The 10 Best Entry-level Jobs to Pursue

An entry-level job is a job opportunity for recent pass-outs having no or minimal experience. It acts as a gateway to higher positions of the concerned industry. To qualify for higher-order hierarchical positions, job aspirants have to penetrate through the lower order positions and get some hands-on industry experience and knowledge.

As a fresh-out-of-college graduate, I always dreamt of starting my professional journey with an amazingly well-paying position. Not just me, most of the young students who have been obedient and sincere children to their parents have believed so because we were all made to believe in a Utopian land where fresher grads have access to oh-so-perfect job openings as soon as they get their degrees. (I still remember the cliché line -study hard, earn a degree and your rest of the life is all set….)

Little did I know, all the recruiters are looking for “experienced” candidates. And, I kept wondering, how on earth a candidate can have industry experience without being hired? Well….there is a solution to this workplace inexperience problem. People call it “Entry Level Job”, I call it “Newbie’s’ refuge”. So, if you are a newbie, I mean a fresher or for that matter a professional wishing to switch careers then I assure you that you won’t regret spending your valuable time reading this to find out The 10 Best Entry-level Jobs to Pursue.

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While searching for suitable Entry-level jobs, job descriptions by recruiters or hiring companies give you cues on whether you fit the bill or not. For example, certain entry-level job descriptions specifically mention that one does not need a degree to apply for the said position. So, you will read “No degree required” for segments like administration, sales, or data entry.

You are looking for worthier positions if you have completed your graduation or post-graduation in the fields like science, technology, healthcare, law, business administration, etc. Thus, their job descriptions will read like “Degree required”. Such positions are true entry-level jobs you can target with a degree and zero working experience.

And finally, there are some “pseudo” entry-level jobs as well that on top of a degree, demand professional experience or training in the domain. I will talk about this paradox later in the article.

No matter what kind of jobs you are looking for, having and demonstrating the following skills can up your game because, even while hiring fresher with no prior industry experience, companies do expect them to have certain basic soft and hard skills.

JSYK, it is possible and feasible to learn these skills as a student while still completing your credits to earn the degree. Find out more about the most useful websites for students, to learn practical skills.

Must-have skills for Entry-level jobs

• Communication Skills

You don’t have to be a mesmerizing public speaker. But strong verbal and nonverbal communication skill is what employers desire their employees to have for smooth operations at the workplace. Hence, the ability to communicate clearly and effectively with superiors, co-workers, and clients gives you an edge over others not only for the current position but also for scaling up the ladder to higher roles.

• Teamwork skills

Looking at it closely, teamwork skill is an extension of communication skill. But let me elaborate a little more. At any stage of your career, you have to work alongside others. And, working in a team means understanding different mindsets without losing your perspective and accomplishing tasks. As a team player, you have to demonstrate honesty, empathy while building rapport. Mind you, good rapports mean deeper working relationships which in turn mean better opportunities.

• Responsibility

Being responsible is being aware of the number of efforts called for meeting the stipulated deadlines and expected standards of quality work. Or even owning up to professional goof ups which by the way are inevitable even for a staunch perfectionist. At the end of the day, a team of accountable individuals working towards achieving the same goal is absolute bliss for any employer.

• Organizational skills

Like other members of the list, this is also something you are not trained for after at the workplace; you must have it in you as an integral part of your personality. To ensure efficient completion of delegated tasks you will have to hone the abilities like – de-cluttering, prioritization, time- management, and productive use of available time, money, and strength. 

• Microsoft office

Regardless of the field, Microsoft office is the most critical to workplace functioning. Thus, even if you are a fresher you are expected to have mastery over basic programs like Word and PowerPoint. But one program that can garner you all the attention is Excel. If you can operate complex mathematical operations and advanced functions of this versatile program then you can quickly be a go-to person for all the excel problems of the company.

And do I have to mention positive attitude, punctuality, and confidence are forever-in-demand qualities for a job aspirant? Read to find out more about what recruiters want. 

What Are The 10 Best Entry-Level Jobs?

If you are starting the career path or are switching the field then entry-level jobs are for you. Nonetheless, which one to choose depends on an individual’s ability, education, interests, and career goals. And, a careful analysis of the job description is what you must do to get key leads as to whether your skills intersect with the job demands or not. After all, you don’t want to dedicate your time to something futile.

P.S. Different job titles are given to the same entry-level job positions in different companies. But the responsibilities attached remain the same.

• Sales

If you have sales skills then consider applying for the following Entry-level jobs :

1. Sales Representative

They sell products/services to businesses, organizations, or individuals.

Common responsibilities:

• Present products to target customers and persuade them to buy.
• Contact new and old clients to meet sales objectives.
• Attend sales meetings and training sessions to upgrade.
• Explain to customers about newly launched products.

Education:

• For some sectors, a bachelor’s degree can be sufficient while some prefer a degree with marketing majors.
• Those who have done graduation in science and are interested in sales can pursue a sales and marketing career in pharmaceuticals and like.

Training:

• Most commonly recruiters arrange special training sessions for new hires.

Most Common Sales representatives’ competencies:

• Persuasion skill– To succeed as sales rep the candidate must be an effective persuader without being too pushy.
• Verbal and Non-verbal communication– You must communicate by taking verbal and Non-verbal signals from the clients.
• Listening skill– Contrary to the popular notion that salespeople must speak actively, active listening is the key to understanding customers’ pain points and offering the solution.
• Customer service skill– Happy customer is every sales rep’s ultimate goal and nothing better than satisfactory customer service to get your clients coming back to you again and again.

Nature of job:

• Certain fields demand extensive traveling and thus you have to be prepared to stay away from the comforts of home for most of the time. On the other hand, some positions allow you to stay in the office for pitching sales targets, mostly over phones.
• These positions are driven by a passion for target-oriented achievements which means functioning in a high-pressure environment.

Some other more or less similar sales entry-level jobs are Sales assistant, Sales trainee, etc.

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• Marketing/Advertising

Marketing is a broad domain that requires marketers to choose from multiple career options in the fields like managing brand and product image, promotional strategies, customer relations, digital and content marketing in addition to selling products. So, here is the list of entry-level marketing jobs.

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2. Junior Graphic Designer

This is a creatively demanding position that involves understanding clients’ imagination and bringing it to reality as a design.

Education:

• Diploma, certificate, bachelor program in the field of graphic designing.
• Practical knowledge of designing and editing software and tools like InVision, Adobe, Corel Draw.
• A good portfolio with past design works.

Training:

•  Mostly in-house training is provided during real-time projects.

Most common junior graphic designer competencies:

• Creativity-Making uses graphic design techniques to create unique drafts.
• Interpersonal skill-Understanding clients’ tastes and producing designs accordingly.
• Teamwork skill– Following senior designer’s feedback to improvise and work towards achieving client satisfaction.
• Time management skill– Constantly be on toes to deliver projects on time and to strike balance between multiple projects without compromising on quality.

Nature of job:

• This kind of job usually involves studio-based work, travelling is rare.
• It is very likely to stretch working hours a bit when deadlines are approaching.
• For some companies work from home options are also available with an occasional visit to the office when client meetings are held.

3. Junior Copywriter

A person working in this role typically assists senior copywriters for marketing and advertising agencies to produce content for blogs, social media, press releases, websites, articles, brochures, E-mail marketing, advertisements, and so on.

Education:

• Although no specific degree is not essential to apply for the post, a master’s degree in English, Journalism, or Marketing is highly desirable.
• Nowadays, there are some certificate courses in Content writing or copy-writing provided by private institutes. However, just earning a certificate from an institute does not substitute the requirement of a quality portfolio. Thus, a practical copy-writing experience- either freelancing or internship work is indispensable.

Training:

• Copy-writing is a skill best learned by practicing. You can only improve your writing flair by persistently exploring innovative ideas and taking in constructive criticism from seniors and clients. That becomes excellent practical training in itself for scaling the higher positions in the field.
• There are both paid and unpaid internship positions available on popular platforms like Internshala. Having short-term experience as an intern can also help you discover more full-time job opportunities. Many organizations offer full-time positions to their brilliant interns as well.

Most common junior copywriter competencies:

• Writing & Editing- No brownie point to guess this. A powerful command over the language, grammar, punctuation, and editing is a must to succeed as a copywriter. Eventually, you must be able to establish your unique style and voice to grab readers’ attention.
• Excellent researching skills- Screening authentic sources of information on the web to find fodder for your writings needs an eye for details.
• A knack for understanding readers’ demands- You must put yourself in your clients’ or readers’ shoes to impress them or to even move them to take action.
• A constant urge to innovate- A copywriter is prone to mental blocks on failing to continuously innovate in topics and writing style. Innovating does not mean coming up with a different topic but giving a different treatment or angle to even the commonest topic.
• Basics of SEO- Everything that you write for the web must be optimized to rank better on search engines. And learning to produce SEOed write-ups has become a prerequisite to being a better copywriter. Additionally, you should have a practical understanding of common CMS like Word press.
• Time-management Skills- The ability to meet deadlines in a pressured environment.
• Flexibility- You must be open-minded to clients’ ideas and needs and include them in your writing.

Nature of job:

• Working patterns usually suit regular office hours. Although, meeting deadlines might sometimes demand occasional stay backs.
• Most of the positions are filled on a full-time or part-time basis; some companies do offer remote positions.

Some other nearly related entry-level jobs include content writer, technical writer.

• Business administration and management

If you are a commerce or business graduate then the following entry-level jobs are going to be helpful to you.

4. Administrative Assistant

This is an important administrative position. The administrative assistant is responsible for running and coordinating the organizational duties of the office.

In simple words, they support managers, fellow employees, and clients to ensure the seamless functioning of the organization.

Education:

• A bachelor’s degree is a minimum qualification to apply for this type of post.
• Proficiency in MS office.

Training:

• If you have some secretarial or administrative skills that you can show on your resume then you might be hired for an entry-level post.
• As far as training is concerned, you are trained for tasks you are responsible for; however, no separate training sessions are scheduled unless the organization is very big and highly professional.

Most common junior copywriter competencies:

• Excellent business communication- As an admin, you are accountable for written and oral communication duties like drafting Emails, Making calls, Answering and passing calls, Greeting visitors and clients, conducting inquiries, Taking minutes of meetings, etc. Thus, you need to maintain a confident stance and use professional language in different interactions.
• Computer and software skills- MS Office, Outlook, and Internet are the most basic computer functions you must be familiar with.
• Multitasking skills- An admin has to juggle multiple roles handling a plethora of tasks. To name a few- Schedule meetings, make travel arrangements for the manager, maintain filing system and office supplies, call for repairs, supervise junior staff, etc. So the key is to do all these with utmost efficiency.
• Interpersonal skills- Most of an admin’s day is spent in interaction with various agencies and people. Maintaining a pleasant demeanor and a positive attitude helps you up the game.
• Organizational skills- This is a must for you to ease your tasks without much pressure.
• Decision making and Prioritization- Problem-solving and priority-based delegation of time is what you will have to be equipped with daily.

Nature of job:

• The good news is that every office needs an administrative assistant. The bad news is except for some big organizations, very few companies offer decent pay to a fresher graduate for such posts. Unless you have a strong drive to learn and gather knowledge, the pay scales may seem like peanuts to you.
• Invariably, it is a full-time position that requires you to work in office set-up during regular business hours.

5. Management Trainee

MTs are hired in many organizations for entry-level jobs to work alongside managers and executives with the sole goal to be competent enough to handle the responsibilities of a manager one day. Industries like sales, marketing, finance, and operations, etc.

Education:

At least a Bachelor’s degree in Business or management, Postgraduates are highly preferred.

Training:

• As the name suggests the trainee position involves rigorous training to become future leaders. Hence, MTs have a multitude of duties to handle to train them in various departments that give them an overview of multifaceted organizations.
• They are trained in monitoring performances, establishing company policies and work objectives, creating presentations, understanding various operations of the organization.

Most common competencies of Management trainees:

• Leadership skills
• Analytical skills
• Interpersonal skills
• Communication skills
• Problem-solving skills
• Time-management skills
• Proficiency in MS Office

Nature of job:

• As a management trainee, you are expected to be extremely driven to learn, handle, provide inputs, attend workshops, etc.
• MTs might need to extend their working hours in a period of crisis or time crunch.
• Traveling to different offices or even cities is also very common.

• Customer service sector

With increasing competition, most industries have to keep on their toes to earn clients’ loyalty.

Industries offering such services are many and so are the job opportunities like Hospitality industries, Call centers and BPOs, Financial institutes, Insurance companies, Credit card agencies, e-commerce, and online retailers, etc.

6. Customer Service Associate

If you are interested in the job to serve clients to their satisfaction then customer service jobs have a lot to offer you. Primarily, in these types of jobs, you interact with clients via calls to handle their complaints, process orders, provide information.

Customer service jobs have a variety of names and duties also vary depending on the nature of the industry. Some common entry-level job positions are call center agent, client service associate, customer relation associate, etc.

Note that the following details on entry-level jobs in customer service are overlapping for most of the different types while industry-based differences do exist.

Education:

• The minimum required education is a bachelor’s degree in any stream or even a higher secondary certificate in some cases.
• Basic knowledge of computer operation is a must like any other white-caller job.

Training:

The selected candidates are mostly trained after hiring.

Most common customer service jobs competencies:

• Excellent communication and phone skills- You need to convey your idea to the client clearly and impressively.
• Listening skills- One thing that most clients will expect from you is to be all ears. They feel that half of their problems are resolved just by being listened to. Thus, learn to be a patient listener.
• Conflict management- This will help you to keep the stress at bay while handling over-demanding, difficult, and even abusive clients. Your ability to resolve client issues without taking the comments personally will keep you going even after a long and tiring interaction with overbearing clients.
• Multi-tasking- These positions often require you to talk to clients over the phone simultaneously reading and analyzing data. Hence, multitasking is essential.

Nature of job:

• It is a fast-paced sector with plenty of job openings for fresher.
• The format is more flexible than a fixed 9 to 5 jobs. However, in some companies night shifts are unavoidable.
• The ladder of customer service jobs moves straight up to managerial positions. Hence, if you have the right mix of skills then the growth opportunities to become supervisors and managers are quite high.

• Research and Education

Teachers, educators, and researchers will always be in demand. Quite often these positions require you to keep pursuing higher education to get better opportunities in positions and pay scales.

Public sector institutes and organizations also announce openings regularly. However, the selection process for them is pretty stringent and demands a lot of preparation and qualifying competitive exams on your part.

7. Research Assistant

They assist Scientists and primary researchers in conducting experiments, collecting data, drawing results and conclusions, and testing hypotheses for the concerned research project.

Research institutes, hospitals, universities, market research organizations, polling agencies, consulting firms announce entry-level jobs for research fellows.

Education:

• Minimum Master’s degree in the field of study.
• Many national-level research institutes conduct entrance exams and subsequent interview rounds to select suitable candidates.
• Candidates having relevant research experience in the form of projects or internships are highly preferred.

Most common Research assistant competencies:

• Analytical skills
• Observation skills
• Relevant technical skills
• Problem-solving skills
• Perseverance and patience
• Accuracy
• Time-management skills

Nature of job:

• Research assistant generally operates in laboratories or office, however, field works are also not unusual.
• Can be full-time or part-time, permanent or contractual positions.

8. Educators/Teachers

A career that is one of the most respected ones for the nobility attached to the position is this. Teachers are in demand for education institutes of all grades. But University teaching positions require at least a Doctorate along with a few years of experience.

Nonetheless, a fresher still qualifies for teaching jobs in Private schools, coaching facilities, and even preschools.

Education:

• Many schools prefer candidates with a Master’s degree while or some Bachelor’s degree is the minimum criterion.
• Government jobs are only offered as per the merit number of candidates in entrance exams.
• Along with this a B.Ed. a degree is indispensable.

Training:

The B.Ed. program is in-depth training in itself and is sufficient for starting your journey as an educator.

Most common Educator/Teacher competencies:

• Subject knowledge- It is essential to have your fundamentals clear to impart accurate knowledge.
• Communication skills- To convey ideas with utmost clarity.
• Patience
• Critical thinking skills

Nature of job:

• Working hours in this profession are comparatively less hectic than corporate jobs; you have to work during and a couple of hours after school hours.
• Except for exam papers evaluation and results, teachers also get summer breaks, something extremely rare in other careers.
• In addition to teaching, teachers are provided with additional administrative roles too.

• Engineering

It is no surprise that Engineering is the most sought-after career with a multitude of specialization options to suit your aptitude.

9. Software Developer

The Prime duty of a software developer is developing software with knowledge of its life cycle right from coding, fixing errors, adaptability to new hardware, performance improvisation, testing, client support, and software maintenance.

Education:

At least bachelor’s degree in computer science or IT or computer engineering

Training:

Fresher grads are usually trained as they start their professional journey with a company. A brief training is a norm with every switch due to rapidly changing technological trends in the IT industry.

Most common Software developer competencies:

• Profound knowledge of programming languages
• Ability to quickly adapt to new technological development
• Creativity

Nature of work:

• This career path gives you opportunities to work with multinational corporate IT giants and to travel to foreign lands for on-site projects. This is indeed invaluable for getting exposure and enriching experience.
• A plus of this job is that most organizations operate from Monday to Friday. That means holidays for 2 days a week.
• Many companies provide work-from-home options as well.
• The role demands sitting in front of the computer system for the longest hours in an air-conditioned office.
• Approaching project deadlines can be quite stressful and may call for staying back to deliver the software on time.

• Accounts

  10. Junior accountant

A person working as a junior accountant is a subordinate to a senior accountant and assists in functions of the accounting department of an organization.

The main duties of this person are preparing journal entries and monthly financial statements, doing ledger operations, maintaining balance sheets, assisting in the audit process, etc.

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in commerce/accounting or equivalent
• Proficiency in accounting techniques and software.
• Knowledge of accounting, finances, and taxation.

Training:

• Candidates are expected to have prior knowledge of accounting operations.
• They are briefly trained to understand the department’s functioning after joining.

Most common junior accountant competencies:

• Accuracy and an eye for details as mostly they have to deal with numbers.
• Problem-solving skills
• Organizational skills

Tips For Writing Entry-Level Job Resume

At a first glance, writing a resume at just the start of your career might get you a little perplexed. But it is possible to increase your chances of getting shortlisted with the help of this seemingly basic document. How? Simple, convince the hiring person through your resume that you have the best to offer to their organization.

The secret sauce is to write your resume to showcase your skills, aptitude, and overall personality in the best possible way. Dig out some work experience you might have gathered during summer job or internship or projects or even presentations. And you might find out more than you think you have.

Following elements must go in your Entry-level resume-

• Complete contact details- In case recruiters try to get in touch with you. Do include Email address, Mobile number, and address information accurately.
• Work experience and skills- Have you worked as an intern? Do you have any part-time work experience? Did you visit any industry to complete your final year project? Were you involved in any voluntary work as a student? Answering these and many other related questions will give you a lot of quality content to put under the title of work experience.

However, a mere listing of the items does not completely utilize them to their full potential. Instead, try and link each of your work experiences with a relevant skill. In other words, validate the skills you possess with some real work.

• Education- Here you will mention Degree/s and any other relevant course you might have done along with GPA, or percentage, or whichever is applicable.
• Objective- In this section, you will mention in a confident but real tone that what you will bring to the table in case you are hired by them.

What If Entry-Level Jobs Require Experience?

Remember earlier I talked about a paradox that many job seekers face while hunting for entry-level jobs?

If an entry-level job that is the bottom-most position you can start demands a couple of years of experience then how on earth you can ever land a job?

And mind you, this is for real. On painstakingly scrutinizing various job boards you will come across so many job descriptions that simultaneously mention the entry-level post and 2-3 years of experience required.

Frustrating right? Actually, in most cases, such an application is worth a shot.

Why?

Because the “Requirement” listing mentioned in job descriptions has both “necessary” skills along with “desirable” ones. So, when recruiters say that they are looking for experienced candidates, they do use it as a filter to narrow down the pool of suitable resumes out of the high-volume applications. But if you are successful in conveying that you have the right blend of education and skills that complement the opened post then recruiters would not mind giving you a chance.

So how do you do that?

Identifying relevant skills and personality traits that fulfill job requirements- the task can be a little tough but fruitful.

You have to dissect your projects, internships, workshops, professional memberships, certificate courses, teamwork experience, etc. to find out solid outcomes and learned skills. If the job post you are applying for can derive benefits from those skill sets then you have hit the bull’s eye. (Unless there is an irreconcilable gap between what you have and what is needed)

In short, even if you can’t meet every single criterion, you do not have to hold back while applying for your dream job until you can prove that you are worth it.

How To Prep For Your First Day At the Entry-level job?

Congratulations!! You bagged the position after a long slog of education and struggles of job hunting. But let me warn you, you are now setting for a new journey into the real world….more exciting and more challenging.

Considering that you are one of those fortunate few to get hired in a sluggish economy, I bet you do not want to ruin this chance to shine through.

So, here is the compilation of –

Real-life hacks to sort you for the first-ever entry-level job of your career

• Dress appropriately

Find out if the company has a strict dress code or a casual dressing culture and dress the part.

• Be on time

Reaching the office on time may not sound like that crucial in making a good first impression. But being late will surely make a bad impression. So, get informed about your commute route, the approximate time it might take, traffic on that route well in advance to avoid the last-minute rush.

• Be proactive

You do not know what kind of task you will be handed on day one. Hence, it is best to expect the unexpected and be prepared to face any challenges that are flung at you. Your readiness will help you think through a tricky situation. Or otherwise, you may also spend your day without much problem.

• Do not hesitate to ask question

You will not be judged for not knowing something. Many times, insecurity emerges from our lack of confidence in ourselves. Therefore, always ask a question in case you do not understand something.

• Smile

Your friendly demeanor will help you break the ice.

Happy Job hunting…