How to List a Degree in Progress on Your Resume

An in-progress degree belongs on your resume when you are actively enrolled and the entry makes that status unmistakable. Name the institution and official program, add a clear label such as Expected graduation: May 2027, and never format the credential as though it has already been awarded.

The purpose is simple: give the reader an accurate snapshot of what is true today. You do not need to apologize for still studying, and you should not create a precise date just to make the entry look finished. By the end of this guide, you will have a compact education entry you can defend in English and Arabic.

Separate active study from an awarded degree

Start with the status, not with optimistic wording. An awarded degree is a completed credential. An in-progress degree is a program you are currently pursuing. The resume should preserve that difference even when someone scans only the degree line and date.

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Education career-guidance manual says that when a student has not graduated, the expected year and month of graduation should be stated. The University of South Dakota career-planning guide similarly tells students who have not yet graduated to list an anticipated graduation date and to use the correct degree name. These are useful formatting authorities, not proof that every employer requires one exact layout.

Avoid a line such as Bachelor of Science in Information Systems, 2027 if the reader could reasonably take it as a completed degree. Add the status next to the date or degree: Expected graduation: May 2027, Degree in progress, or another accurate label that cannot be mistaken for an award.

Verify four facts before you format the entry

1. Active enrollment: confirm that you are currently enrolled in the program. This article does not cover a program that is paused, withdrawn, never started, or indefinitely incomplete.
2. Official institution name: use the name the institution publishes, with a familiar abbreviation only when it helps recognition.
3. Official degree and major: check the program catalog or student record. Do not upgrade a diploma to a bachelor's degree, translate a credential into a different award, or add a specialization you have not declared.
4. Expected month and year: use a student record, degree audit, course plan, or academic adviser. Indeed's current expected-graduation guide also recommends checking those sources when the date is uncertain and placing the date inside the education entry.

An expected date is a forecast based on your current program information. It is not a guarantee, an official conferral date, or proof that every remaining requirement will be completed. If your university provides only a term, use the term and year it recognizes. If you cannot verify a dependable date, keep the active status clear and confirm the date before adding precision.

Use one clean line or a compact two-line entry

A resume entry does not need a sentence explaining your enrollment. Put the facts in a stable order and keep the status physically attached to the degree or date.

One-line pattern
Official degree in Major, Institution Name | Expected graduation: Month Year

Two-line pattern
Institution Name, City
Official degree in Major, in progress | Expected graduation: Month Year

The Arabic structure can be just as direct: بكالوريوس في التخصص، اسم الجامعة | التخرج المتوقع: الشهر السنة. The Arabic University of Prince Mugrin CV guidance lists the university, degree, and actual or expected graduation date as core education details. Use natural Arabic labels such as قيد الدراسة and التخرج المتوقع rather than copying English word order.

The useful change is not decorative. The revised entry connects the program, active status, and verified expected date so the degree cannot be read as already awarded.

Four fictional examples you can adapt

Every institution, program, and date below is fictional. Borrow the structure, then replace every fact with your own verified information.

1. Undergraduate degree

English
Al Noor University, Amman
Bachelor of Science in Information Systems, in progress
Expected graduation: June 2027

Arabic
جامعة النور، عمّان
بكالوريوس العلوم في نظم المعلومات، قيد الدراسة
التخرج المتوقع: يونيو 2027

This version is useful when active status needs its own line. If the institution's official English award name differs, use the official name rather than translating it yourself.

2. Postgraduate degree

English
Gulf Horizon University
Master of Science in Supply Chain Management | Expected graduation: December 2026

Arabic
جامعة أفق الخليج
ماجستير العلوم في إدارة سلاسل الإمداد | التخرج المتوقع: ديسمبر 2026

The expected label is attached to the date, so the entry does not suggest that the master's degree has already been conferred.

3. Internship applicant with relevant coursework

English
Rimal University, Jeddah
Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance, in progress | Expected graduation: May 2028
Relevant completed coursework: Financial Accounting, Business Statistics

Arabic
جامعة الرمال، جدة
بكالوريوس إدارة الأعمال في المالية، قيد الدراسة | التخرج المتوقع: مايو 2028
مقررات مكتملة ذات صلة: المحاسبة المالية، إحصاء الأعمال

List only coursework already completed or accurately identified as current. A planned class is not proof of a skill you have not yet developed.

4. Experienced professional studying part-time

English
Wadi Institute of Technology
Master of Data Analytics, part-time, in progress | Expected graduation: November 2027

Arabic
معهد الوادي للتقنية
ماجستير تحليل البيانات، دراسة جزئية، قيد الدراسة | التخرج المتوقع: نوفمبر 2027

For an experienced professional, the education entry can remain concise below stronger work experience. The study mode is optional unless it clarifies availability or the program record.

What if the expected date is uncertain?

Do not turn uncertainty into a guess. First check the student portal, degree audit, registered course plan, and any remaining internship, thesis, licensing, or credit requirement. Ask the academic adviser what date the institution currently records. If the answer is still conditional, use the institution's most accurate term or keep in progress without a month until you can verify one.

This is a credibility safeguard, not a universal employer rule. The cited sources support accurate expected-date information and verification, but they do not require you to invent precision when your program cannot provide it. Keep a private note of what the date depends on and update the resume when the plan changes.

Place education according to the role and your evidence

If you are applying for internships or first roles and the degree is among your strongest qualifications, education may sit near the top. If you already have substantial relevant experience, the same accurate entry may work better below experience. The decision depends on what best demonstrates fit for this application, not on a universal number of years.

If you are building your first application, use Tadween's guide to build a first resume with limited experience for the broader section order. This page stays focused on the narrower task: representing one active degree honestly.

Add coursework and projects only when they help the target role

Relevant coursework can help when the course is completed or currently underway and clearly related to the job. Projects can be stronger because they show an output, method, or tool. Keep each addition factual. Do not imply that enrolling in a course equals mastering the subject, and do not copy a group result as though you produced it alone.

Use the same evidence boundary in both languages. If the English entry says a project is ongoing, the Arabic version must not sound completed. Tadween's guide on how to keep English and Arabic resume versions aligned can help with the wider document; for this entry, compare the meaning line by line before sending either version.

Update the entry when the status changes

An expected date can move. Review it when you register for a new term, change course load, complete a required placement, or receive an updated degree audit. After the degree is formally awarded, remove expected or in progress and use the actual graduation or conferral date supported by your record.

Once the wording and date are accurate, you may explore Tadween's resume tools and enter the education item while viewing the document. The current Resume Builder catalog state supports structured content editing and live preview in English and Arabic. It does not verify enrollment, degree names, dates, or credential truth; those checks remain yours.

Run this accuracy check before sending

• Active enrollment is true today.
• The institution, degree, and major match official records.
• The expected month and year come from a reliable program source.
• The words expected, anticipated, in progress, قيد الدراسة, or التخرج المتوقع are visible where needed.
• No line implies that the degree has already been awarded.
• Coursework and projects are completed or clearly marked as current.
• The English and Arabic entries express the same status and date.
• You have a reminder to update the entry when the program changes.

The strongest education entry is not the one that looks most complete. It is the one a reader can understand in seconds and you can support with the same official record today.