If you’ve never had a formal job, you can ask a teacher, volunteer supervisor, coach or someone you’ve done informal paid work for to be a reference. The useful question is whether that person has actually seen you follow through on a responsibility. Knowing someone with an impressive title isn’t enough.
Follow the employer’s instructions, though. An application asking for former supervisors is different from one asking for two people who know your work. If you can’t meet the requirement, ask what alternatives the employer accepts rather than inventing a manager.
Choose someone who can describe what you did
NC Careers’ guidance for first-time job seekers identifies teachers, volunteer supervisors, activity leaders and people who hired you for odd jobs as possible references. Their value comes from their knowledge of you, not simply their willingness to say something nice.
Try making a short list of responsibilities you’ve held outside paid employment. Then put a name beside each one. Who saw you complete the task? Who could explain what happened when an instruction changed or you needed help?
- A teacher or instructor: useful when they remember your project work, preparation or response to feedback. A large lecture instructor who barely knows you may have little to add.
- A volunteer coordinator: can describe duties you actually performed and how you worked with others. Identify the experience as volunteering.
- A coach or club adviser: may have observed preparation, teamwork and commitments over time. They aren’t verifying paid employment.
- An informal client: someone whose yard you maintained or children you regularly babysat may be able to discuss your reliability and work. Describe the arrangement accurately.
These are options to evaluate, not four names every applicant must supply. You might have two strong academic references and no volunteer experience. Don’t manufacture a more varied history to make the list look balanced.
Professional, academic and personal aren’t interchangeable
CareerOneStop distinguishes employment, professional, academic and personal references. It recommends choosing people who know you objectively and avoiding relatives or close friends. A personal reference is generally a fallback when stronger work-related or academic options aren’t available.
A neighbor who paid you to walk a dog every weekday has a different basis for commenting than a neighbor who occasionally sees you outside. The first can describe a service you provided. The second may only know that you’re pleasant. Neither should be labeled your supervisor at a company that doesn’t exist.
If you worked for a family business, don’t hide the relationship. Ask whether the employer will accept that reference, and offer an independent person as well if you can. A family connection doesn’t turn real work into fake experience, but it does affect how the reference should be presented.
Ask before putting down their details
Give the person enough context to decide whether they can help. A short message is fine if that’s how you normally communicate. Here’s an original example to adapt:
Hi [name], I’m applying for an entry-level [role]. Would you be comfortable being a reference for me? I thought of you because you supervised my [project or activity] and saw how I [specific responsibility]. The employer may contact you by phone or email. I can send the job description and my resume. It’s completely fine if you’re not able to do it.
Replace the brackets with true details. Don’t write a glowing recommendation for the person to repeat or pressure them after a hesitant answer. If they agree, confirm the contact information they want shared and let them know which employer may call.
CareerOneStop recommends sharing your resume and the job description so a reference can understand the opportunity. You can also remind them of a project they genuinely observed. “We worked together on the spring event check-in” is a useful memory prompt; “please say I managed the whole event” is not, unless that’s what happened.
What goes on the reference sheet?
Provide the fields the employer requests. A simple separate document can contain each person’s name, role or organization, relationship to you, and approved phone number or email. Add how long they’ve known you if requested. Don’t publish this contact list on your public resume or social profile.
For example, the relationship line could say “Instructor for my evening bookkeeping course” or “Client for weekly lawn care.” That gives a hiring manager a clear basis for the conversation. It also prevents the contact from receiving a call that assumes they supervised you in a paid role.
There isn’t a universal number of references for every first job. Supply the requested number when you can. If the form needs three and you have two, a made-up third contact is not a solution.
If you genuinely have no one to list
Contact the hiring team before submitting inaccurate information. You could write: “This would be my first formal job, so I don’t have previous employment supervisors. Would you accept an academic reference or another way to demonstrate my skills?” If you have neither, say that plainly and ask how to proceed.
The employer may accept an alternative, ask for another step or keep its requirement. No wording can guarantee that it will waive the rule. Don’t buy a reference, use a fake number or ask a friend to pretend to be a former boss.
Meanwhile, keep the rest of the application concrete. If you’re applying at a hotel, our guide to getting a front desk job without hotel experience explains how to use real school, volunteer or customer-service examples. Prepare an accurate availability answer too.
When you find an opening through an employer’s careers page, read its reference instructions early. It’s much easier to ask someone thoughtfully before an application deadline than to list them first and hope they’ll agree later.
