Can I list online courses and certificates in my CV?

Online courses and certificates have always been around; we all know that. However, thanks to social distancing and the COVID-19 situation, online courses became more popular than ever! It’s hard to believe that only a few years ago this was even a question – Can I list online certificates in my CV and Are those courses legit. Sounds unbelievable, right? Well, this article was written quite a few years back and we’ve updated it in April 2023. There’s no doubt about it – online courses and certificates are here to stay and listing them in a CV is even not a question anymore.

Still, let’s take a look at how people used to think about those!

The short answer is YES…

You can list online courses and certificates in your CV! The misconception that people have about online courses and how they “don’t count” is due to an outdated view.

Just a few years ago, online learning was seen as less valuable or even completely fake and made fun of. The certificates you earned weren’t really recognized.

Thankfully, more and more people are beginning to see that traditional formal education does not follow the needs of our world. Education systems across the globe are outdated because they are based on memorizing information that today we have at our fingertips. This is precisely why online learning is booming, and our society is starting to look at it differently.

There are many different online courses and, therefore certificates available to you and there is no reason why you should not get one. If you want to discuss your career, goals, and desires, you can book a session with us and we’ll help you out!

…but be careful!

Still, despite the progress we have made, you need to be careful about which online learning platforms you are presenting in your CV because some of them do have a bad reputation.

It would be advisable to research the institution just to check it out and be sure it’s legitimate if you have not done it before starting the program.

Your certificate doesn’t mean much if it comes from a questionable source.

A few ideas

To conclude the article, we’d recommend some of the most popular online learning platforms where you can earn certificates: Udemy and Coursera, but there are many more. Remember, online courses can be extremely useful, you just need to choose wisely. Not all certificates are equally needed at the job market. This does not apply only when we’re talking about the type, of course, you want to take but also the platform where you want to do it. Make sure to do your research!

Big companies such as LinkedIn, Microsoft, and Google have their own learning platforms, so you can check out those as well.

For some, you need to pay a membership fee, some are free, and you only pay the certificate.

How do I present Certificates in my CV?

If you are struggling with CV writing, don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place! First, you can send your CV for a free review here. If you don’t know where to start in CV writing and are struggling, check out our step-by-step CV and cover letter writing guide. Follow the principles outlined here and get more replies to job applications.

And lastly, if you don’t want to go through the hassle of CV writing – let us do all the work. We’ll happily get you where you need to be.

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