Not sure how – or where – to include your CV qualifications? We’re here to help and walk you through the options, because there is more than one way of doing it.
The number of vocational and other qualification certificates awarded in 2022-23 increased by 3.1% compared to 2021-22, reaching 5.1 million, according to government statistics.
Professional qualifications can significantly boost your CV and therefore, career prospects.
These certifications demonstrate expertise in a particular field and can set you apart from other job candidates. Long-term, they often also increase your earning potential.
But when you’re applying for jobs, it’s no good having a qualification if you don’t get the point across on the CV!
Things to consider though include how much space to set aside for your qualifications and detail to go into when describing them. Also – how high up, or low down, the CV should you put them?
These are the questions we’ll answer in this article covering all the key qualifications on CV guidelines.
Before we begin – in this guide we will cover how to include professional and vocational qualifications on your CV. For your degree, A-levels, GCSEs and so on we have a separate guide focusing on the CV education section.
That said, the education section is a good place to start in this guide. It’s a popular location for professional and vocational qualification details.
You may think of the education section as the place where you cover those school or university days – the degree, A levels, GCSEs… But of course, professional and vocational qualifications are forms of education too.
When including your professional or vocational qualifications in the education section:
Now of course if your education section is on the first page of your CV – e.g. because it’s a graduate CV or perhaps an academic CV… it’s a no-brainer to put qualifications here.
But for many candidates, especially if they’ve already had a few years in the world of work, the education section appears on page 2 of the CV after the work history section.
That means that anyone reading your CV will only find out about your qualifications towards the end, or if they only look at page 1, they won’t see them at all. In this scenario, let’s assume that you haven’t mentioned a qualification anywhere else on the CV (i.e. its sole appearance is on page 2).
Is this wise? In short, it’s fine for the qualification to be ‘relegated’ to page 2 of the CV if:
Crucially, if it’s a particularly impressive qualification, also mention it on page 1.
The more impressive, or rare, or in-demand, the qualification is then the higher up it should be. It could go in your personal statement or a key skills section, for example.
Going back to your Qualifications and Education section, when including the details there are three essential pieces of information to include:
Let’s take a look at some examples:
In other words, the most common layout is – Name, Provider, Date.
While we’re on the subject of accounting, here’s How to Become an Accountant (UK) – our guide to the qualifications and careers path. Also, here are some accounting CV examples.
Other details to consider including, if relevant, are:
Some of these may be worth considering especially if you’re including them as part of a career change CV, where the reader may be unfamiliar with the qualification. For more details, read our guide on a career change at 40 and how to write a career change cover letter.
If you’re mentioning a qualification in passing on page 1 – for example, as one of your most impressive achievements in the personal statement – keep it brief.
For example, up-and-coming journalists might mention their “Gold standard NCTJ Diploma in Journalism” in their personal statement. But in their Qualifications and Education section, they might provide more detail – e.g.: “Level 5 Diploma in Journalism, NCTJ, 2024, Gold standard with 100wpm shorthand”.
And of course, for qualified journalists seeking their next role, we have you covered too. Check out our journalism CV guide.
When including your professional or vocational qualifications on a CV, think about how much of a differentiator they could be to your application.
Recently, we were thrilled to announce a new qualification for professional CV writers. It’s called the Certified Professional CV Writer (CCVW) certification. Find out more about how experts become a certified professional CV writer.
Not sure about the best way to include your qualifications on a CV? Or struggling to put together an outstanding CV in general?
Only the best CV is the right CV for you. So the PurpleCV team is happy to help if you’d like us to write one for you. Our expert writers know how to create CVs that showcase your skills and get noticed by potential employers.
Check out our CV writing service or if you have any queries, don’t hesitate to contact us.
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