Representing a failure on a CV/resume in a good light.
August 30, 2015 3:46 AM   Subscribe

I recently dropped out / failed to complete a 2 year social science Masters program after I was unable to complete my dissertation for a whole variety of reasons I won't go into here. How do I represent this time on my CV in a way that is both honest of what I did and did not achieve, but not off putting to employers or just a big unanswered gap. (I am seeking employment in a field that is not particularly related to the subject of the course)
posted by Another Fine Product From The Nonsense Factory to Work & Money (11 answers total) 6 users marked this as a favorite
 
If (like mine) your 2-year Masters program had coursework, you can put "Successfully completed graduate-level coursework in Statistics, Qualitative Analysis (or whatever)" for the first year, and just leave the second year blank, or put something there about what you did do during this year. In my case, I have "Full-time parent" for two years, which is true.
posted by Mogur at 4:10 AM on August 30, 2015 [1 favorite]


I see people handling this in three ways. If it was really short (like you dropped out halfway through the first semester), people just leave it off completely. If they completed at least a semester/quarter, then people do the "completed graduate work in XYZ" thing as described by Mogur. And if they dropped out closer to the end, then people usually do a variation of "all but dissertation" that emphasizes how far they got without claiming the degree -- there are a bunch of ways to word this that depend on your circumstances and what you are trying to emphasize.
posted by Dip Flash at 4:20 AM on August 30, 2015 [5 favorites]


Did you have paid employment in that time? Could you list that you were a research assistant or teaching assistant?
posted by grouse at 5:19 AM on August 30, 2015


I have seen people put the time they spent working on a degree on their resume without actually putting that they got the degree. As a hiring manager, I think that's a good way to handle it.
posted by lunasol at 5:31 AM on August 30, 2015


I quit grad school abroad after the first semester and put it on my resumé, with a white lie about "family issues" being the reason I quit. (I didn't want to write "health issues" because I don't want employers to think I'm chronically ill.) I put that stint on my resumé because it's a great school and the fact that I even got IN shows a lot (in Japan, getting into a school is harder than graduating), and there's usually at least one hiring manager who went to the same school and will be impressed.
posted by LoonyLovegood at 5:52 AM on August 30, 2015


X out Y credits completed.
posted by saturdaymornings at 7:04 AM on August 30, 2015


In my area (software engineering) dropping out of a PhD program is something of a mark of pride, not to be embarrassed about. If you left an academic career to go work in the real world, folks in the real world will not be disappointed with you for leaving academia.

List your years of graduate study on your resume just like any other schooling or job. Indicate your Master's degree as the outcome of that. If you completed coursework and qualifying exams for the PhD you can put the annotation "ABD" for "All But Dissertation", which is well understood and not to be ashamed of. Basically the goal on the resume is highlight your accomplishments and not mention you didn't complete your original goal.

Be prepared in interviews with a quick answer as to why you left graduate school. Make it sound like a confident decision. Appeal to the person interviewing you, who almost certainly is not an academic. "I decided the scholar's life of poverty wasn't for me." "I learned the PhD job market was pretty bad." Etc. Then segue into all the wonderful things you learned while a student and how glad you are to be working in the real world now.
posted by Nelson at 7:21 AM on August 30, 2015 [3 favorites]


Best answer: Yeah, I think for the most part people in the non-academic world are not especially more impressed with the degree than with the coursework, especially if it's a masters program. You could probably flat out say, "I decided it was a terrible idea and moved on" and most people would be like, "yep, that's what you do when you decide something was a terrible idea."

Especially if it's in a largely unrelated field. As far as employers are concerned, you went and did a difficult thing for a while and that gives you a kind of experience that maybe isn't typical, which means it's interesting.

Do have a polished answer ready for the inevitable question so you don't come off as startled or traumatized when it's asked. That's probably more important than having actually finished, is sounding well-adapted about not finishing.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:01 AM on August 30, 2015 [1 favorite]


It is, by the way, a pretty acceptable and common answer to say "I realized I did not want to pursue a career doing [that thing], and that I am much more interested in [doing whatever this company does]."
posted by Lyn Never at 9:03 AM on August 30, 2015 [1 favorite]


Best answer: (I am seeking employment in a field that is not particularly related to the subject of the course)
=================

Glad you threw that in. It's decisive.

Saying "I have not yet completed my dissertation" to people outside the field sounds completely okay and responsible, even romantic and brainy. Saying it to people much closer to the process might indeed be seen as a fault.

But, really, don't even mention dissertation (which invites further probing). Simply say you've done "some graduate work" but not yet completed your degree. Understand that's way better than no grad work at all (in fact, you'll see in a lot of demographic surveys, "bachelor degree", "some graduate work" and "graduate degree" are response choices). You're not a failed grad student; you're a rung above mere bachelor's.

In the unlikely chance you're asked for details (I'd be willing to be you won't, unless you make a thing about it yourself), I'd just say "I loved academia, but real life got in the way. I hope to go back and complete my degree one day, but, meanwhile, I'm pretty focused on doing great work with great companies like yours!"
posted by Quisp Lover at 10:18 AM on August 30, 2015 [1 favorite]


I bailed on my MFA with only my thesis to go, because my ex-spouse had some health issues. I just list it on my CV as 'MFA program in Creative Writing, ABT, 1995-1999' and don't list the degree (which I didn't earn). Every time I've been asked about it, I'm upfront about why I left; it's never been an issue.
posted by culfinglin at 10:46 AM on August 30, 2015


« Older Do I really have to pay mortgage foreign exchange...   |   Where is my party? Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.