Mentioning your law school education on a resume may seem easy, but its placement and format can impact directly how employers see your skills. In this competitive legal job market, showing your Juris Doctor (J.D.) clearly is crucial. Many candidates even search for some tips. A well-structured education section can highlight your legal knowledge at a glance and set you apart from other applicants. This article explains where and how to list your law school on a resume, what to include if you haven’t graduated yet, and extra tips to make your legal resume stand out.
Where to List Law School on Your Resume
Your law school should be in the Education section of your CV. For current law students and recent graduates, the Education section is usually before the Experience section, as some reliable resume writing services for attorneys say. This prioritizes your J.D. certificate, which is usually your most significant qualification until now.
List the name of your law school, its location, and the degree you are studying to get or just got. If you have already graduated, you can include the graduation month and year. If you have other degrees, such as a bachelor’s or master’s, list them after your law school information. Education entries are usually written in reverse chronological order, meaning your law degree, which is the most recent, comes first.
If you are an experienced attorney with five or more years in practice, you can put the Education section below your Work Experience section since your professional history is more important at that stage.
How to Format Your Education Section
Choosing the correct format for your Education section guarantees that your law school credentials will be crystal clear. Use a consistent format that includes:
- The institution’s name
- City
- State
- Degree
- Date of Graduation
Here is an example:
XYZ University School of Law – City, State
Juris Doctor (J.D.), May 2024
If you earned honors or participated in other relevant activities, you can include them as sub-bullets or on the next line under the law school entry. For example, you might add:
Honors: cum laude
Activities: Moot Court Competition, Law Review.
Finally, don’t clutter your Education section with irrelevant information. You can omit high school and LSAT scores since law employers usually focus on higher education.
Extra tip: Place school-specific honors and activities directly under the relevant school and not in a separate section.
What to Include if You Haven’t Graduated Yet
If you’re still studying, you should also include your law school on your resume. You’ve worked hard to get here, and it’s an important qualification. You will indicate that you haven’t graduated yet by the entry format.
You should list your school name and J.D. (Expected [Month Year]) or J.D. Candidate (Year). This will indicate to your employers that your degree is still in progress. For instance:
J.D. (Expected May 2025)
You can also add relevant courses, clinics, or projects that show your legal skills or interests, especially if you’re a 2L or 3L. For example, you can add a topic such as Relevant Coursework:
International Law, Corporate Taxation, Trial Advocacy.
Moreover, list any law school honors or activities you’ve got so far. This includes your GPA, class rank, academic awards, journal membership, moot court, student organization leadership, or scholarships.
If you are still in the first year, you can mention other accomplishments, such as high grades in legal writing, research, or volunteer work. The main focus is to show that you are active during your legal education and making relevant progress.
Additional Tips to Make Your Legal Resume Stand Out
A strong legal resume is more than just listing schools and jobs. Here are some extra tips to ensure your resume makes a great impression:
- Keep it clean: Most law school students and new attorneys should aim for a one-page resume. Use a professional font (11 or 12 points) and maintain consistent formatting for headings and dates. Hiring managers often give resumes only a brief look, so a clean layout helps them find information quickly.
- Tailor your resume for each application: If you’re applying to a specific legal role, consider emphasizing relevant aspects of your education or experience. For instance, if you’re applying to a patent litigation firm and took multiple intellectual property law courses or wrote a research paper on a tech law topic, mention those. You might even add a brief Relevant Coursework line under your J.D. listing to show specialized classes related to the job.
- Proofread and be accurate: Attention to detail is critical in the legal field, and your resume is no exception. Double-check spelling (especially of proper nouns like school names and legal terms) and guarantee the formatting is consistent. Make sure the information you provide is accurate and up-to-date. Even small mistakes or misrepresentations can raise red flags.
By following these guidelines, you’ll make sure that your law school education is presented in the best possible light. Your J.D. is one of your strongest assets as an attorney or law graduate, so featuring it properly can help you make a positive impression. Combining a well-formatted Education section with targeted experience and skills will create a resume that tells an excellent story to possible legal employers. And remember, if you’re ever in doubt, seeking legal resume tips from trusted career resources or professionals can give you additional ideas about industry standards and expectations.
