Many do, when they say. Of the entry-level jobs that state a minimum number of years, 79% ask for at least a year and 29% for two or more, and the median asked is 1 year. But most entry-level postings state no minimum at all: 27% do, and the other 73% leave the years unsaid.
These figures are from Rezifi's October 2026 freshers report: 94,806 open jobs on the careers sites of 794 employers, counted on 29 October 2026, of which 11,163 are internships or entry-level roles. This post is the short version. The report has every chart, India beside the US, and the data file behind them.
1 in 8
open jobs is entry level
8%
of India's open jobs
79%
ask 1+ year, when stated
4%
of entry-level jobs are remote
How much experience entry-level jobs ask for
A posting counts here only when its own words state a number, such as "1+ years" or "at least 2 years of experience". Of the entry-level jobs that do, 19% put the minimum at 0 years, and the largest group, 50%, asks for a year.
Indian entry-level postings state a minimum more often (50% of them), and 73% of those ask for at least a year, 26% for two or more.
So when a posting asks for a year, read it as a reason to show your time, not a reason to skip the job. Internships, projects, a final-year project and part-time work are all time spent doing the work. Put each one on your resume with its dates and what you did, so a reader can see it.
How many open jobs are entry level
11,163 of the 94,806 open jobs counted, 1 in 8, are internships or entry-level roles. Rezifi's AI reads each posting and records its level (internship, entry level, mid level, senior or lead), so the count follows what the posting says, not its title. The share depends on the kind of work: machine learning and AI engineering (16%), HR (14%) and finance (14%) have the largest share of entry-level openings, and engineering management the smallest (1%).
India: fewer entry-level jobs, and fewer still in engineering
8% of India's open jobs are entry level (1,876 of 24,043), against 12% in the US. In engineering the gap is wider: 44 of 1,429 backend jobs and 16 of 518 full-stack jobs in India are entry level.
These are the jobs on employers' own careers sites. Job boards that list other companies' postings are left out, so this is not every job in India. Search the job boards too.
The skills entry-level jobs ask for
A job counts a skill once, however often it names it, and only when the posting's own words name it. Microsoft Excel leads (16% of entry-level jobs), just ahead of Python (15%). In India Microsoft Excel leads (18%); in the US, Python (19%).
Remote work and pay at entry level
Remote work is rarer at entry level: 4% of entry-level jobs are remote, against 10% of all open jobs. In India, 40 of 1,876 entry-level jobs are remote.
In the US, 53% of entry-level jobs state the pay, against 65% of US jobs overall. In India, 24 of 1,876 entry-level jobs do.
What this means for your first resume
- Apply when you are close. A posting that asks for a year is still worth an application if you have internships, projects or part-time work behind you. Give each one its dates and a line on what you did.
- Use the posting's own words for its skills. If it asks for Microsoft Excel or Python, name them that way in your skills section and in the line that proves them. A recruiter searching for a skill searches for its name, and so does the applicant tracking system (ATS) behind the careers page.
- Check what an ATS reads. Rezifi's free ATS check for freshers scores your resume out of 100 the way an ATS and a recruiter read it and shows what a machine reads, with no sign-up.
- No resume yet? Rezifi's resume builder builds a resume from your notes, your LinkedIn profile or a PDF, on ATS-friendly templates. Resume format for freshers walks through every section of a first one.
- Tailor it to each job. Rezifi's resume tailor rewrites your bullets, summary and skills in each job's own keywords, and never invents an employer, role, date or credential.
Questions people ask
Do entry-level jobs require experience?
Many do, when they say. Of 11,163 internships and entry-level jobs counted on 29 October 2026, 27% state a minimum number of years, and of those 79% ask for at least a year and 29% for two or more. The median asked is 1 year.
What share of open jobs are entry level?
1 in 8: 11,163 of 94,806 open jobs on the careers sites of 794 employers (12%) were internships or entry-level roles on 29 October 2026, counted by Rezifi.
How many entry-level jobs are there in India?
On employers' own careers sites, 1,876 of 24,043 open jobs in India (8%) were internships or entry-level roles on 29 October 2026, against 12% in the US. Job boards that list other companies' postings are not counted.
Are there remote entry-level jobs?
Fewer, as a share: 4% of entry-level jobs are remote, against 10% of all open jobs. In India, 40 of 1,876 entry-level jobs were remote on 29 October 2026.
What skills do entry-level jobs ask for?
The most asked are Microsoft Excel (16%), Python (15%), Microsoft PowerPoint (7%), Artificial Intelligence (7%) and SQL (6%). In India the top three are Microsoft Excel, Python and SQL.
Where do these numbers come from?
From the open jobs on 794 employers' own careers sites that Rezifi reads for its job feed, counted on 29 October 2026: posted in the last 60 days and still live in the last 3, each posting counted once. The method and the data are in Rezifi's October 2026 freshers report.
The full report, with the years by kind of job, India beside the US and the data file, is Rezifi's October 2026 freshers report. Before you apply, run your resume through Rezifi's free ATS check for freshers to see what an ATS reads; it needs no sign-up, and Rezifi is free to get started, no card needed.