How to List Foreign Education on a Canadian Resume

If you are working out how to list foreign education on a Canadian resume, the core rule is simple. Give the degree name, the field, the institution, the city and country, and the year, in that order and in plain text. Mention a credential assessment such as an ECA only if you actually hold one. Don't claim a Canadian equivalent you haven't been given.

Canadians usually say "resume". This post uses "CV" from here on, but the advice is the same. Below are the exact formats, examples by country, and the mistakes that make foreign education harder for a Canadian reader to understand.

The basic format for each qualification

Use one consistent block per qualification:

Degree, Field of Study Institution Name, City, Country | Year completed

For example:

Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.), Computer Science University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria | 2019

That's all most entries need. A Canadian recruiter is trying to answer three questions quickly: what level is this, what subject, and where. The country answers the third question at a glance and stops them guessing.

Why the country matters

Many institution names don't tell a Canadian reader where they are. "Federal University of Technology" or "St. Xavier's College" could be in several countries. Writing the country in full removes the doubt and makes it easier to match against any verification you are later asked to provide.

Write the country in plain text in the body of the CV, not only in a header graphic or icon. Applicant tracking systems parse text, and some struggle with text inside images, text boxes or unusual layouts. Plain text is simply the most reliable choice.

Dates: year only is usually enough

For completed degrees, the graduation year is normally enough. If a degree is still in progress, write "Expected 2025". If you studied but did not finish, say so honestly, for example "Coursework completed towards B.A., Economics (2016–2018)". Never imply a degree was awarded when it wasn't.

How to list foreign education on a Canadian resume: degree names

This is where most people go wrong. The safest approach is to keep your degree's real name and add a short, accurate clarification only where the title would be unclear in English.

If your degree title is already in English

Use it as written on your certificate. Don't rename a Nigerian HND as a "Bachelor's degree" or a three-year degree as a "four-year degree" to make it look more familiar. If an employer checks your documents, a mismatch looks far worse than an unfamiliar title.

It's fine to add a common abbreviation in brackets, such as "Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.)", because that's the same qualification written two ways.

If your degree title is in another language

Give an accurate English translation, then the original title in brackets or italics:

Bachelor's degree in Business Administration (Licence en Administration des Affaires) Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Senegal | 2017

The translation helps the reader. The original title helps anyone checking your transcript. If you apply in Quebec or to a French-language role, you may simply keep the French title as it is.

Phrasing to avoid unless you have it in writing

• "Equivalent to a Canadian bachelor's degree"
• "Canadian-equivalent master's"
• "Recognised in Canada"

These are claims about how Canada assesses your qualification. Only use wording like this if it comes from an official assessment you hold, and quote it accurately.

Examples by country

Here are entries for common situations. Adjust the details to match your own documents.

Where you studied	Example entry
Nigeria (university)	B.Sc. Accounting, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, 2018
Nigeria (polytechnic)	Higher National Diploma (HND), Electrical Engineering, Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, Nigeria, 2016
UK	BA (Hons) History, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom, 2020
India	Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.), Mechanical Engineering, [Institution], Pune, India, 2019
France	Master's degree in Finance (Master en Finance), [Institution], Lyon, France, 2021

A few country-specific notes:

• Nigeria: Grades such as First Class or Second Class Upper are unfamiliar to many Canadian employers. Include them only if they help you, and explain them clearly. Our guide on how to show a Nigerian CGPA on a UK or Canadian CV covers the wording. NYSC and O'Level results usually don't need to appear on a Canadian CV.
• UK: "(Hons)" is fine to keep. Degree classifications like 2:1 can be included, but they're less common on Canadian CVs, so include one only if it's strong and relevant.
• US and Australia: Degree names are generally familiar to Canadian employers, so the country and institution are usually enough.

When (and how) to mention a credential assessment

An Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) is a report from a designated organisation that compares your foreign qualification to a Canadian one. Many people get one for immigration purposes, such as Express Entry. You can read about it on the Government of Canada's ECA page.

If you have one, you can add a single line under the relevant degree:

B.Sc. Computer Science University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria | 2019 Educational Credential Assessment (WES), 2023: [copy the equivalency wording from your report]

Use the exact wording from your report rather than paraphrasing it upwards. If the report says something different from what you expected, use what it says.

If you don't have one, leave it out. You don't need to write "assessment pending" or apologise for not having one. Many roles don't ask for it, and an employer who needs it will tell you.

A note on regulated professions

For regulated jobs such as nursing, engineering, teaching, medicine, law and accounting, an ECA for immigration is generally not the same as being licensed to practise. Licensing is handled by provincial or territorial regulatory bodies and requirements vary by province. If this applies to you, check the relevant regulator directly and state your status honestly on your CV, for example "Application for licensure submitted to [regulator], 2024". This is general information, not legal or immigration advice, so always confirm details with official sources.

Where to put education on the page

Canadian CVs typically follow a reverse-chronological layout. Where education sits depends on your stage:

• Recent graduate or career changer: Education can go near the top, below a short summary.
• Several years of experience: Put education after your work experience. Your recent roles matter more to the reader.
• Canadian study plus foreign study: List both in reverse-chronological order. A Canadian diploma or certificate often goes first simply because it is most recent.

Keep Canadian conventions in mind elsewhere on the CV too. Personal details such as date of birth, marital status and photos are not expected. Our post on whether to put a photo on your resume in Canada explains why. If your location is changing, see how to put location on your CV when relocating.

Common mistakes to avoid

1. Leaving out the country. The reader shouldn't have to search for your university.
2. Upgrading the degree name. Translating is fine; inflating is not.
3. Claiming an equivalency you don't hold. Only quote an assessment you actually have.
4. Listing every certificate since secondary school. Your highest and most relevant qualifications are usually enough.
5. Using unexplained local grading. Either explain the grade briefly or leave it out.
6. Mismatches with online forms. Many Canadian employers use application portals with education fields. Enter the same degree name, institution and year as on your CV so the two match.

Quick checklist before you send

• Degree name matches your certificate (with an accurate translation if needed)
• Field of study included
• Institution, city and country written in full
• Graduation year, or "Expected [year]" if in progress
• Credential assessment line added only if you hold one, using its exact wording
• Licensing status stated honestly for regulated roles
• Education placed sensibly for your career stage
• Plain text layout, no education details hidden in images or text boxes

Once your education section is clear, it's worth checking the whole CV against the job ad you're targeting. A tool like the QuickApplyPilot CV and job ad checker can highlight terms from the ad that are missing from your CV. Its score is our own estimate, not an employer's ATS result, and you should only add terms that truthfully describe your education and experience.