Writing a winning MBA application resume is your ticket to getting acceptedto your dream MBA program.
Your resume is a chance to showcase your business acumen, education, and professionalexperience, as well as your soft skills.
One thing’s for sure: Putting in the time and effort to craft a strong MBAresume will stand you in good stead for competitive programs at top businessschools like Harvard and Stanford.
But figuring out what to include in your MBA resume can sometimes feeloverwhelming.
You’re probably wondering how long your resume should be, what you shouldinclude, and/or whether you need a different resume than the kind you’ve usedfor a job application.
This article will explain how to showcase your skills and create acompetitive advantage that sets you apart from your peers and gives you thebest chance of becoming a successful MBA applicant.
Read on to learn about the best MBA resume format and how to make your MBAapplication resume stand out, including:
- What to include in your MBA application resume
- How to structure your MBA resume
- How to craft an MBA resume objective
- How to best highlight your work experience, education, and skills
- Real MBA resume example
How an MBA resume differs from a job resume
The firstthing you might be wondering is if a resume for an MBA application is the sameresume that you use to apply for a job.
The shortanswer is no.
While acareer resume seeks to inform how you can meet a job description or fulfillcertain roles and responsibilities, an MBA resume should communicate your valueand impact on the business world, today and in the future.
An admissionscommittee wants to see that you’re a way-shower. They want to see your capacityfor leadership and innovation, that you can work well with teams, and that youcan use critical-thinking skills to achieve success.
Understandingthis goal will not only help inform how you will structure your resume but alsowhat to include and how much time to spend on it.
Why spend time on your MBA resume
Among MBAprograms from across the globe, the MBA resume is second only to academictranscripts and entrance exams when it comes to the MBA interview process.
What to include in your MBA resume
When it comes to your MBA application, the MBA resume is your time to shine.You’ll want to focus on including the most relevant information about your pasteducation and professional experience.
Xavier Arola Perez, head of career services and entrepreneurship at GBSBGlobal Business School, recommends including six basic components in your MBAresume:
1.Contact information
2.Objective/summary
3.Work experience
4.Education
5.Technical skills
6.Achievement/awards
Although you may have worked in a variety of jobs and volunteering rolesbefore applying for your MBA degree, in this short document you’ll want to onlyselect examples that highlight your business leadership, impact, and skills.
“Include specific accomplishments and achievements that set you apart andthat are transferrable to the MBA program for which you are applying,” saysJerry Wang, associate director of career and leadership for MBA programs at theUniversity of North Carolina (UNC) Kenan-Flagler Business School.
Concentrate on examples where you can demonstrate business leadership andgrowth to help admissions committees see the value you offer their MBA programand easily determine your aptitude for business school.
Get started with GradSelect Elevate - a free tool to practice for future video interviews. Quickly get unbiased feedback on your skills, and confidently stand out to your target programs.
How to structure your MBA application resume
You want your MBA resume to be clear, simple, and easy to read foradmissions committees.
It’s best to structure your MBA resume with your contact information andobjective at the top, followed by your education and most recent workexperiences, and concluding with a desirable skills and accolades section.
List your education and work experience in reverse chronological order,starting with your most recent accomplishments first.
Use bullet points, lines, and headers to clearly identify the differentsections and articulate your applicable experience.
You can use lines and headers to break up your resume and bullet points canbe used to summarize key points and stress important information as well as increasereadability.
For example, you may use a bullet point for each of the schools in youreducation section, or a list of bullet points to highlight businessachievements or technical skills.
How to write an eye-catching MBA resume objective
Think of your resume objective as your elevator pitch.
It’s a succinct paragraph (2-4 sentences) at the top of your resume thatbriefly describes your career history and what differentiates you from yourpeers.
Essentially a resume summary, your objective should describe the value youbring to an MBA cohort and how your experience will best serve the programsyou’re applying for.
Consider adapting your objective for each application you’re submitting andbe sure to use any applicable keywords that align with the program.
Overall, see this section as a way to differentiate yourself from the massesand stand out during the application process.
Example
MBA candidate and driven finance professional with over sixyears of experience designing successful investment portfolios for top-tierclients. Honored as top account executive for last three years based on anaverage return of 17 percent and a 100 percent client retention rate. Teamlead, member of the negotiations committee, and founded sustainability initiativeaimed at reducing waste and offsetting carbon footprint.
How to describe work experience on an MBA resume
The bulk of your MBA resume should be reserved to showcase your workexperience and the growth of your career.
Start by listing the name of the organization, your job title, and how longyou worked there.
Then, for each position, create a bullet point (2-6 bullet points) for eachof your achievements in that role. Avoid making your list sound like a jobdescription—this is your chance to tell your story about the impact you’vemade and share important moments in your career.
“It's not your life story, but a summary of the key, relevant achievements,”notes Margaret O’Neill, head of careers at Cambridge Judge Business School.
Use key metrics and numbers that quantify what you’ve accomplished with thecompany, voluntary organization, or college society.
Focus on leadership, business administration, and how you contributed to theoverall growth and success of the organization and use positive,action-oriented language to describe your outcomes.
“Try to clearly state the action you took, and the results achieved. Begineach bullet point with a strong action verb and be sure to highlighttransferable skills and feature relevant keywords,” advises Beth Briggs,associate dean of career services at New York University (NYU) Stern School ofBusiness.
A tried and tested MBA resume strategy is the PAR method, which involves stating the ‘Project’, ‘Action’,and ‘Result’ of each example you include as this can help to quantify youraccomplishments.
Try to avoid these common MBA resume mistakeslike including vaguedescriptions of your experiences that don’t present your talents in the bestlight.
Example
Oracle – Austin, TX | Product MarketingManager | January 2018-Present
Increased annual product sales by10% by designing, executing, and measuring integrated, multichannel marketing strategiesthat increase awareness, generate new leads, and nurture existingrelationships.
How to write an education section of an MBA resume
If you feel that your work experience is less robust than you want, be sureto put your education section at the forefront of your MBA application resume.To start, include the following details:
- School
- Degree
- Major/concentration
- Any minors (if applicable)
- Graduation date
- GPA
- Awards/honors (if applicable)
In addition, share any extracurricular activities, college societies, orstudy abroad opportunities that demonstrate your interests and businessleaderships skills.
Discuss your studies and how your experience has prepared you for leadershipin the business world.
Example
University of Virginia | Charlottesville,VA | Graduated May 2015
B.A. Economics, GPA: 4.0, summa cumlaude
Study abroad: London, UnitedKingdom, January-May 2014
How to showcase your skills and awards
The final piece of your MBA resume is your opportunity to share the special skillsand accolades that make you a desirable MBA applicant.
Discuss any awards you’ve received and how you earned this recognition.
List out any relevant certifications and your mastery level of the systemsyou utilize.
Make note of any publications that have published your work or quoted youfor expertise.
This section can include highlights from either your education or workexperience.
Use this section as a place to share the skills and accomplishments thatmake you unique and help distinguish your application from the pack.
Finally, make sure this section includes details that you’ll want to discussmore during your MBA interview.
Example
- Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
- Fluent in English, Spanish, and French
- Certified Mindfulness Meditation Teacher
How to best format your MBA resume
Once you’ve added your information, it’s time to format your resume.
Since the average hiring manager spends just 7.4 seconds reviewing a resume, MBA admissions committeeswith stacks of MBA resumes to review are likely to take a similar approach.
The best way to ensure whoever is reviewing your MBA resume catches the mostimportant details about you is to limit your resume to 1-2 pages.
Applicants with less than 10 years of professional experience may opt for aone-page resume, and two pages if you have more than this.
When considering your MBA resume format, remember that clean and concise isalways best.
- Font: Choose a legible font like Times New Roman, Calibri, or Arial in 11 or 12 point size
- Margins: One-inch margins
- Line height: Approximately 1.0 line spacing
- Details: Avoid complex charts or graphics that divert attention
This approach will stand you in good stead if the business school you’reapplying for uses Applicant Tracking Software (ATS) systems or other softwaretools.
“You don't want the recruiter to spend time trying to orient themselves toyour formatting. Boring is generally better unless you're applying forsomething in design or art,” says Jerry from UNC Kenan-Flagler.
If you want to add a pop of color at the top of your MBA application resume,then choose something that allows for a good level of contrast between the textand the page. Otherwise, a black and white MBA resume works perfectly well.
Differentiating your MBA resume for each business school
An MBA resume should always be specific and tailored to the program you’reapplying for, so avoid handing in the same one you’ve used for jobs or otherMBA applications.
Every business school has different values and specialties, so weave theseelements into each resume to stand a good chance of impressing the MBAadmissions committee.
For instance, if you’re applying for a business school that’s known for itsstrength in marketing, you might want to outline the targeted advertisingprojects you’ve worked on during your professional career as a marketingmanager or how you oversaw a college society’s annual marketing budget.
Meanwhile, if you’re applying for one of the best MBA programs renowned forentrepreneurship, you’d want to focus more on the ways you’ve engaged withentrepreneurship or worked on a business idea with a colleague or classmate.
Tailor your resume to each application and highlight the experience andskills that prove that you’re one of the talented professionals that deserves aseat in this specific MBA program.
To get more top MBA resume tips and access MBA resume examples and templates,download the free BusinessBecause Resume Guide: 10 Steps To A Winning Resume.
Next Steps
Your MBA resume is a key component of the admissions process and is anopportunity to set yourself apart from the crowd.
See this as a chance to convince admissions committees that you’re the bestcandidate for their program by carefully crafting a story that shares yourexceptional skills and experiences.
Ready to dive into the other components of your MBA application? Use this interactive toolto find out which aspects of yourapplication carry the most weight when it comes to admissions decisions so youcan focus your time and attention on the sections that matter most.
Get started withGradSelect Elevate- a free tool to practice for future video interviews. Quickly get unbiased feedback on your skills, and confidently stand out to your target programs.
