There’s a certifying authority, the certification itself, the date of completion, and other details! But there is only so much space in your resume.
After experimenting for over 5 years with clients from different industries, our professional resume writers have created the winning formula for writing resume certifications.
And we will teach you everything about how to put certification on your resume.
Here are the things we will learn in this blog:
We will share the winning formula with you for writing the certification section on your resume in this post. By the end of this post, your resume will have a certifications section that will outshine the competition.
Both landed jobs through campus placement. With their GPA, who wouldn’t hire them?
They excelled in their respective companies and were having the time of their lives.
But as luck would have it, they both realized they needed a change. Why spend the prime years of their lives stuck in a single company? They had to explore!
Now, it was time to one-up their game—the time to start climbing the fabled corporate ladder.
Surprisingly, both of them knew that the journey of the corporate ladder would invariably begin with the humble resume. So both of them got into the science of resume making and started applying for jobs through different portals and sites.
While John landed quite a few interview calls, Robert was still waiting.
They had the same profile; they both came from stellar companies and were alumni of the same engineering college.
They were applying through the same medium, and in fact, they had made similar resumes too.
Then what was the difference?
The difference was the additional section of a list of certifications in John’s resume.
It became clear what was missing!
It counts if you are doing anything extra to upgrade your skills and knowledge in the cut-throat competitive world!
Does this sound exciting? If it does, there’s a lot more in store.
Even if the certification is not job-related, it can benefit your candidacy and help draw attention to your resume.
James is a Marketing Manager with ten years of experience, working with a top-notch brand and delivering your best to the company.
Additionally, he is an MBA graduate from a decent B-school.
Your work experience and education sections look pretty sorted.
Now let us evaluate your certifications.
Your certifications list is:
It makes sense to add only those certifications list to your resume, which adds VALUE to your current portfolio!
For a Marketing Manager, Digital Marketing Certification goes a long way in letting the recruiter know the additional skill in the same domain.
The skill of digital marketing shall enhance the marketing career of this candidate.
But rest of the certifications do not necessarily add value to a Marketing resume.
So whether the rest of the three certifications can be added or avoided depends upon the space constraint in the resume.
The rest of the three skills might showcase your learning stint but would not add much value while the resume is shortlisted for an interview.
At the same time, in the case of freshers, all the certifications matter a lot.
Because freshers are still deciding their path, any new certification will add value to the resume.
For example, a fresher might have done an online certification in Leadership Training.
This work showcases an essential skill of leadership. This significantly impacts the recruiter as leadership is the trait recruiters look for.
To make it a bit easy for you, these are the three criteria you can keep in mind while deciding on your certification in a resume:
Certifications for their immense value addition to a professional’s journey shall be added as a separate section in the resume:
Things to keep in mind while adding the certifications section in a resume:-
Below is the important information that you need to add to your certification:
If the certification is critical for getting into the job, you need to be aggressive while adding the certification to your resume.
Put the certification in these 4 places:
If the certification is not relevant but can add value, then they are “extra” certifications.
Put these certifications lower down in the resume. in the “Additional Information” section.
Apart from a separate certification section, you can add your most important certification in the summary section.
Example:
UpGrad Certified Digital Marketing professional possessing 5+ years of experience.
You can also add your certification as part of your resume Header like this:
Example:
“John Doe, CPA.”
You can also list the certifications in the education sections.
Example:
Bachelor of Nursing,
Rasmussen University, Altamonte Springs, FL
GPA: 3.4/5.0
Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) | American Red Cross | Jul 2024
How to add certification in resume sample: tell us which image makes a better impact.
The second image is:
We are very sure that the image with a separate certifications section must have impressed you.
So go ahead and safely add all your training programs and certifications list in this section.
Certifications and training both translate into a skill that can be applied in work.
But training does not necessarily end with a certificate.
Training programs do not have to be from a proper authority.
At the time of your final hiring, they will ask for proof of certification. At this time, it would be crucial to submit all documents.
For example, if you take up an online training course in, say, metaphysics. This might not necessarily get you a certificate though it would enhance your knowledge in the same.
For this reason, it is essential and safe to name the section “Training & Certifications” if you are adding both to the resume.
Mention all your training programs and certifications in this section.
Refer to the image below:-
Mention 'Certifications' and not 'Certification'. And while we’re at it, it’s ‘Training’ and not ‘Trainings'.
On the way to building your resume, it makes sense to start searching for a job site for applying. Visit our guide on Best Job Search Sites.
There are zillions of certifications happening around the world.
But a certification from a renowned organization holds more value.
Along with it, the certification date is also important.
Of course, the certification pursued this year holds much more important than the one taken a few years ago.
But if you mention both the certifications without saying the date, they become irrelevant to the recruiter.
Certifying authority can be mentioned with the location and date using a separator.
Certification should be listed in reverse chronological order, as given in the example.
This makes it easy for the recruiter to scan the resume for the latest certifications and quickly decide.
Let us see this image:
Don’t add an expired certification on your resume, and it takes away valuable space.
Always add the full name of your certificate at least once before abbreviating. It improves your chances of passing the ATS system.
Do not include an irrelevant certificate in the resume. It does not help you in getting the job.
Not all certifications are worth your time. While many others reinforce your skillset and multiply your chances of landing the interview.
Let’s walk through an easy certifications list to include in your resume.
The Americal Red Cross offers a Basic Life Support or BLS certification to the candidates. This certification teaches candidates the technics of basic life-saving measures.
This certification addresses that you are a responsible citizen and willing to help people.
Here is a BLS certification on resume example:
CERTIFICATION
The Federal Emergency Management Certificate or FEMA is another necessary certificate, best for candidates who are interested in emergency management. There are a series of courses and certifications. Some have an expiry date, and some don’t.
When you add FEMA certification to your resume, make sure to add Emergency Management Institute(EMI) as the accrediting body.
Here’s a FEMA Certification on resume example:
CERTIFICATION
CPR certification in a resume is not only for medical professionals. It’s also an essential certification for teachers.
Here is how to put CPR certification on your resume:
CERTIFICATION
CPR Certified,
Americal Red Cross, April 2018 - February 2020
However, don’t add the information if you are applying for a job that doesn’t require it, for instance, Account management. Since it’s not relevant, you are better off without that certification on your resume.
Note: The CPR certification is only valid for two years. And make sure your certification is valid before putting it on your resume.
Certifications to get into the marketing world are:
IT professionals can command a better salary by getting trained and certified in systems, networking, cloud computing, and cybersecurity.
If you are in technical sales, then certifications from Microsoft, Cisco, Apple, and VMware would make sense.
Below are some of the certifications to get into the IT world which would help you climb the career ladder.
Resume certificates for the following job profiles:
Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA)
Resume certificates for the following job profiles:
Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
Resume certificates for the following job profiles:
AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate
Resume certificates for the following job profiles:
Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC)
IIBA happens to be a global BA certifying body.
These are some globally recognized lists of certifications to get which will take you ahead in the analytical industry:
Certifications List for Operations Resume
If you are an Operations maverick, it would surely make sense to take note of the certifications to get in the Operations domain:
These are the Certifications to get into the HR industry:
This question holds a lot of importance because the recruiter gives just 6 seconds to the resume.
The certifications section could be placed in a resume just after the Education section to make more sense as certification is part of education.
But, to play it smartly, you can add up a certification in your career summary to highlight it in the best possible way.
Let us look at this summary:-
In this example, this operations manager has very smartly highlighted the six sigma certification in the resume summary.
It is not to say that this certification will not go on the certification list on the resume.
But it is to play it correctly to make the maximum impact on the recruiter.
Certifications surely help potential employers know your worth.
But these days, there are millions of institutions and education bodies offering millions of certificates.
In this huge gamut of certifications, recruiters place importance on only those certifications which are accredited.
Accredited certifications are backed by standard and reputed authorities.
These authorities are like the ISO of products and services.
You can get a fair idea of accredited online certifications on this link.
You can skip adding certification to a resume if the certification is not relevant to the job you are applying for.
There are a lot of sections that you can add to your resume. Such as:
Absolutely! If the online course is relevant for the job you’re applying for, then you should include it in your resume.
Online courses can help you get noticed, especially if you are a fresher.
However, make sure to keep the certification list conscious and write it in a separate section.
Now that we have all the knowledge about how to write certification on a resume, here are the key takeaways:
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