Do You Capitalize Latin Honors? Cum Laude Rules for Your Resume

No, you don't capitalize Latin honors in a sentence or on a resume line. Write cum laude, magna cum laude and summa cum laude in lowercase. Capitalize them only at the start of a sentence or inside a title-case heading.

The harder questions are italics, commas and where the honor sits. Style guides split on italics, so this guide shows what each one says. Then it gives you correct lines to copy for your Education section.

Quick answers by situation

#Do you capitalize Latin honors on a resume or in a sentence?

The Grammar Girl site put the rule in one line. In its guide to degree names, Heather Saunders writes: "When including Latin honors in the degree name, set them lowercase."¹ She cites both the AP Stylebook and the Chicago Manual of Style.

University style guides say the same. The University of Oregon's style column calls the honors "always lowercase, not italicized"². The University of Alabama follows AP and also prints them in lowercase. Merriam-Webster lists cum laude in lowercase⁸ as two words meaning "with distinction."

Why capitals look wrong

If you capitalize Latin honors, they look like a proper noun, such as a school or a named award. But cum laude is a description, not a name. So "Magna Cum Laude" in the middle of a line reads like an award title, and editors will mark it.

Your degree name follows a similar logic. You can write "Bachelor of Arts" in capitals as a formal degree name, yet the honor next to it stays lowercase. Our guide on how to list education on your resume covers the rest of that line.

When capitals are correct

• Start of a sentence. "Summa cum laude graduates sit in the front row." Only the first word takes a capital.
• Title-case headings. A section title such as "Graduating Magna Cum Laude" can capitalize each main word.
• All-caps design. If your resume sets every degree line in caps, the honor can follow. But most resumes don't, so keep it lowercase.

#Should cum laude be in italics?

This is where the guides really split. Saunders notes that "The AP Stylebook and CMOS (7.55) are in agreement"¹ that the terms should not be italicized. Notre Dame's style roundup agrees: "Honors, including cum laude, magna cum laude and summa cum laude, are not italicized."³

The Alabama guide adds "Do not italicize"⁴ to all three honors. Hamilton College's entry for magna cum laude says just "no italics."⁵

The guides that use italics

Resume advice often goes the other way. Harvard Law School's public interest office tells students to italicize all three.

Because they are Latin phrases, magna, summa, and cum laude should always appear in italicized, lowercase letters.

Harvard Law School, OPIA resume layout guidance

The University of Alaska Fairbanks style guide also says the honors "should be italicized."⁶ Resume sites such as Zety⁹ and TopResume¹⁰ say the same. Still, none of them tell you to capitalize Latin honors.

Which style guide says what

We could not open the Chicago entry itself, because it sits behind a paywall. So the Chicago row relies on Grammar Girl's citation of section 7.55.

We also found no APA Style rule on Latin honors. If your school or employer has a house style, that style wins.

#How do you write cum laude correctly on a resume line?

First comes the degree, then the major, then the honor. After that come the school, city and date, in whatever order your Education section already uses.

Correct lines to copy

Harvard Law's own example drops the comma and puts the honor between the degree and major: "B.S. magna cum laude in Physics." That pattern works too. So pick one pattern and use it for every degree you list.

Common mistakes to fix

Zety warns readers not to swap between phrases like "graduated with honors" and cum laude. Use the exact wording your school gives you. That also keeps your resume in line with your transcript if an employer checks it.

#Where does summa cum laude go on a resume?

Zety says noting the honor in Education is enough for most people. TopResume calls honors "one of the last things you drop"¹⁰ as you gain experience.

If you have more than one degree, each honor stays with its own degree. That matters for anyone with two majors, as our guide on how to list a double major on your resume shows. For the wider placement choices, read our full guide on how to list Latin honors on a resume.

A full Education section

Harvard Law notes that Dean's List can look redundant next to Latin honors. So if space is tight, cut Dean's List first. A thesis line can stay, and our guide to listing a thesis on your resume shows the format.

Templates for new grads

Our student resume examples show where honors land on real one-page layouts. For a full page you can copy, open the college student resume example and swap in your degree line.

Fill-in-the-blank template

You can build the whole page faster with Rezoom's AI resume builder. It drops your degree, honor and dates into a clean layout, and then you check the lowercase and italics by eye.

#What GPA do you need for cum laude, magna and summa?

John Jay College (CUNY) uses a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5¹¹ for cum laude, 3.75 for magna and 3.9 for summa.

UConn sets minimums of 3.0, 3.4 and 3.7¹² plus a class-rank test. Yet its May 2025 table for Business shows real cutoffs of 3.819, 3.89 and 3.969. So the minimum on paper can sit far below the bar students actually clear.

Rank-based schools

Vanderbilt ties honors to rank. Summa goes to students at or above the top 5 percent¹³ of recent graduates, magna to the next 8 percent and cum laude to the next 12 percent. For 2026–27, its Arts and Science cutoffs are 3.990, 3.961 and 3.908.

Should you add the GPA too?

Because thresholds differ, a recruiter can't read your GPA from the honor alone. But Harvard Law says a high GPA is often self-evident when you graduated magna cum laude.

If the employer asks for GPA, add it on the same line. Our guide on whether to put your GPA on your resume gives the cutoff most recruiters expect.

#How do Latin honors work outside the US?

The UK uses bands, not Latin phrases. Prospects lists first-class honours at 70% and above¹⁴ and a 2:1 at 60% to 70%. So a UK grad writes "BA (Hons) History, First-Class Honours," not "summa cum laude."

Other countries use Latin terms with their own scales. We could not confirm one rule for all of them, so copy the wording on your diploma. If you add a US note, keep it short, as in "(top 5% of class)," and only if your school publishes that rank.

What to say if they push back

• "Is magna cum laude the top honor?" Say no: summa is the top, then magna, then cum laude.
• "What GPA did that take at your school?" Give your school's cutoff, or your own GPA.
• "Why is the honor in italics?" Say you followed the law school or academic format, which sets Latin phrases in italics.

The same lowercase rule applies in a cover letter. Our student cover letter examples show how to mention an honor in one plain sentence.

#How do you check your Latin honors line before you send it?

1. Find the official wordingOpen your diploma, transcript or registrar page and copy the honor exactly.
2. Set it in lowercaseWrite cum laude, magna cum laude or summa cum laude with no capitals mid-line.
3. Pick italics or romanUse italics for law and academic resumes, plain type for most others.
4. Place it on the degree linePut it after the major, set off with a comma.
5. Check every mentionMatch the style in your resume, cover letter and LinkedIn.

#Frequently asked questions

#Sources

We opened and read each page below. The small numbers in the text point here. Pages that carry no publication date show n.d.

1. Quick and Dirty Tips (Grammar Girl)2022

   Latin honors in a degree name are set lowercase, and the AP Stylebook and Chicago Manual of Style 7.55 agree they are not italicized

   quickanddirtytips.com (opens in a new tab)

2. University of Oregon Communications2023

   Latin honors are always lowercase and not italicized; cum laude is the top 10 percent and magna cum laude the top 5 percent

   communications.uoregon.edu (opens in a new tab)

3. Notre Dame NDWorks2023

   Cum laude, magna cum laude and summa cum laude are not italicized

   ndworks.nd.edu (opens in a new tab)

4. University of Alabama Strategic Communicationsn.d.

   The AP-based guide says not to italicize cum laude, magna cum laude or summa cum laude

   stratcomm.ua.edu (opens in a new tab)

5. Hamilton College Editorial Style Guiden.d.

   Magna cum laude takes no italics

   hamilton.edu (opens in a new tab)

6. University of Alaska Fairbanksn.d.

   Cum laude, magna cum laude and summa cum laude should be italicized

   uaf.edu (opens in a new tab)

7. Harvard Law School OPIAn.d.

   Latin honors should appear in italicized lowercase letters, and Dean's List may look redundant next to them

   hls.harvard.edu (opens in a new tab)

8. Merriam-Webstern.d.

   Cum laude is a lowercase two-word phrase meaning with distinction

   merriam-webster.com (opens in a new tab)

9. Zetyn.d.

   Latin honors go in lowercase italics, usually in the Education section, using the exact wording on the diploma

   zety.com (opens in a new tab)

10. TopResumen.d.

    Honors are one of the last education details to drop from a resume

    topresume.com (opens in a new tab)

11. John Jay College (CUNY)n.d.

    Cum laude needs a 3.5 GPA, magna cum laude 3.75 and summa cum laude 3.9

    jjay.cuny.edu (opens in a new tab)

12. UConn Office of the Registrar2025

    Minimums are 3.0, 3.4 and 3.7 plus class rank, while May 2025 Business cutoffs were 3.819, 3.89 and 3.969

    registrar.uconn.edu (opens in a new tab)

13. Vanderbilt University Registrar2026

    Summa goes to the top 5 percent, magna to the next 8 percent and cum laude to the next 12 percent, with 2026–27 Arts and Science cutoffs of 3.990, 3.961 and 3.908

    registrar.vanderbilt.edu (opens in a new tab)

14. Prospects2026

    UK first-class honours means 70% and above and a 2:1 means 60% to 70%

    prospects.ac.uk (opens in a new tab)