Adding Bar Admission to your Resume
Graduates should indicate on their résumé that they have passed the bar and have been admitted to practice. Many options exist to reflect this information on your résumé. Most attorneys create a separate section to show admission to the bar, but it is not required by any code of résumé etiquette. The label for this section can be any of the following, using singular or plural forms as appropriate:
- Bar Admission
- Bar Membership
- Admissions
- Professional Licenses
- Licenses
For those who are eager to indicate that they have passed the bar, but have not yet been sworn in or completed all the requirements to be eligible to practice, consider using "Bar Exam" or "Bar Passage."
When applying for positions immediately after being admitted, it is probably best to put bar information at the top of the résumé. After practicing for a time, most attorneys put this section as the last on their résumé.
Do not use the label "Bar Association" to indicate that you are licensed to practice. In some states, membership to the bar association, a private organization, is not related to membership to the state bar itself.
The following are some examples of résumé sections related to bar admission.
BAR MEMBERSHIPS
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 2000
State of Delaware, 2001
ADMISSIONS
New York State Bar, Second Department, 1999
United States District Court, E.D.N.Y., 2001
BAR ADMISSION
United States Patent and Trademark Office, 1996
PROFESSIONAL LICENSE
Florida State Bar, 2000
See also: Searching for a Job After a Clerkship
