Exclude Education From Your Resume?
Including your education on your resume is not a necessity.
There are a plethora of reasons why you may want to exclude some of your education from your resume.
While we definitely recommend including your education on your resume, certain scenarios may make it more appealing to leave off.
We’ve compiled a list of the times when excluding your education from your resume may be more prudent.
You’ll want to think carefully for your own situation and make an informed decision if removing your education from your resume makes sense.
Each scenario is different so proceed with your own best judgment.
High School Education
You don’t need to include your education if it is a high school diploma.
If you have not attended college, it is better to not have an education section.
Your education will be addressed, if needed, during the interview.
Having a college degree may not be a requirement for the position, so simply exclude the education portion from your resume.
Positions You’re Overqualified For
In certain cases, you may be applying for a position which you are overqualified for.
In these cases, it is okay to “dumb down” your resume and remove any higher education degrees to better align yourself with the requirements
If you are asked about your degrees during the interview, you can briefly mention your advanced degrees.
However, I would not dwell on it and would continue to the why you want the position.
Irrelevant Education On Resume
If you’re applying for a highly technical role and have your bachelor’s degree in a creative field, then it may be prudent to leave off.
The reason?
Because you only have so much space on your resume.
Rather than taking-up valuable real estate with an irrelevant degree, that space can be better utilized on your experience.
Graduation Year
If you graduated from a college over 12-years ago, it may be best to remove your education from your resume.
At a certain point, your direct work experience will mean more than your educational history.
Leaving on your education doesn’t provide any relevancy after years of direct work experience.
Multiple Degrees
If you have multiple degrees from multiple schools, then removing the ones that don’t relate to the job you are applying for is in your best interest.
Having too many degrees that aren’t related can confuse and discern employers.
Only show the educational degrees which are directly related to the positions you are applying for.
When Your Resume Is Too Long
As we discussed earlier, real estate is valuable and limited on a resume.
If you have years of relevant work experience, then you can remove your education to leave more room for work experience.
Excluding Community College Degrees
If you attended a community college, earned your associate degree, and then moved onto a 4-year college or university, then you can remove the Associate Degree and community college from your resume.
It is better to focus on the big-name university, then a community college which may be more regionally known.
Conclusion
Including or excluding your educational experience is wholly dependent on your specific circumstance.
There may be times where it is more prudent to remove and not include on your resume.
You should do so after careful consideration and understanding of the role.
If a role requires, explicitly, a degree level, then you should keep your education on your resume.
