Employers Perform An Education Background Check
Many prospective employers will do a background check on job-seekers so you should avoid lying on your resume. They will verify an applicants education and degrees as a part of that process.
Unfortunately, some applicants will lie about earning a degree. Furthermore, some candidates will present a phony diploma to an employer. This dishonestly is why employers have to make sure you have the educational credentials you claim to have.
Heres a list of other things you should avoid putting on your resume.
Resume Template With High School Education Details
Use this template as a guide when you’re writing your resume and want to include your high school education:
Career Objective high school seeking an opportunity to work as a at so I can .
Experience | |
Education |
- Notable achievements:
- Relevant courses:
Skills
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Pick The Ideal Resume Layout
The hard part is over. Youve written your resume, and are feeling confident about getting that interview. Now its time to take a moment and consider your resumes design.
Depending on the industry you work in or the job you want, you may need to adjust your resume layout to fit the expectations of the hiring manager.
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Why Is A Resume Education Section Important
Like numbers quantifying accomplishments in other parts of a resume, education is proven by degrees and diplomas earned.
On top of that, a resume education section helps show direction
Employers want hires who are willing to learn and improve, and your education on resume shows that.
When you dress it up with impressive extracurricular activities, relevant coursework, and honorsall the better!
Expert Hint: Double-check if there are no typos in your resume. They undermine your educationand your chances for employment. 58% of employers auto-reject resumes that contain typos.
Pick The Right Resume Format For You
There are three resume formats you can use as a teacher. The format you pick depends on your professional background.
Chronological resumes are the most standard type of resume. Use this format if your work history is similarly standard, and youve worked in education your entire life.
Functional resumes are most effective if you have employment gaps, or are changing to education after working in an unrelated field. Functional resumes highlight your transferable skills and achievements rather than your work history.
Combination resumes are a good balance between chronological and functional resumes. The combination format equally emphasizes work experience and skills. Use this type of resume if you have minimal experience teaching, but have technical skills that increase your hireability.
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How To List Education On A Resume With Examples
The education section of your resume provides hiring managers with a detailed insight into your background and how it relates to the role. When written to reflect the job requirements, your education section can give you an advantage over other candidates. The best way to list your education depends on your work and academic achievements.
There are several ways to list education on your resume. Reading and understanding the job description can help identify the perfect location and level of qualification to include when applying to a position. Not all jobs need your full credentials, so you can check the job listing to see what the hiring managers are looking for. In this article, you can learn about how to list your education on a resume.
How To Write Degree On Resume
First, check the job listingits the perfect cheat sheet.
Refer to your diploma the same way your future employer talks about it.
If they say BA, you say BA.
If they say B.A., add those periods.
But here’s a great trick: when talking about diplomas, use the preferred abbreviation and the whole form: Bachelor of Arts .
If the ATS expects to see bachelor not BA, this will double your chances of being understood by those annoying robots.
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Where To List Your Education In A Resume
The ideal location of the education section depends on your academic achievements and experience. If you are in college or graduated one or two years ago, its better to highlight your education at the top of the resume. This will show the interviewer your academic achievements relevant to the role, even if you have limited work experience.
If you have enough work experience to impress the employer, consider putting the education section at the lower part of your resume.
Education For A College Student With Some Work Experience
If you are a college student with work experience, place your education section above work. Include the name of the institution, degree type and the expected year of graduation. You can also mention coursework, extracurricular activities, organizations and other academic achievements relevant to the role. Dont include your GPA if it is below 3.5.
Example of the education section for a college student with work experience:
California State University, California
Bachelor of Science in Banking and Finance, September 2017
Minored in Accounting
Relevant Coursework: Accounting Systems, Actuarial Sciences, Anti Money Laundering Protocols
Extracurricular activities: Treasurer for the Association of Accounting Students
GPA: 3.95/4.0
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If Its Relevant To The Position
If your unfinished degree is relevant to the job youre applying for, include details that show your hiring manager the experience and knowledge youve gained from your education.
Include any relevant coursework or the number of credits completed in your education section. You should also include any academic achievements that demonstrate excellence in your field of study.
Heres an example of how to list unfinished college on your resume if its highly relevant to the job:
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN Ann Arbor, Michigan2018-2020, GPA: 3.8/4.0Completed 75 credits towards a B.A. in Environmental Studies with a specialization in Urban Planning
- Awarded the Abrams Family Internship Scholarship for my internship at Ann Arbor City Government Planning and Development Department.
Education On Resumerelevant Coursework
City University of New York, New York, NY
Relevant Coursework: network & security applications, internet-of-things, cloud foundations.
- Museum of Science Student Guild
Some even suggest adding your thesis as an educational element. You may want to include a separate Thesis subsection under the appropriate educational degree and indicate the title of your thesis in italics,states Harvard Law School.
Our advice is, if its relevant, go right ahead!
Please note, of course, that two or more of the various education subsections above may be combined. Just stack them one atop the other.
Expert Hint: Only add extracurricular activities in your education section if they are relevant and affiliated with your time at the school. Otherwise, list relevant activities in a resume hobbies and interests section.
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How Many Pages Should A Resume Be
The short answer is that one page is the ideal resume length for most candidates. However, if you have a lot of relevant work experience, it can be two or even three pages.
Just note that unless youre applying for an upper-management position or an academic post, one page will be enough for hiring managers. Even Elon Musks resume could be tightened into one page.
If youre applying for an academic position, youll need to send a CV instead of a resume. Keep in mind that CV templates are often several pages long, and contain more information to show the progression of your academic career.
Put Advanced Degrees First
Usually, you should lay down your educational background by listing the most recent or advanced degree first, working in reverse chronological order. But there are exceptions. Say you earned a degree in geography, but are now working in the field of online marketing. If you more recently completed coursework specific to social media or digital marketing, list that first to grab the reviewers attention.
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Write The Name Of The School And Its Location
The first thing you can add is the name of the school you attended or are currently attending. Next to the school, list the city and state where it’s located. If you’re applying for an international job, you can also list the country. It’s acceptable to list the name of the school before the degree you received.
What If You Went Back To School To Get A New Degree
Are you changing careers? If you got a new degree becauseyou want to pursue another type of work, then its vital that you include yournew degree on your resume. Put it on top of your previous college degree.
When you switch roles, most of your previous work experiencewill be considered irrelevant. Lets say you want to switch from nursing toselling life insurance or IT to managing a restaurant. In those cases, the majority of yourprevious qualificationseducation, skills, achievementswill be inapplicable.
Thats where your new degree comes in. Youre like a freshgraduate in your new field, but a tad better. Your formal education willsatisfy the job requirements of most employers, and your transferrable skillswill boost your qualifications a bit more, so youre not seen as a totalnewbie.
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Organizing Multiple Degrees On A Resume
When organizing the different schools you attended, list them in reverse chronological order. In other words, the highest degree earned should be at the top. For example, your masters degree should be listed above your bachelors degree.
Have you attended college? If so, you dont need to list your high school degree. Your high school information should only be included if you are still attending high school or college. If youve graduated from college, the higher degree can take the place of your high school degree on your resume.
Recent Or Current Students Can Lead With Your Education Section
If youre a current student and dont have a lot of work experience, its fine to lead with your education section. Its the most recent experience you have. Leading with your education also prevents anyone whos skimming over your resume from assuming that youre simply inexperienced or unemployed, when the reality is that youre in full-time education. Its also okay to include your degree if you havent officially graduated yet simply list it as expected May 2021 .
The same applies if youre a recent graduate. If your education is still the most relevant or most impressive experience you have, list it first.
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Tips For Education Section In Your Resume
Leave out GPA If your GPA is less than 3.0 do not include it on your resume. Because a GPA under 3.0 is not an impressive factor to the recruiter about yourself.
Dont include high school If you have a degree qualification such as bachelors or masters, it is okay to leave out high school education. Do not try to fill out your resume by including all your education information.
Break into subsections If you have a lot of things to talk about your education just mention your degree and institution under the main title Education. Then break into subsections such as Certifications, Awards and honors, professional development, etc., and include the relevant information.
Tailor your education section Refer the specific job advertisement carefully and find relevant keywords. Add them in your education description. So, it will help you to pass the ATS scan.
The Ultimate Resume Guide
Where To Put Gpa On A Resume
You should put your GPA in your education section, next to your major. If youve earned honors at your university , those honors should be listed below your majorin italicswith your GPA beside them.
Heres how it should look:
DePaul University | Chicago, IL | December 2009-March 2013
Bachelor of Arts in English Composition
Bear in mind, you should only list your GPA on your resume if it is over a 3.5 and if youre a recent graduate. If youre a recent graduate and your GPA is below 3.5, use the space to talk about an impressive senior thesis project instead.
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Where To Place Education In Progress On Your Resume
The second issue you need to address is placement. Where should you place these details when youâre trying to figure out how to list education in progress on a resume? There are two main possibilities, depending upon whether the degree is needed for the job youâre seeking.
If the job requirements include the degree that youâre pursuing, then you should try to emphasize that information in your resume. Position it near the beginning of your resume, after the summary section. That way, the employer will see that youâre close to completing that requirement before he or she delves any further into the document. This placement helps to showcase your interest and suitability right away.
On the other hand, you should place this detail later in the resume if the degree isnât needed for the position. In that instance, you can place your work history and skills higher up in the resume and leave your education for the end.
Other Details You Can Add:
Other aspects of your educational career that you can add to your education section include any honors societies or Greek organizations, for example, that you may have been a part of. Likewise, if you completed an important and relevant project that seriously demonstrates your skills and abilities, you can mention that project and the role you played in it. Again, these are only to be included if you just recently graduated and do not have much experience to include on the rest of your resume.
What about education you’re still working on? How do you include education you havent completed? You can write the name of your school and the degree toward which you’re working, as well as you’re anticipated graduation date.
Now that you know what to include in your education section, where does it go? Do you start with your education section or do you end with it and how exactly do you format it all?
“If you have more than five years of work experience, dont lead with the education section of your resume,” according to Live Career. “Hiring managers will be more interested in your work history and your accomplishments in your career than in your degree.”
Here are some tips for writing your education section on your resume.
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When Should I Leave Education Off A Resume
Most people list the highest level of education relevant for the job, even if they are experienced candidates. But the more relevant work experience you have, the less important the education section becomes.
Always read the job description carefully to identify whether the employer requires specific education qualifications. Add that education to your resume if you have completed it.
Writing Your Experience Into Your Resume
With the ever-increasing fluctuation and turnover rates found in the professional world today, more and more applicants are filtering in and out of the work force in and out of business owners and managements hands which is why ensuring your resume will stand out above the rest is more important now than ever before.
In fact, with increasing online opportunities for applications to be obtained from all over the world and processed to find just the right candidate, there is arguably more competition in the workforce now than ever before as well.
According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, employers are choosing to request and review resumes over applications these days, even using applicant-tracking systems that initially review resumes, to ensure the un- or under-qualified applicants are eliminated early on and that the right person for the job is efficiently and accurately obtained.
Because of this new and widely used technology, and because the field and range of potential applicants has grown past the local market to worldwide audience, knowing how to make your resume shine is essential for landing the job of your dreams after college.
at least 50% of job hunters dont possess the basic qualifications for the jobs they are pursuing.
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Highlight Your Relevant Work Experience
Your work experience section is the most essential part of your resume because its the best representation of your qualifications.
If you lack formal work experience, however, dont worry. Simply title this section Relevant Experience and use it to highlight details about your volunteer work, extracurriculars, or relevant school coursework.
To create a logical and informative work experience section, list your relevant experience from most recent to least recent . For each job, list the following information:
- Your title
- Company location
- Dates of employment
If youre still currently working at a company, you can simply write , present for the employment dates.
A general rule is that each job title includes about 35 bullet points of your main duties and achievements working in that role.
3 parts of a strong bullet point:
- 1st: Action verb
- 2nd: Quantifiable point
- 3rd: Specific and relevant job duty
Example 1:
Trained5+ cashiers, managing their cash limits and guaranteeing quality customer service at all times.
Example 2:
Spearheadedthe development of the first media kit amalgamation for all company projects, increasing national sales by 8%.
One reason the above bullet points are effective is that they use action verbs to grab the attention of hiring managers. Describing your experience using strong action verbs helps illustrate to employers what youve accomplished and what kind of skills you have.
But Just How Much Of Your Education Needs To Actually Make It Onto Your Resume
Only your most recent and relevant education should go on your resume that means your degrees and any specific schooling you’ve done in your field. If you’re wondering, ‘do I need to put my high school on my resume?’ The typical answer is no, unless high school is the most schooling that you’ve had.
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