How to Mention CFA in Resume

By getting a financial certification, professionals in most industries have the chance to help organizations to make financial decisions. One of the methods to show the employers that you have these qualifications is to list this credential in your resume. For anyone who is considering applying for an advisory or analyst position within an organization, it may be useful for you to learn about formatting your certificate correctly on your resume.

Before finding out how to mention CFA in your resume, it is better for you to find out what CFA Level 1 is. So, what is CFA Level 1?

CFA Level 1 is the name of a qualification that verifies someone who has passed the first level in a three-level program for financial analysts, portfolio managers and some other investment professionals. There are a few things that are involved in this first level program, including foundation lessons on financial reporting, professional standards, economics and quantitative methods. If one has earned the CFA Level 1, it can indicate that that person has extensive experience as an investment analyst and verifies their expertise in the financial sector.

In order to apply for the CFA Level 1, every candidate has to meet a few requirements, such as having a bachelor’s degree, earning at least 4,000 hours of work experience in any industry or a combination of both. Not only that, some other requirements include having a valid international travel passport and meeting professional conduct admission criteria. In addition, they should also complete and pass a 100 question multiple-choice exam. The questions that will be included in the exam focus on a number of things such as ethics, corporate finance, derivatives, equity investments and fixed income. Talking about the exam, remember that the minimum passing scores can be different every year.

As you already know about the CFA Level 1, it is time for you to know how to mention CFA in your resume. So, what should you do to mention CFA in your resume?

If you want to mention CFA in your resume or on your social media, there are some rules made by CFA Institute that you have to follow. According to the rules, as a candidate, you may place these credentials on a resume in the education section. Not only that, you may also put them in the skills, certifications or professional development sections. By following the following instructions, you will be able to follow the CFA Institute. Check out several sets of steps that you may want to consider mentioning CFA in your resume in different formats below:

Format 1: Listing CFA Level 1 in the education section of the resume

In fact, some people list the CFA qualification in their education section because they earn the certification after completing more than 100 study hours and passing the test. Aside from that, there are also some that format their resumes with the education section at the top of the page as an effort to attract the employer reading the resume. Below is the guide to be able to highlight your CFA Level 1 qualification in the education section:

First of all, you should write Chartered Financial Analyst.
After writing it, do not forget to include a hyphen and Passed Level 1 next to it. Besides, you should also mention the year you earned the qualification.
The next thing that you have to do is to write CFA Institute. Please do it in parentheses.
When everything is done, place this above your college degree information.

For every candidate for the program who has not completed the exam, you can write Chartered Financial Analyst Candidate instead. Beside it, mention your exam date.

Format 2: Listing CFA Level 1 in the skills and certifications section

To mention the qualifications they have earned and the specialized skills that relate to earning those qualifications, some people create a skills and certification section. If you are interested in following their steps, do the followings:

Firstly, write the Chartered Financial Analyst. Add a Candidate next to it if you have not completed it yet.
Then, write Passed Level 1 beside it with a hyphen. Please write your scheduled test date if you have not completed the test.
Next, write CFA Institute and the year you earned the qualification in parentheses.
Finally, place this at the end of your skills list along with any other certifications that you may have.

Format 3: Listing CFA Level 1 in the certifications section

If you want to list CFA 1 in the certifications section, the instructions that you can follow include:

The first thing that you need to do is to write the name of the unabbreviated qualification.
After doing so, write Level One next to this in order to specify the level that you have completed in the program. Make sure to write Chartered Financial Analyst with your level designation to avoid the employer thinking that you have completed the whole program.
Lastly, you have to write the certifying institute in parentheses. Besides, you can also include the location where you completed the test. As for this part, feel free to do it or not as it is optional. However, if you are a candidate who is looking for a job in an international market, you are recommended to do that as it may benefit you from specifying the certifying country as well.

Actually, it is not a must for you to include any details below this. While it is true that some people include the date they earned their qualification, in fact, it is not required by the CFA Institute. For anyone who has not completed the test yet, you can write Candidate beside the name of the qualification and your scheduled test date.

If you need examples, check out the followings: