When writing a good resume, you must include everything significant that has happened in your life in terms of education and work experience. Getting a certification from any top university definitely ranks towards the top of the list.
Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, is one of the most reputed private Ivy League universities that has made significant contributions to research in various fields. It is also one of the few land grant universities and is known to encourage research in classical literature and sciences. If you have an eCornell certificate, then you must definitely include it in your resume.
Apart from traditional courses, students can also avail various online courses from the university. These courses are as good as attending classroom lectures, and you can access a plethora of materials that will add to your oeuvre of knowledge.
However, the best thing about an eCornell Certification is that you can acquire it even while you are pursuing a job. You can earn and learn at the same time and gain the necessary knowledge and expertise required in your field without having to compromise on any aspect of your life.
The Advantage of Including eCornell Certificate in Your Resume
One of the biggest advantages of including an eCornell certificate in your resume is that your employers will get to see that you were good enough to get through to an Ivy League university and complete their course successfully. Ivy League institutes provide the best in education, and their courses are nothing less than rigorous.
Acquiring a certification will greatly boost your chances of landing a job because your prospective employer will know that you are equipped with the theoretical knowledge required to fulfill the position. The rest is just a matter of time and dedication until you pick up the other skills you will learn on the job.
Since numerous institutes are offering all kinds of certificates, it helps if you have a certification that definitely has the edge over the others because of the reputation of the institute. There would be no doubt that the education that you have acquired is wholesome, and you would now be considered among the elite among all the other applicants.
Bonus Read: 5 Best High Income Skills To Learn in 2022
How to List eCornell Certificate on your Resume to Create the Maximum Impact?
Firstly, completing an eCornell program is a remarkable achievement in itself, and you should congratulate yourself on it. You must be really proud of yourself!
Here are some of the common questions that students and young professionals have while citing their eCornell certifications on their resumes.
1. Where Should You List Your eCornell Certificate?
While listing any certificate on your resume, it is ideal that you create a separate section or subheading for it. You can list them under “Certifications,” “Education,” or “Professional Development.”
This is to ensure that you are completely transparent about the nature of your education and that you have not listed it as a degree from Cornell University.
By doing so, you will not be distracting your prospective employer from the degrees you have already acquired. They should be highlighted in their own right. It will also show that you are committed to continuing your education to gain greater excellence if required.
On the other hand, if you have completed certain professional development courses from any kind of external agencies, then you can group your e-Cornell certificate along with them.
By listing the certificate under the education section, you can show that you are determined to pursue excellence; and that you have gone out of your way to gain an extra certificate in your field.
Here, it would be best if you mentioned the duration of the program and that it was a certificate program, not a degree.
2. Why is the Section Listing Your Resume so Important?
Some feel it does not matter exactly where you are listing your eCornell certificate in the resume, but it does. When recruiters have to go through hundreds of resumes in a day, all the information must be presented to them as clearly as possible.
However, recruiters have noticed a tendency that many applicants try to list their eCornell certification in such a way that it seems like they have graduated from Cornell University with a degree rather than gaining an online certificate. This does not bode well with many recruiters who see it as a lack of transparency on the part of the applicant. This only works to their disadvantage, and many do not even get a call for an interview.
3. Which Information Should You Include in the Resume About Your eCornell Certification?
The following information should be included in your resume.
- Name of the university
- Certificate name and duration of the course
- Month and year of completing the course and getting the certificate
Hence, a student who has gained a certificate may include the information in the following format.
Cornell University
Nature of course and certification: Online (9-month program)
Certificate in Introduction to Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, completed March 2022
Try not to write the information in such a way that it seems like you are trying to say it was a year-long program. Certifications are mostly meant for a short duration, so trying to make it sound like it was a year-long program could also mean a lack of transparency.
How Can You Use Your eCornell Certification For a Better Change in Career?
If you decide to opt for an online certificate from Cornell University, try to opt for one which is directly relevant to your work, and will help you advance your career. Simply choosing a program for its easy enrolment or for the reason you can mention it in your resume would be a bad idea – unless you can relate it to the position you are applying for.
The students and young professionals who do not have certain skills should choose a program so that they can acquire those skills anew. They can use them as leverage, even though they might not have had prior experience in that field. Some courses can be covered in two to three weeks, while some can take ten months.
One should carefully go through the course structure to understand what is required of them and what each course will offer at the end of the program. You can also use certain course titles in your resume to give your recruiter a detailed view of what you have covered. This is especially with regards to the courses of longer duration.
By doing so, you will also find ways to include keywords in your resume that will help your resume pass through the applicant tracking systems. This will automatically take you to the next level of the recruitment process.
How Much Detail Can You Provide in Your Resume About Your eCornell Certification?
When it comes to listing your certifications, it is possible you would think about how much information is appropriate. If you have taken several certifications over the years, it makes sense to include only the most recent ones. A resume should ideally not be more than two pages long, and you cannot afford to lose precious space by listing older certifications.
In that case, if your eCornell certification is more than three years old and you have acquired new certifications over the years or have other achievements to show, then it is ideal you do not include it. You can simply mention the name of the certificate if it means that much to you, but it will still not play a huge role in the overall story.
However, if you are a recent graduate and you do not have much work experience or other achievements to show, then your eCornell certification can definitely take center stage. It can also be fruitful if you have considerable work experience in one industry in one field, but you are looking forward to switching industries, and a certification will help you make that transition.
For example, You are an accountant, and you have five years of industry in the food and beverage industry, working for a meat export company. However, now you want to join the hospitality sector, and you are applying for the position of accounts manager in a leading hotel. A certification in hotel investments, hotel accounting, or financial analysis in the hotel management segment can work to your advantage.
Hence, it is important to provide adequate information about your certification and the topics you have covered while doing so. You will be able to show that you are committed to learning and will be better able to position yourself if you are up for a career transition. It will help you showcase your practical skills to your best advantage.
Examples of Listing eCornell Certifications
Cornell University
Nature of course and certification: Online (6-month program)
Certificate in Video Editing and Sound Mixing, completed May 2022
Cornell University
Nature of course and certification: Online (8 weeks program)
Certificate in Introduction to Greek Literature and Classical Drama, completed June 2021
Cornell University
Nature of course and certification: Online (12 weeks program)
Certificate in Real Estate Business Planning and Infrastructure, completed February 2022
Conclusion
If you are fortunate to get into any online course at Cornell University, your eCornell certification will stay with you for a lifetime. It will always be one of the highlights of your career, and you can go on to achieve bigger and better opportunities because of it. Hence, make sure that you list it well on your resume.
And if required, you can always go back and acquire a more recent certification to upgrade your skills and, likewise, your resume. After all, if you have done it once, there is no reason why you cannot do it again. Choose a certification that is relevant to your field and use it to your best advantage.
