Unless your friend has a job offer he cannot apply under Federal Skilled worker without having a minimum of ONE FULL YEAR working in one of the occupations listed in the NOC 29 list. This list is now closed until 1 July 2012. No one knows if they will or will not change the occupation list when it reopens, so keep watching for the announcement. Search for "CIC news" the link looks like this
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/media/releases/2012/2012-05-29.aspUnder the present rules, your job duties are what determines whether you can apply in a specific NOC. Although a number of highly skilled jobs (nursing, medicine, pharmacy, etc) would require appropriate education in order to claim work experience. Good Luck.