How to Write a Resume for an Entry Level Finance Job (With Examples)

Breaking into finance is competitive. You're applying against dozens of candidates who have similar GPAs, similar internships, and the same list of Excel skills. So why do some candidates get callbacks while others don't? Almost always, it comes down to the resume — specifically, how well it communicates relevant skills, quantifies results, and speaks the language of the industry. This guide will show you exactly how to write a resume for an entry level finance job that moves past the initial screen and gets you in front of a hiring manager.

What Should an Entry Level Finance Resume Include?

Before you start writing, you need to understand what finance employers are actually looking for. Entry level finance roles — think financial analyst, junior accountant, investment banking analyst, credit analyst, or operations associate — have specific expectations even for candidates straight out of school.

The Core Sections Every Finance Resume Needs

A strong entry level finance resume should include these sections, in roughly this order:

1. Contact Information — Name, phone, email, LinkedIn URL, and city/state. No need for a full address.
2. Resume Summary or Objective (optional but recommended) — A 2–3 sentence statement that positions you as a focused candidate.
3. Education — Especially important at the entry level; goes near the top.
4. Relevant Experience — Internships, part-time roles, campus jobs, research positions.
5. Skills — Technical tools and finance-specific competencies.
6. Certifications or Coursework — CFA Level I, Bloomberg Market Concepts, relevant coursework.
7. Projects (optional) — Academic or personal finance projects that demonstrate applied skills.

If you have limited work history, lean on your projects and coursework more heavily. There's more on that approach in this guide on writing a resume for an entry level job with no experience.

How Do You Write a Finance Resume With No Experience?

This is one of the most common concerns, and it's more solvable than most people think. "No experience" rarely means zero relevant activity — it usually means no paid, full-time finance experience. That's different.

What Counts as Relevant Experience

Finance employers care about analytical thinking, attention to detail, and financial literacy. You can demonstrate all of these through:

• Internships — Even a 10-week internship at a regional bank or accounting firm carries significant weight.
• Campus organizations — Investment clubs, finance societies, or student-run funds are highly regarded. If you managed a mock portfolio or pitched a stock, that belongs on your resume.
• Academic projects — A semester-long financial modeling project, a DCF analysis for a class, or a business valuation assignment are all fair game.
• Freelance or volunteer work — Helping a small business with bookkeeping or preparing tax returns as a volunteer counts as real experience.
• Research roles — Working as a research assistant for a professor studying economics or finance is directly relevant.

How to Frame Non-Finance Experience

If your only work history is retail, food service, or something entirely unrelated, focus on transferable skills: cash handling, reconciling registers, budget management, data entry accuracy, or customer financial transactions. These aren't finance roles, but they demonstrate numeracy and reliability — qualities finance employers value.

What Are the Best Keywords for an Entry Level Finance Resume?

Finance job descriptions are fairly consistent in the language they use, and your resume needs to reflect that language to pass through applicant tracking systems (ATS) and catch a recruiter's eye.

Hard Skills and Technical Keywords

Include these where you genuinely have the skill:

• Microsoft Excel (and specific functions: VLOOKUP, pivot tables, INDEX/MATCH, financial modeling)
• Financial modeling and valuation (DCF, comparable company analysis, precedent transactions)
• Accounting principles (GAAP, accounts payable/receivable, general ledger)
• Bloomberg Terminal or FactSet
• SQL or Python (increasingly common in finance roles)
• QuickBooks or SAP (for accounting-focused positions)
• PowerPoint and data visualization

Soft Skills Worth Including (With Evidence)

Don't just list soft skills — prove them. Instead of writing "strong analytical skills," write:

"Built a 3-statement financial model for a course project analyzing a $500M acquisition target, identifying $40M in synergy potential."

That sentence shows analytical thinking, financial knowledge, and communication — without ever using the phrase "analytical skills."

Industry-Specific Terms by Role

Tailor your keyword choices to the specific role:

How Should You Format a Finance Resume?

Finance is a conservative industry. Your resume format should reflect that.

Formatting Rules That Finance Recruiters Expect

• One page — Almost universally expected for entry level candidates. Two pages are acceptable only if you have multiple internships spanning several years.
• Clean, minimal design — No graphics, no colored headers, no photos. Stick to a simple, professional layout with clear section dividers.
• Consistent fonts — Use a single serif or sans-serif font (Garamond, Calibri, or Times New Roman all work). Font size should be 10–12pt for body text.
• Reverse chronological order — Most recent experience first within each section.
• Bullet points, not paragraphs — Each bullet should begin with a strong action verb and include a measurable result where possible.

The Formula for Strong Finance Resume Bullets

Use this structure: Action verb + Task/Responsibility + Quantified Result

• ✅ "Analyzed monthly budget variances across 6 cost centers, identifying $18,000 in unallocated expenses."
• ✅ "Built a DCF model in Excel to value a mid-cap consumer goods company as part of a 4-person investment club team."
• ❌ "Responsible for financial analysis and reporting tasks."

Numbers matter in finance. Use them wherever you honestly can — dollar amounts, percentages, time savings, dataset sizes, number of accounts managed.

Should You Write a Summary or Objective on a Finance Resume?

For entry level candidates, a brief resume summary or objective can help — especially if your background is unconventional or you're career-changing into finance.

Example Resume Summary for an Entry Level Finance Job

"Finance graduate with a 3.6 GPA and two internship experiences in corporate banking and FP&A. Proficient in Excel financial modeling, Bloomberg Terminal, and financial statement analysis. Seeking an analyst role where I can contribute to data-driven decision-making."

This works because it's specific (mentions the internship areas and tools), it quantifies something (GPA), and it signals what the candidate wants without being vague.

If your GPA is below 3.0, leave it out or only include it if the employer specifically asks. If it's 3.5 or above, include it — finance firms often use GPA as an initial filter.

How Do You Tailor Your Finance Resume for Each Application?

One of the most consistent mistakes entry level candidates make is sending the same resume to every job. Finance roles vary significantly — a resume optimized for an investment banking analyst role will look different from one targeting a corporate treasury position.

Read each job description carefully and identify:

• The specific tools or software mentioned
• The type of analysis emphasized (valuation vs. reporting vs. risk)
• The industry sector (healthcare finance vs. financial services vs. tech)
• Specific language or phrases that appear repeatedly

Then adjust your resume summary, skills section, and the order or emphasis of your bullet points to match. This doesn't mean fabricating experience — it means surfacing the parts of your background that are most relevant.

Tools like Omprio can automate this process by analyzing a job posting and suggesting how to reframe your existing experience to align with what the employer is looking for, which is especially useful when you're applying to several roles at once.

What Certifications Strengthen a Finance Resume?

Certifications can meaningfully differentiate your resume, especially if your GPA or work experience is limited.

• Bloomberg Market Concepts (BMC) — Free for many students through university portals, takes about 8 hours, and is well recognized.
• CFA Level I (passed or enrolled) — Signals serious commitment to the field. Even being a CFA candidate is worth listing.
• Financial Modeling & Valuation Analyst (FMVA) — Offered by the Corporate Finance Institute; highly regarded for analyst roles.
• Excel certifications — Microsoft Office Specialist certification in Excel is a credible credential for roles that emphasize spreadsheet work.

List certifications in a dedicated section, including the issuing organization and the year completed or expected.

Key Takeaways

Writing a strong resume for an entry level finance job comes down to four things: speaking the right language, quantifying your contributions, formatting for the industry, and tailoring for each role. You don't need years of experience to compete — but you do need a resume that's specific, honest, and strategically aligned with what finance employers are screening for. Start with the sections outlined here, build out your bullet points using the action-result formula, and customize for each application rather than blasting out a generic document. That combination will put you ahead of most candidates in the pile.

Frequently Asked Questions

What GPA should I include on my finance resume?

Include your GPA if it is 3.0 or higher. Most finance employers — especially banks and investment firms — use GPA as an early filter. If your overall GPA is below 3.0 but your major GPA is stronger, you can list your major GPA instead and label it clearly (e.g., "Major GPA: 3.4"). If both are below 3.0, simply omit it and let your experience and skills carry the resume.

How long should a finance resume be at the entry level?

One page. This is a firm expectation in most finance hiring contexts. If you're struggling to fit everything on one page, prioritize your most recent and most relevant experience, cut soft-skill lists in favor of demonstrated accomplishments, and tighten your bullet points. If you genuinely have 3+ internships and meaningful extracurricular leadership, two pages can be justified — but one page is the default.

Should I list Excel as a skill on a finance resume?

Yes — but be specific. Simply writing "Microsoft Excel" is less useful than writing "Microsoft Excel (VLOOKUP, pivot tables, financial modeling, dynamic dashboards)". Finance employers want to know your level of proficiency. If you've built multi-tab financial models or worked with large datasets, say so. Excel is table stakes in finance; the details are what distinguish you.

What if I have no finance internships at all?

Focus on what you do have: coursework, academic projects, investment club participation, relevant certifications, and transferable work experience. Frame your academic projects as concisely as you would a work role — give them a title, describe your methodology, and quantify any outcomes. Then prioritize getting experience before your next job cycle, even if it's a short-term volunteer role, a part-time bookkeeping position, or an unpaid research opportunity. A single relevant experience, described well, can shift how a recruiter reads your entire resume.