From the course: Writing a Resume

Tailor your education to match the job

From the course: Writing a Resume

Tailor your education to match the job

- Have you ever applied to a job that asks for a specific degree, which you didn't have, but you applied anyway because you really wanted the job? Education or the lack thereof can be a make or break situation. When working as a recruiter, there were many times where a degree was a non-negotiable requirement. Either the candidate had it or they didn't. If they didn't, we moved on. So what do you do if you don't have a degree? Do you just give up? Do you include your high school diploma or a high school equivalency? These days recruiters generally assume that you will have some type of education past high school, even if it's an associates level degree. Therefore, it's unnecessary to include any education relating to your high school on your resume. If you have not included an education section on the resume, the assumption will be that you completed high school, but not college. The exception to this would be, if you're enrolled in college after high school and you're applying for an internship. But even then there is a savvy way to indicate this, which consists of including your college information without a graduation date, and the words anticipated or expected graduation date. If you don't have a college degree, but did graduate with a high school diploma, or high school equivalency, then I recommend including any alternative training in education. This can include job-related training, certification programs, seminars, conferences attended, online learning, and self-directed study. What about the instance where you have a degree, but not the major they want? An accounting major is required, but you majored in finance. Do you submit anyway or move on? You would submit anyway. But you would utilize the various sections of your resume to showcase your accounting prowess. If you have actual work experience as an accountant, that would be helpful, as well as any volunteer experience where you performed accounting duties, additional courses you may have taken on accounting, and any awards or achievements earned related to accounting. What if they ask for a four year degree, but yours is a two year degree? You're close enough to meeting the requirements, and as long as you can show some additional work that has been done, I say, submit away. I hope you're starting to see how the various sections of your resume work together, to tell a story to the reader. When it comes to education, it's up to you to make the case that you meet the requirements of the job and your resume is the tool to help you do that.

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