sales Assistant
In retail, experience may be attractive to employers but it is not always essential – especially in independent stores. It is no coincidence that many people in the UK leave high school and gain part-time or full-time employment in retail positions.
As a retail sales assistant, you will typically deal with customers on a face-to-face basis, maintain the store by organising the products and stocking shelves, processing payments and facilitating day-to-day operations.
The skills required for an entry-level or trainee retail assistant include basic maths, customer service skills, and clear communication skills. You may be expected to resolve conflict or deal with difficult customers as part of your job role; however, this is typically only expected of fully trained and experienced staff. Depending on the company you are employed with, you can expect to earn up to £11.32 an hour.
5. Remote Data Entry
In 2020, the remote working revolution created swathes more part-time remote jobs for people with no experience. As long as you have the organisational skills, basic IT skills and a set-up that enables you to work from home, remote data entry positions are relatively easy to obtain for candidates that can demonstrate their willingness to learn and proficiency in word processing.
Data entry clerks are required in multiple sectors, including retail, transportation, health care and finance. Typically, duties include collecting data, inputting data into the company’s data systems, maintaining accurate records, sorting incoming mail, and searching for errors or anomalies in existing data.
Data entry has some of the lowest barriers to entry. Once you have gained experience, you can advance to more complex administrative positions. As you are gaining experience as a remote or in-office data entry clerk, you can expect to earn £8 – £12 per hour.
