How should a fresher write a resume in India?

A recruiter screening fresher applications spends very little time on each resume on the first pass. Your resume has one job: make it obvious, quickly, that you can do the role and that your proof is real. For freshers, that proof is mostly projects, internships and results you can link to.

How to write a fresher resume, step by step

1. 1

   Start from a simple one-column layout

   Use a plain template with standard headings. Skip tables, text boxes, icons and two-column designs, which some applicant tracking systems read out of order.

2. 2

   Put contact details and links at the top

   Name, city, phone, a professional email, and links to GitHub, LinkedIn or a portfolio. Make the links clickable in the PDF.

3. 3

   Add education with only what's asked

   Degree, college, graduation year and CGPA. Many Indian companies also ask for 10th and 12th percentages, so keep them on one short line.

4. 4

   List skills in groups

   Languages, frameworks, tools, and so on. Include only skills you can answer interview questions on.

5. 5

   Write two to four projects with links

   Name, one line on what it does, two bullets on what you built and the result, the tech used, and a live link and a code link.

6. 6

   Add internships, achievements and certifications

   Internships first, then hackathons, contests and certifications that relate to the roles you're applying for.

7. 7

   Tailor keywords for each application

   Read the job post and make sure the skills it names, which you genuinely have, appear in your resume with the same wording.

8. 8

   Export as PDF and check it

   Save as a text-based PDF named like 'Firstname-Lastname-Resume.pdf'. Select-all and copy the text to check it reads in the right order.

What 'ATS-friendly' really means

Many companies use an applicant tracking system (ATS) to collect and search applications. These systems read the text of your resume and let recruiters filter and search it. Being ATS-friendly is less about tricks and more about being easy to read, by software and people alike:

• Text, not pictures of text. Export from Word, Google Docs or a LaTeX template to PDF. Never upload a scanned image.
• Standard headings: Education, Skills, Projects, Experience, Achievements.
• One column. Two-column layouts and tables can be read in the wrong order.
• Common fonts at 10–12 pt, with clear spacing.
• The same words as the job post, where they're true for you: 'REST APIs', not only 'backend stuff'.

Don't hide keywords in white text or stuff the whole job post into your resume. Recruiters read the resume after the filter, and it's an instant rejection.

Why one page

With little or no work experience, a second page usually means padding: school activities, long objective statements, or every course you've taken. One page forces you to show only your strongest proof, which is what the reader wants anyway.

Projects: the most important section for freshers

For most freshers, projects are where the hiring decision is made. Two finished projects with links beat six half-done tutorial clones. Use the formats below and copy them into your resume.

[Action verb] [what you built] using [tech], which [result or who used it].

Example: Built a college event registration app using React and Firebase, used by students from four departments during the annual fest.

[Project name] | [Tech 1], [Tech 2], [Tech 3] | Live: [link] | Code: [link]
- [One line: what it does and for whom]
- [What you built: the hardest or most interesting part]
- [Result: users, speed, accuracy, or what you learned, only if real]

[Degree] [Year] graduate focused on [area], with [number] deployed projects in [main stack]. Looking for a [role] role where I can [one specific thing].

What to leave out of a fresher resume in India

• Photo, date of birth, father's name, marital status, religion and full home address. They aren't needed to judge your skills; add them only if a specific employer asks.
• A 'Declaration' line and a signature at the bottom.
• Long objective statements ('To work in a challenging environment...').
• Skill ratings, bars and stars: they say nothing useful.
• Every certificate you've ever earned. Keep the ones that relate to the role.

Use real numbers, or none

Numbers make bullets stronger, but only real ones. Users, stars, response times, dataset sizes, ranks in a contest: if you can explain it in an interview, include it. Never invent a percentage improvement; interviewers ask how you measured it.

Then send it to the right people

A great resume still needs to reach someone. Pair it with a short email to HR: see how to cold email HR. NextKnock reads your resume once, matches you to fresh openings from 1,305 companies, and drafts a short email for each job, grounded only in what your resume says, for you to approve and send from your Gmail. Browse fresher jobs or try the free cold email generator.