The significance of a good resume in the MBA application process cannot be overstated. The general tendency with most applicants is to devote only a minimal amount of time to work on their resumes; their thinking is that resumes are not so important since they receive only a quick glance from adcoms. This is wrong thinking! Your resume is the gateway to all the wonderful application materials that you painstakingly put together about yourself in the application package. The resume is typically the first application element an adcom member will read, so it has to be written in such a way to generate interest. It is imperative that your resume makes a good impression. Also, for promising applicants who receive an interview invitation, a good resume is important in the interviewing process to help an interviewer who is assessing your fit with the b-school.
With that in mind, here are some principles to remember as you write your resume:
- A narrative-based resume (rather than bullet-point) is the ideal way to begin this process since this captures maximum content in minimum space. Usually, it should be limited to one page, but as a starter you can extend into a second page and then pare it down to 1 page.
- Use the S-A-R approach. Since you want to identify and articulate your strengths and key accomplishments, the most effective flow is to state (a) the SITUATION – mention the problem you had to overcome (Who/What/When). (b) The ACTION you took or initiated to solve the problem, highlighting the skills you used to complete the tasks. (c) The RESULTS – summarize the outcome in a quantifiable manner.
- Your MBA resume should show you at your best. Include examples of specific times and places when you learned the most, shone the brightest and had the greatest impact.
- DO NOT fall into the trap of just listing all your official job descriptions to date. When top b-school review your resume, they’re looking for career progression, so be strategic in your job listing; include jobs in which you have achieved quantifiable goals, been promoted, and generally made an impact on your surroundings.
- DO NOT include industry-specific jargon or technical lingo that you might include on a job resume. Make the information on your resume as easily assessable to your audience as possible.
- DO NOT offer too much information in your b-school application resume. Including information that is already available from other parts of your application could be a turn off to adcoms and make you appear desperate – no SAT or GMAT scores, no high school information, no references.
It’s worth mentioning that this is not an exhaustive list of steps to adopt in writing your resume. The purpose is to streamline your thought process as you prepare this important aspect of your b-school application. Best of luck!
