Importance Of Your Resume In Your MBA Application

In your MBA applications, the majority of business schools will ask for your resume. In general, your resume should be a one-page, professional resume, however it will most likely be different from the resume you send when interviewing for a job. When you are applying for a position such as a Google developer, your employer will want to learn about your skills in programming. Similarly, a prospective MBA program will want to know about your leadership experience and about your ability to communicate. Instead of focusing on specific technical projects, and writing in a work-specific language, you should consider the broader abilities developed from each initiative. You will need to translate your accomplishments into sentences that an MBA program admissions committee knows and about which they care.

 

Your resume should be separated into three sections: Professional, Education, and Additional Information. The Professionalsection should be the focus of your resume. Make sure that every part begins with action words such as “led” and “created.” Do not use more passive words such as “assisted” and “worked.” Every point should be as specific as possible and results oriented. Use numbers whenever you have the opportunity to do so. For example, consider this example for your resume:

 

“Helped create a filing system”

 

Not very impressive? Regardless, once transformed, it can appear more considerable:

 

“Conceived of and implemented new system, which improved productivity and led to a 30% savings in costs.

 

The Education section of the resume should include university and graduate studies. Generally you should not include your high school. Including your high school may make your resume appear immature.

 

The Additional Information section should be short and focused. This is a place to provide any extra interesting items, such as hobbies or fluency in foreign languages. It is alright to have a line that reads, “Enjoy reading and traveling. Collect baseball cards.” The extra information on this section can serve as an ice breaker.

 

It’s important to remember that anything on your resume can be discussed in your interview. You should be cautious when you label your years of middle school Spanish as “fluent.” You can never be sure of when the interviewer will decide to conduct your interview in Spanish. Be prepared to speak well and to go into more detail on any part of your resume. If any of the information is not up to date, go back and make sure everything is correct before submitting. 

 

For more robust guidance on your MBA application essays, check out the Stacy Blackman Consulting Essay Guide Series – school specific guides with essay tips, sample essays, information on what your target schools value and more.

 

Visit the Stacy Blackman website to learn more.