How to List Summa Cum Laude on Your Resume (+ Examples)
7 min read
How to List Summa Cum Laude on Your Resume (+ Examples)
Congratulations, you’ve graduated! Even better, you graduated with honors - what a fantastic achievement! If you’re wondering where to put summa cum laude on your resume - or even whether you should include summa cum laude on your resume in the first place - you’ve come to the right blog.
Academic qualifications vs professional experience
When it comes to resume writing, most job seekers understand the importance of focusing their attention on how they list their skills and work experience. They spend a lot of time and space going into great detail about their responsibilities and achievements to show that they’re capable of doing the job. Of course, hiring managers need - and expect - to see that information. It’s crucial to their understanding of whether you might be the right person for the role.
Unfortunately, many job applicants fail to give that same level of care to their Education section. Many simply note where they went to school and when – ignoring other potentially relevant details. Neglect this section at your peril!
For some roles, particularly entry-level, your academic achievements can be just as relevant as your professional achievements - if not more so. Take Latin honors, for example. If you graduated with impressive honors, it will work in your favor to mention it in your resume. In this post, we’ll show you the right way to list Latin honors on a resume with examples and explain where to position your Education section for maximum impact.
What is summa cum laude?
When you graduate from university, you’ll be given a final grade for your Bachelor's course. If you do particularly well, you could receive a Latin honor. These are generally cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude, meaning with praise, with great praise, or with the highest praise. Of these, summa cum laude is the hardest to secure, as it represents a truly great achievement. If you’ve achieved an honors degree, your award certificate will state the Latin honor.
Each institution sets its own requirements for a cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude degree. You can be sure that the standards are high and it’s not an easy task to achieve one of these honors.
Should I put summa cum laude on my resume?
Of course, some candidates might wonder whether employers care about those honors at all. Well, they’re pretty impressive, so the answer is a firm YES! Even if you obtained them some years back, they’re still worth a mention. Adding summa cum laude on a resume will certainly catch the attention of a hiring manager and position you in their minds as a high achiever.
Latin honors - like other educational accomplishments - demonstrate a commitment to excellence that all companies want to see. They say a great deal about your character, drive, and competence, as well as your academic knowledge. For those reasons alone, they definitely need to be included in any resume.
A summa cum laude honor on your resume is a particularly strong selling point for those entering the workforce for the first time and those seeking progression in academia.
Not all US universities award degrees with Latin honors, and you won’t find them at most universities outside the states, either. If you’ve achieved a different award, rather than summa cum laude, you should write it on your resume exactly as it appears on your diploma. Don’t be tempted to change it to a Latin equivalent.
How to format summa cum laude on your resume
Be sure to use the proper format when including Latin honors in your resume. Doing so will help to maintain that level of professionalism that your resume needs to get noticed.
According to experts, Latin phrases and words should be listed using lowercase letters. There is no need for capitalization. You should also use italics for these phrases, as The Chicago Manual of Style recommends using italics for all non-Anglicized, rarely-used foreign words.
Examples of how to write summa cum laude on your resume
Before you write that you graduated summa cum laude on your resume, it can be helpful to see how other resumes incorporate that information.
We’ve provided a few examples below. You can use them as a template showing you how to put summa cum laude on your resume - or any other honors you may have obtained:
Excellent University - TopTown, TopState - 2019 - 2023
Bachelor of Arts in English Linguistics (summa cum laude)
Superior University – Anytown, AnyState - 2011-2015
Bachelor of Science in Business Management
Honors: summa cum laude
BestNurse College – ThatCity, ThatState - 2007-2011
Associate of Science in Nursing with Honors: summa cum laude
Bachelor of Science in Data Analytics (summa cum laude)
Acme University of BigState, 2012 - 2016
You should skip including your GPA if you’ve included summa cum laude on your resume. After all, nobody graduates magna, summa, and cum laude without great grades. The only exception to this rule is if the employer specifically requires that information. In that case, just include the GPA next to your honors, in parenthesis, for example:
summa cum laude (4.0/4.0)
Where to list summa cum laude on your resume
Another key consideration is where to put that you graduated summa cum laude on your resume. Remember that the top third of the first page of your resume should show off your key selling points to a prospective employer. Therefore, if you’re a recent graduate, you probably want to place your Education section above your Professional Experience section so that it’s right near the top of your resume. This will highlight your academic success right off the bat and get the employer interested in what you can potentially offer to the business.
If you’ve got some relevant work experience under your belt since graduating, however, it’s likely to be more of a selling point than your degree. In that case, position your Education section below your Professional Experience section. Your honors are still a great selling point worthy of inclusion, but an employer is more likely to be interested in your professional achievements at this stage. Therefore, that’s what should be at the top of the resume to make the best impact.
While you may be inclined to create a separate section to detail your honors, Harvard Law School recommends a different approach. Keep your honors within your Education section and create subsections under each listed degree. You should have one for your honors, one for other awards, and another for activities. You can drop the information about activities as soon as you have some relevant work experience, but until then, it helps to provide a potential employer with a more rounded version of who you are. Other awards worth a mention could include Dean’s list, Honors Society, and scholarships.
For other tips on what to include in relation to your qualifications, education, and academic achievements, see our great post on the resume education section here.
A top tip for new graduates
If your professional experience is light-to-non-existent, you can also mention this strong academic achievement in the initial Profile section of your resume. Introducing yourself as a summa cum laude graduate is sure to make a splash and is the sort of accomplishment that will stick in the mind of the reader.
Level up your resume by showing off your honors
It should be clear by now that your summa cum laude honor can be an important addition to your resume. The key is to know how to show it off to your best advantage. If you follow these simple tips and examples, you can showcase your academic achievements and truly dazzle any employer.
In any close competition between you and several other candidates, your hard-earned honors just might be the difference-maker you need to come out on top! Well done on your success, and good luck in your job search.
If you’d like an expert pair of eyes to look over your resume before you send off your application, why not submit it for a free resume review? You’ll receive constructive feedback so that you can ensure that you’re a truly stand-out candidate.
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Written by
Jen David, Editor & Content Writer, Jen David, Editor & Content Writer
Jen David has been writing CVs since 2010 and is the founder of CV Shed. She has worked with clients in numerous industries and at all stages of their careers, from students through to senior executives of global businesses. She loves producing polished, focused CVs that appeal to both human recruiters and applicant tracking systems, enabling her clients to take the next step in their careers. Jen has written and edited numerous articles for publication on industry-leading job boards.
