Why People Consider Removing Graduation Dates
Some job seekers wonder if they should remove their graduation dates from their LinkedIn profiles. There are a few reasons why people consider doing this:
- To avoid potential age discrimination – Older applicants may want to remove graduation dates so hiring managers can’t easily calculate their age and potentially discriminate against them.
- To minimize employment gaps – Applicants with large gaps in their employment history may want to remove graduation dates so those gaps aren’t as obvious.
- To focus on skills rather than tenure – Some applicants prefer to highlight their skills and experience rather than when they graduated, to avoid assumptions based on their tenure.
Removing graduation dates can help job seekers direct the focus away from their age or gaps in their timeline and toward their qualifications. However, it also comes with risks, as discussed below.
Potential Downsides of Removing Graduation Dates
While removing graduation dates can benefit some applicants, there are a few potential downsides to consider:
- May raise questions – Omitting graduation dates altogether may raise more questions or suspicions from hiring managers if the rest of the profile lacks consistency or details.
- Perception of trying to hide something – Hiring managers may see the removal of dates as an attempt to conceal one’s age or to cover up employment gaps, whether or not that is the intent.
- Dishonesty accusations – Some companies or background checks may accuse applicants of dishonesty if unable to confirm graduation dates provided elsewhere.
- Harder to detect exaggerations – With no graduation date for context, it becomes harder for employers to detect if an applicant is exaggerating their experience and tenure.
Removing graduation years makes it easier to leave out details and embellish one’s background without easy detection. Even if unintentional, this omission of key profile details may damage an applicant’s credibility in the eyes of hiring managers.
Alternatives to Completely Removing Dates
For job seekers who are concerned about age discrimination or resume gaps but do not want to omit graduation years entirely, there are a few alternatives:
- Only provide months and years – Listing “May 2008” rather than “May 19, 2008” makes it harder to determine an exact age.
- Use graduation seasons rather than months – Stating “Class of Fall 2009” rather than “October 2009” obscures the exact graduation month.
- Leave off early education – Omitting high school graduation while including college graduation still provides contextual clues without excess age detail.
- Reorder sections – Moving the education section below experience highlights professional details first before age clues.
These solutions allow applicants to provide enough context without revealing excess age or timeline details.
What LinkedIn Recommends
According to LinkedIn’s profile best practices, they recommend including graduation years on your profile. Here’s why:
- Provides career context – Graduation years give hiring managers important context about an applicant’s career stage and trajectory.
- Shows progress over time – Including graduation years demonstrates professional growth and advancement throughout a career.
- Encourages profile completeness – Filling out all profile sections thoroughly results in a more complete, trustworthy profile.
- Avoids raising questions – Being transparent with graduation years and all profile details avoids having hiring managers question why information was omitted.
LinkedIn themselves clearly suggest including graduation years on your profile. They consider it an important piece of background context.
What Recruiters Recommend
Most recruiting professionals also recommend including graduation years on LinkedIn profiles:
- 91% of recruiters want to see graduation dates according to one survey by ResumeGo.
- 83% of recruiters report screening out candidates who omit graduation dates according to research by CareerBuilder.
- Resume expert Lily Zhang also confirms graduation years are expected and omitting them may raise “red flags.”
The overwhelming consensus from recruiters is that graduation dates are an important component expected on LinkedIn profiles and resumes. Omitting this information can actually hurt your candidacy.
Strategies If You Choose to Omit Dates
Despite the recommendations, some applicants may still prefer to exclude their graduation years. In this case, experts suggest:
- Be transparent elsewhere – Provide graduation years if specifically requested on job applications to avoid dishonesty concerns.
- Have explanations ready – Be ready to briefly explain why you chose to omit dates if asked by interviewers.
- Highlight skills first – Structure your profile to emphasize in-demand skills, achievements, and experiences to show you are qualified despite lacking timeline details.
- List accolades – Including awards, honors, certifications and press mentions can demonstrate your capabilities even without exact graduation dates.
Though not ideal, with careful positioning it is possible to mitigate some of the downsides of excluding graduation dates.
Should You Remove Dates or Not?
Ultimately, whether to include graduation years depends on your specific priorities and situation. Here are a few key questions to consider:
- How important is it to minimize age discrimination concerns vs. providing standard expected details?
- Do you have large resume gaps without graduation years to provide context?
- Can your skills, achievements, and credentials still be conveyed without that timeline context?
The following table summarizes the key pros and cons of removing vs. including your graduation dates on your LinkedIn profile:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Removing Dates | Including Dates |
|
|
As this illustrates, there are pros and cons to both options that should be carefully weighed for your personal situation.
The Bottom Line
Overall, most career experts agree you should include graduation years on LinkedIn to provide important context, exhibit transparency, and align with recruiter expectations. However, those concerned with age discrimination or large resume gaps may still prefer removing dates after weighing the pros and cons carefully.
Those who do omit graduation years should have strong alternative credentials and be prepared to briefly explain if questioned by potential employers. With thoughtfulness to your specific motivations and career trajectory, it is possible to craft an effective profile either way.
The best approach depends on each applicant’s priorities, experiences, and personal preferences around age discrimination and transparency. Consider the evidence and trade-offs to make an informed decision for how to best showcase your own background and qualifications.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are answers to some common questions about whether to remove graduation dates from LinkedIn profiles:
Is it illegal for employers to ask for graduation dates on LinkedIn?
No, it is not illegal. Employers are allowed to ask for and consider graduation dates, as they provide helpful context about an applicant’s work history and qualifications. Discrimination only occurs if hiring decisions are made solely based on age inferences from graduation dates.
What are the risks of getting caught omitting graduation dates?
If employers conduct education checks and cannot confirm the graduation dates listed elsewhere, it may raise suspicion and hurt your credibility. Omitting dates also makes it much easier to embellish other aspects of your resume that are harder to fact check.
What are other sections I could omit besides education to minimize ageism?
You could potentially omit early career jobs, the start years for work experiences, awards from decades past, and even your birth year if listed. However, significant omissions may look suspicious.
What if a job application requires entering graduation dates?
If an application specifically requests graduation years, it is important to provide accurate dates to avoid coming across as dishonest. You can still exclude the details from your LinkedIn profile.
Is it okay to just leave a span of years instead of specifics?
Yes, listing a range like “1990-1994” or even just “Early 90’s” can often suffice to provide the necessary context without giving away exact ages or timeline details.
Key Takeaways
– Removing graduation dates can help combat ageism and resume gaps but also raises transparency concerns.
– Most experts recommend including graduation years to provide career context expected by hiring managers.
– Alternatives like only listing seasons or months still offer some context if you prefer omitting exact years.
– If excluding dates, emphasize skills, achievements, and be prepared to explain if questioned.
– Consider both perspectives to make an informed decision about what’s best for your specific situation and priorities.
