When and How to Add the Dean's List to Your Resume (2024)

As one of the highest awards bestowed upon college students, the Dean’s List is undoubtedly a major achievement.

But, when you start looking for work, do you put the Dean’s List on your resume?

There are times when this information can be useful and other times when it could possibly be seen as redundant, such as if you graduated with Greek or Latin honors. Other times, as painful as it may be to realize, it can seem irrelevant.

This doesn’t mean that there aren’t cases where there are benefits to including the Dean’s List in your resume.

If you’ve been awarded this accolade, and are unsure about letting potential employers know by including it when you write your resume, read on. We’re going to outline just when and how to add the Dean’s List to your professional document.

When you have finished reading our advice, you can then check out our resume builder to help you create yours!

Is the Dean’s List Award Impressive?

First, let’s consider whether Dean’s List is considered an honor that even belongs on your resume.

According to The University Network, students named to the Dean’s List are among the top 1-5% of their class. That is certainly an amazing accomplishment! Since Dean’s List is one of the highest collegiate levels of academic achievement that a student can be recognized for, there is little doubt that this is an honor worth letting employers know about.

Why? From showing that you are driven to succeed to demonstrating your ability to set and reach lofty goals, there are a few reasons why you might include this award on your resume.

As John Woods – Ph.D., provost and chief academic officer of the University of Phoenix – states, being awarded Dean’s List indicates a commitment and academic progress that can show employers one’s potential.

Still, it’s not always recommended to put Dean’s List on a resume. There are a few instances where you would leave this detail out, even if you’re intensely proud of the moment and want to shout it from the rooftops for all potential employers to hear.

When Should You Put Dean’s List on Your Resume?

Basically, the rule of thumb is that you should only add it to your resume if you were a consistent Dean’s Lister. So, if you’ve made the List over multiple semesters, feel free to add it to your resume.

But, if you only were named to the Dean’s List once, leave it off.

It’s all about consistency. When you can show an employer that you made the Dean’s List in every semester, it underscores the fact that you consistently set and reach goals, aim high, and achieve the highest levels of success.

A one-time Dean’s List achievement just might show that you had one good semester but then stopped working as hard or lost focus. Not a good message to send a potential employer!

Adding the Dean’s List to an Entry-Level Resume

Without a doubt, it is a great idea to add Dean’s List to an entry-level resume, or if you graduated within the last three years. Keep reading to find out how to present it when updating your resume, and in which section.

Once you have a more extensive work history, that relevant experience will be the main focus of any hiring manager. Stating your Dean’s List achievement will not be as strong in comparison and will not carry as much weight in making you the ideal candidate for the job you’re pursuing.

How Do You Add Dean’s List to Your Resume?

If you were one of those who did make the Dean’s List consistently, you can choose one of two ways to add this fact to your resume.

First, you can add it to your education section, like this:

Always add your GPA and Dean’s List honor on the same line if you’re including both.

If you’re adding a one-off honor on an entry-level resume, if you haven’t graduated yet, or if, as mentioned above, you attended a highly prestigious school, your entry might look like this:

Another way you could list it is like this:

You could also choose to add your Dean’s List honor to an Extra section on your resume, along with any publications you have written, certifications you have completed, or volunteering you have done.

If you’re not sure how to put together your education section, extra sections, or any other part of your resume, be sure to check out our resume templates and examples for help.

Summing Up

To conclude, including the Dean’s List on your resume is optional, and may depend on how much work experience you have or when you graduated.

Remember these top tips:

• Include it in your education section if you were awarded it every semester
• If you want to include being awarded Dean’s List a few times but did not get it every semester, you can add it to a separate section.
• If you received the accolade from a top college, include the college name
• If you now have significant work experience, you can leave the List off your resume

Take a look at some of our resume examples to give you a clearer picture of how to write a resume so you can be sure all of your top achievements, experience, skills, and education are in the right place—from Dean’s List to relevant professional skills.

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