Resume Education Section: Format, Order & What to Include

How Much Does Your Education Section Matter?

The importance of your education section depends on your career stage. For recent graduates, it may be the strongest section on your resume. For professionals with 10+ years of experience, it is a brief credential check.

Understanding where to place your education, what to include, and what to leave out can make a meaningful difference in how your resume is received.

Where to Place Education on Your Resume

Recent Graduates (0-3 Years of Experience)

Place education above your work experience. Your degree is your primary credential at this stage. Include:

Degree and major

University name and location

Graduation date (month and year)

GPA if 3.5 or above

Relevant coursework (3-5 courses max)

Academic honors (Dean's List, Latin honors, scholarships)

Senior thesis or capstone project

Mid-Career Professionals (3-10 Years)

Place education below your work experience. Keep it concise:

Degree and major

University name

Graduation year

At this stage, your work experience speaks louder than your GPA or coursework.

Senior Professionals (10+ Years)

Place education at the bottom. Include only:

Degree and university name

Advanced degrees or MBAs deserve slightly more prominence

Drop your GPA entirely. Nobody cares about your GPA from 15 years ago.

How to Format Your Education Section

Standard Format

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science University of Michigan, Ann Arbor | May 2022 GPA: 3.8/4.0 | Dean's List (6 semesters) | Magna Cum Laude

Multiple Degrees

List your highest or most recent degree first: Master of Business Administration (MBA) Stanford Graduate School of Business | June 2024 Bachelor of Arts in Economics UCLA | May 2020

Incomplete Degree

If you attended college but did not finish, you can still list it: University of Texas at Austin | Aug 2018 - May 2020 Coursework in Business Administration (72 credits completed)

Never lie about completing a degree you did not finish. Employers verify education, and dishonesty is grounds for termination even years later.

Currently Enrolled

Master of Science in Data Science (Expected May 2027) Georgia Institute of Technology

Adding "Expected" and the anticipated graduation date is standard practice.

What to Include (and What to Skip)

Include:

Degrees (Bachelor's, Master's, Doctorate, Associate's)

University name and location

Graduation date or expected graduation

GPA if 3.5+ and you have less than 5 years of experience

Relevant honors, awards, or scholarships

Relevant coursework (for entry-level candidates)

Study abroad (if relevant to the role)

Thesis or dissertation title (for academic or research roles)

Skip:

High school diploma (unless you have no college education)

GPA below 3.5 (unless the employer requires it)

Graduation date if you are concerned about age discrimination (optional)

Every course you ever took — only list 3-5 highly relevant ones

Unrelated minors or concentrations

Special Education Situations

Bootcamps and Online Certificates

Tech bootcamps (General Assembly, Flatiron, App Academy) and online certificates (Google Career Certificates, Coursera Specializations) are increasingly respected. List them in education or in a dedicated "Certifications & Training" section: Full-Stack Web Development Certificate General Assembly | September 2025

For more on certifications, read our certifications guide.

Trade Schools and Technical Programs

List trade certifications prominently, especially if they are required for your field: Licensed Electrician — Journeyman ABC Technical Institute | 2023

International Education

If your degree is from outside the US, consider including a credential evaluation (e.g., WES or ECE) to help employers understand its equivalence.

ATS Considerations

ATS systems scan your education section for:

Degree type (Bachelor's, Master's, MBA, PhD)

Field of study

School name

Graduation date

Use standard formatting and common abbreviations (BS, BA, MBA, MS, PhD). Avoid unusual layouts that might confuse parsers. For more ATS tips, check our ATS format guide.

Build Your Resume with the Right Education Format

Whether you are a recent graduate leading with academics or a seasoned pro keeping education brief, getting this section right matters for both human readers and ATS systems.

Create your perfectly formatted resume with our AI resume builder, then verify it with our free ATS checker. Browse resume examples across industries to see how other professionals handle their education sections.