How to write first-class honours on your CV: Tips and examples.
Learn how to write first-class honours on a CV to give your post-graduation job applications maximum impact.
Your CV should be an easily scannable document that shows your biggest achievements and relevant certifications. If you’ve just graduated or are simply looking to refresh your resume, including your first-class degree on your CV is worthwhile. Doing this puts you in the best place to set yourself aside from other applicants when looking for a new professional role.
Learn how to write first-class honours on a CV in the UK with the help of these handy tips and template ideas from Adobe Express.
What is a first-class honours?
A first-class degree with honours is the highest possible achievement for a degree in the UK. A first-class degree may simply be referred to as a ‘first’ or written as a ‘1st’. It means you have achieved an average mark of 70% or more throughout your whole degree course.
For a degree to be awarded ‘with honours’, a higher number of credits will have been undertaken throughout the university course. An ordinary degree is usually scored as ‘pass’ or ‘fail’ and will not include mention of honours. An honours degree has a higher academic recognition, so it’s important to make this distinction when including your first-class honours on your CV.
Why include a first-class honours degree on your CV?
It’s important to highlight any academic achievements under the relevant section on your CV and mention them on your cover letter (if relevant). Not only does it show that you have a fundamentally good work ethic, but it also shows you’re willing to go above and beyond in your area of expertise.
- Show off your academic achievement. A first-class honours on your CV shows your dedication to your academic achievements. As you’ve achieved the highest available score for your degree, it’s highly beneficial to highlight this on your job applications.
- Align with any role requirements. Some job roles may require applicants to have a degree of a certain level. If you meet and exceed these requirements, listing your first-class honours will put you in a better position.
- High relevance to certain industries. Depending on the role you’re applying for, a first-class degree with honours in a specific subject could be relevant to your industry. For instance, a first-class finance degree may be beneficial for a business analyst role. It’s also an essential piece of information for any academic CV..
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Where to put your first-class degree on a CV.
Include your degree under the ‘academic achievements’ or ‘education’ section on your CV. If you have minimal or no work experience after graduating, it might be a good idea to put your academic achievements as high up as possible.
Likewise, if you’re applying for a role that’s highly relevant to your degree, it’s best to highlight your first-class degree as early as possible. In some cases, relevant work experience will be more valued when applying for some roles, so be sure to customise your CV to the industry you are applying for and your existing work experience.
How to write your first-class degree on your CV.
As with all achievements and work experience, it’s important to know exactly how to write first-class honours on a CV, and how to use the correct formatting. You should make sure that you follow a similar format for listing your degree as you do for any other certifications or work experience. This means your qualifications will be clear to the recruitment team as soon as they look at your CV.
Keep in mind that you will need to list the following information for all educational institutions you attended:
- Name of the school, college, university or institution
- Number of qualifications and the grades you were awarded
- The years you attended each institution or the year you were awarded a certification.
Example 1: Keep it simple.
If you have a more compact CV, you may want to include your first-class honours on the CV like this:
[Degree type] [Degree subject], [Degree grade]
[University or institution name], [years attended]
Following the above format, it would look like this:
BA (Hons) History, First Class
University of Birmingham, 2018-2021
Example 2: Show off your score.
You can use the above example and also include the final overall score for your degree grade, like this:
[Degree type] [Degree subject], [Degree grade] (score achieved)
[University or institution name], [years attended]
Following the above format, it would look like this:
BEng (Hons) Computer Systems Engineering, First Class (86%)
University of Sheffield, 2020-2023
Example 3: Add some extra details.
You may choose to give further information about your degree – this is especially handy if you have little or no prior work experience. It could look like this:
[Degree type] [Degree subject], [Degree grade]
[University or institution name], [years attended]
- Bullet point highlighting specialisms
- Any extra certifications related to your degree/time at university
Following the above format, it would look like this:
BSc (Hons) Computer Science, First Class
University of Hull 2012-2015
- Specialised focus on neural networks
- Achieved IBM certification in Cybersecurity Fundamentals
Free CV template ideas to show off your degree.
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How to bring your CV to life.
Tips for talking about your first-class honours degree.
Here are some tips on how to write first-class honours on your CV. This helps you make the biggest impact, depending on your career stage.
- Keep it short and sweet. List only vital information such as the university or institution, your degree subject and final grade – as well as the years attended. You could use a couple of bullet points to summarise special modules or focuses if relevant to the role you’re applying for.
- Prioritise your degree based on your career stage. If you’ve just graduated, you may have minimal relevant work experience. Use your judgement to sense whether you should mention your degree earlier to remain competitive with your applications.
- Ensure you use the correct abbreviations. A few letters can make a difference when it comes to the type of degree. Be sure to check exactly which type of degree you have. This may be a BSc (Bachelor of Science) or a BA for Bachelor of Arts, for example.
- Decide whether to include your grade as a percentage. While it’s enough to simply write “first-class with honours”, you may want to include your overall grade percentage. If you achieved well over 70%, including this may help your CV stand out from the competition.
- Highlight your degree if you’ve had a career gap. If you’ve been out of work for some time, putting the focus back on your first-class honours can help strengthen your academic standing.
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