How to Create an MBA Resume

You will have no doubt heard the phrase, "The first impression is the last impression." Your first impression on the admissions committee will be made by your MBA resume; that is why it is so important to write an MBA resume that projects the best possible picture of you, as an MBA candidate and professional. This article will cover all the important things to keep in mind while preparing an MBA resume; while you most likely have had experience creating professional resumes remember that the process of preparing MBA resumes differs significantly from the process of preparing professional resumes.

A Fine Template

The first thing to do is to understand the MBA resume template. The resume that you present to the MBA admissions committee should not be longer than one page unless you have more than eight years of professional experience; the purpose of the resume is to explain your background very concisely. An MBA resume should be split into three clear sections - education, work-experience, and extra - curricular; you may word this differently but these three sentences are a must. Some other sections that you can include if appropriate are internship, community service, and positions of leadership. Splitting your resume to provide the correct amount of focus on each section is very important; when you create your MBA resume the lion's share of space should go to work experience (around 60 percent). Of the remaining 40 percent, 15 percent should go to education and 25 percent to extra - curricular. Reverse chronological order should be applied in each section of your MBA resume, with the most recent information being presented first.

Easy to Understand

It is very important that your MBA resume be written in a way that is easy to understand; it would be best for you to avoid technical jargon that could confuse or distract the admission committee members, for similar reasons, you should avoid utilizing acronyms that are not well known. Your resume will be easier to read if you refrain from writing paragraphs or very long sentences and instead use concise, cogent bullet points. If your experience is not with a very well-known firm, include a short description against the company's name. Remember, the members of the admissions committee must read through hundreds, if not thousands, of resumes; they will not take extra effort to parse the meaning of your words if they come across as confusing.

Focus on Accomplishments

Remember, your MBA resume must present a highly positive vision of your experience thus far, and the best way to do so is to highlight your accomplishments. You must be sure to mention all of your major roles, responsibilities, promotions, awards, and recognition. One very important area that you must place a lot of focus on is your leadership experience; MBA admission committees place a lot of value on leadership potential. Make sure to specify all relevant details about any leadership experience that you might have, the size of your team, duration of leadership profile, etc. While mentioning your accomplishments, skip the nuances and all minor achievements; the MBA resume should be written to highlight your most significant accomplishments and if you include minor achievements it will suggest a lack of maturity on your part or that you simply have no significant accomplishments to list.

Quantify points

One very important directive to keep in mind as you write your resume is to quantify, wherever possible. If you can provide numerical values to support your accomplishments, it will greatly increase the impact that they will have. It would be particularly useful if you could provide numerical backing to any value that you may have added to your organizations, such as the amount of revenue that you managed to bring to your organization. As anyone with experience in the MBA admissions process will tell you, a number can be worth a hundred paragraphs.

Grammar

Needless to say, the grammar of your MBA resume must be impeccable; you must make sure that your resume is free of all typos, grammatical errors, or spelling mistakes and make consistent use of periods. There should either be a period at the end of every sentence or there should not be a period at the end of any of the points. Grammatically poor or error-ridden resumes are a major turn off for the admissions committee and suggest a highly disorganized candidate. As mentioned above, MBA admission committees favor resumes that are easy to read; if your MBA resume is difficult to comprehend due to poor grammar, the meaning of the content will be lost.

Formatting

Formatting is something that you must take very seriously; how neatly you prepare your MBA resume will suggest to the admissions committee how organized you are. Poor formatting can rob even highly impressive content of its impact. When reviewing resumes, MBA admission committees often find improper left-right alignment; headings must be on the extreme left and the date on the extreme right. Do not overuse bolds and uppercase letters, as doing so is considered to be quite rude. In order to make sure that the MBA resume looks neat, avoid gaudy colors, and maintain a uniform, suitable spacing. Overall, your MBA resume must be written in a soothing and pleasant manner.

When writing your MBA resume, keep these points in mind to prepare one that effectively communicates your worth as a candidate and conveys that you are an organized and meticulous professional. Such an MBA resume will leave a positive impact on the admissions committee and predispose them to judge you well, as they go through your profile. By incorporating the above mentioned advice into your resume writing process, you will be able to prepare an MBA resume that will convey to the admissions committee that you are a capable, responsible, and mature professional who will be a fine addition to the school

For more useful information on the MBA application process please see the other articles prepared by Experts’ Global’s MBA admissions consultancy team.