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buid resume from your previous essays

like reposisbilities and achieve,emets 5. Use of Jargon: One of the most common mistakes applicants make is using
technical terms of their industry. Do not assume that Ad Com will understand your industry jargon. This is not a job resume that
you are writing for your prospective employer. This is your MBA resume that is scanned by the Ad Com of business schools for
career progression, leadership qualities, team- working skills, initiative and other interests/activities of future business
leaders. So make sure to make your rsum jargon free. The following example is jargon free:
Example:
Created and implemented new checklists and guidelines, helping reduce the cost of the projects by 10-15%

6. Lack of Strong Verbs: Do not start a bullet point with nouns or adjectives (e.g. responsible for or in depth understanding
of). Begin with a strong action verb. Verbs make you sound like a dynamic individual who is always ready for action. Also, try to
avoid overusing verbs like led, managed or developed, and consider using other verbs such as accelerated, delivered,
established, implemented, initiated, or spearheaded etc. Use verbs that demonstrate your collaborative attitude e.g
assist, contribute, support, provide etc.
Example:
Collaborated with multiple stakeholders and built a team of 7 analysts that resulted in revenue growth of $ 400K/ year

7. List of job responsibilities: Another most common mistake some applicants make in their MBA rsum is making it a long list
of job responsibilities. The Ad Com will not look at your rsum for the number of years you have worked or for your simple job
responsibilities. Instead, they will look for the quality of professional experience i.e. the skills you have acquired and the impact
you have made on your organization. When listing your professional experience, follow the reverse chronological order so your
current professional experience gets the utmost attention.

8. Lack of Quantifiable Accomplishments: Rsums that do not quantify the outcome of your accomplishments fail to make an
impression. So please make sure to quantify your impact on your company/organization with measurable results or
achievements.
Try to provide specific details such as:

How much or by what percentage you reduced expenses?

How many people were on the team that you supervised?
How much or by what percentage you increased sales ?
10. Omitting extracurricular activities/ interest: Sometimes the applicants get so involved in the details of their professional
experience that they tend to ignore extracurricular activities/community service and other interests/ hobbies. Please note that
the schools are looking for well-rounded individuals, and not only professionals who have no interests beyond their work. So do
not hesitate to include 2-3 hobbies that you feel passionate about and pursue in your non-work hours. Please do not include too
many hobbies or interests. Also, include community service activities you have been involved in.

11. Beginning with Education Section: Beginning with the educations section is one of the most common mistakes the applicants
make. Please place your education section after professional career section and keep it short. It should show the schools you
have attended,the areas of study, and accomplishments/ranking etc.

12. Additional Information /Skills: If you have some certificates or awards, if you have learned some foreign languages, or if you
possess advanced computer skills, you may use this section for this information. Also, if you have a long list of awards/ honors,
you may create a separate section of Awards and Honors to include that information.

13. Providing Personal information: Please do not provide your height, weight, date of birth, and marital status on your
rsum. Also, there is no need to provide your picture on your rsum.

14. List of References: An MBA rsum is not a place for providing references. So do not use precious space in providing
references or even mentioning References on request.
Lastly, and most importantly, edit and proofread your resume multiple times before you submit it. You do not want to
ruin your first impression by careless spelling, grammar, and style errors. Get it reviewed by a second a pair of eyes to
ensure consistency and accuracy.

Quantify Wherever You Can

If you possess professional experience, please mention it briefly yet clearly. When mentioning your
professional role and responsibilities, you should emphasize on how to turn the responsibilities you
essayed into your achievements and invaluable contribution to your team and organization. Always
quantify, which means, you must focus on providing figures and data. For example, if you reduced
expenses, mention how and by how much. Also mention the number of team members reporting to
you.
For example:
Led a five-member team to evaluate the traffic received on the organizations portal; activity
led the team to generate 10% increased traffic based on the analysis.
Provide Enough Context
The Admission Committee may be aware of the designation and firm you are working with as well as
the job title and role you are entrusted with, there are high chances the Committee may not be well
versed with all these. To avoid this, you must explicitly mention your designation, department,
organization name, city, a line about the organizations profile and your role in the organization.
Designation, Company, City, a $X organization engaged in ABC From Month Year to Month Year

Don't Forget Those Extra-curriculars

Along with your academic and professional and academic journey, you must make it a point to include
your extra-curricular activities, academic & professional achievements, sports, honorary service, etc.
Mentioning these will provide another perspective of yours to the Admission Committee that will add
brownie points to your application. For more information, go through List of Important Headings in a
Resume and Common Errors in a Resume.

Micheal Cohan
Almost every MBA application asks for a rsum. Before submission, the questions you need to ask yourself
are: who reads the MBA rsum, what should it contain, how long should it be, and how much time will be
spent in reading it?

Both MBA admissions committee members and interviewers often read your rsum. At the top level, an MBA
rsum should contain professional, academic and additional sections that present the different aspects of your
candidacy.

Remember to keep the MBA evaluation criteria in mind, so you are concisely presenting your
accomplishments, leadership, global scope/impact and promotions. Why concisely? First, many schools,
like Wharton, want rsums of only one page, though certain schools, like HBS, allow two pages. Second,
and here is the shocker, readers might only spend a minute or two skimming the different sections and drilling
down in certain places.
So, here are 10 tips on how to write a powerful MBA rsum that engages these semi-interested readers wbo,
nevertheless, make or influence the admissions decision.

1. Create section headers that best position your content.

Examples
Dividing experience into professional and entrepreneurial sections if you have significant experience in each
area.

Creating a separate publications section if you have authored publications.

2. Prioritize your best rsum content first.

Example
Directing a division of 20 people would usually be prioritized over training a department.

3. Use the STAR method (situation, task, action, result) model for
bullet items.
The STAR method is a useful tool in crafting your rsum. Having your rsum revolve around your
accomplishments gives the admissions committee a clear look into your professional history and career goals.
In each position you have held, think of an impactful initiative, deal, transaction, engagement or project that you
have led or contributed to meaningfully. Describe the situation, your role(s), your tasks(s), your action(s), and
the result(s) (STAR).
Example Led a team of 15 specialists to an on-time product launch with 95% customer satisfaction after last-
minute leadership change.
STAR is a holistic approach; the situation conveys the context; the role(s), task(s) and action(s) demonstrate
your skill sets and individual contribution to the overall outcome; the result(s) show your impact. The STAR
method also works well in interviews, allowing you to expound on the examples included on your rsum.

4. Utilize strong verbs to describe the actions, but vary these verbs
throughout your rsum to engage the reader.
5. Avoid multiple line descriptions. Doing so might mean you break up
points into more than one item.
Example from a rsum sent to me who wants to read this?
Take residential mortgage loan applications and offer, or negotiate terms for a home purchase or refinance loan
on borrower's behalf with multiple lenders. For example, Fifth Third Bank, Wells Fargo, Pacific Union, and nine
other lenders. Supervise all paperwork between lender and borrower for submission and underwriting. Review
credit reports, flood and homeowner's insurance binders, income documentation; business, farm, real estate,
and income tax returns; appraisals, mortgage notes, and title documents for closing and underwriting. Price out
mortgage rates and lock them with lenders. Ensure compliance with federal RESPA requirements as well as
Dodd-Frank Act requirements. Ensure secure transmittal and storage of all sensitive documentation.

6. Use multiple levels of hierarchies (bullets and sub-bullets; boldfaced

or underlined).
 Example
Direct overall CRM module test strategy.
Establish scope and nature of testing including architecture, automation,
performance, security and scalability.
Create project plans to ensure on-time delivery and track progress against milestones.
Negotiate with internal stakeholders to resolve dependencies.

7. Quantify the result with dollar amounts or percentages wherever

possible.
Example
saved company US$2 million or increased operating efficiency by 10%.

8. Write with parallelism to express similar ideas (section headers,

job functions, etc.).
Examples
Using consistent standards like periods at the end.

Having mini-sections of selected transactions to describe investment banking positions.

9. Eliminate or reduce rsum content that is redundant,

immaterial or overly technical. Use the guideline of whether the
rsum content positively differentiates you from your peers.
10. Use whitespace to increase readability. Readers will spend even
less time reading a rsum packed with every morsel of content
without regard to margins or line spaces.
For more advice on your MBA admissions rsum, see MBA Rsum.
What are the MBA Admissions Criteria used by Admissions Committees in evaluating my candidacy? Understanding
the MBA Admissions Criteria helps you in both preparing optimal MBA applications and selecting schools at which to
apply. You should prepare each component of the MBA application (essays, resume, work history, etc.) to address
(show strength) in one or more of the MBA evaluation criteria. Choosing MBA Schools at which to apply and
determining stretch, target, and safety schools is dependent upon the strength of your candidacy based on this
evaluation criteria and the degree to which those schools fits your needs. Almost all MBA schools look at the same
set of factors when evaluating your candidacy, although some schools will weigh certain elements more than others.
Also, Different MBA Program Types will factor the elements differently (a schools EMBA program will weigh the
Professional Dimension more and your Academic Profile less than the schools full-time MBA program will). Schools
want to admit candidates that have great intellectual capacity, demonstrated impact, leadership capabilities,
interpersonal skills, and other qualities shown in differing areas of his or her life. These dimensions are Professional,
Community, and Personal. However, a school must first ask can you academically compete in their program by
assessing your Academic Profile prior to determining whether your level of achievement and potential within the
Professional, Community, and Personal dimensions are sufficient to admit you.
MBA Admissions Criteria
From the INSEAD MBA Admissions Criteria page:

Academic Profile
MBA schools evaluate your Academic Dimension by looking at your academic performance (especially in quantitative
subjects), test scores, and other factors such as your intellectual curiosity and initiative for learning.

Transcripts

Your academic performance can be gleaned by examining your undergraduate and graduate transcripts along with
post-graduate diplomas, certificates and additional coursework. What was your GPA (or % for certain foreign
students) in your coursework and major(s)? How difficult is each school attended, degree attained and major
completed? For instance, Military Service Academies have low average GPAs as do engineering degrees when
compared to liberal arts degrees. So, a student graduating with a low GPA in Electrical Engineering from West Point
might have a stronger academic profile than another person graduating with a higher GPA in philosophy from a lower
ranked school. Did you take rigorous classes and do well? Did you earn strong grades in univariate calculus and
statistics? How difficult was your academic institution and the degree you chose (it is known that engineering
degrees product the lowest GPAs)?

Test Scores

What was your score on the GMAT or GRE? How well did you perform on the quantitative portion? Most schools use
the 80% as a rough threshold. If you score less than 80%, you will want to show quantitative aptitude in other areas of
your application. I recommend for MBA applicants to take the GMAT because schools have more of a history with
the exam. Applicants who take the GRE are usually those with another advanced degree (as the GRE is the entrance
requirement) or from a developing country (the GRE is less expensive than the GMAT). How have you performed on
the TOEFL if you are an international applicant who graduated from a school which was not taught in English?
Schools evaluate your English proficiency by looking at your test score, essays, and interview. This proficiency is
important because class contribution and study groups are a significant part of the MBA experience.

Certifications or Credentials

Have you achieved a designation that shows accomplishment, such as passing all three exams within the CFA
(Certified Financial Analyst)?

Publications

Have you been published which would demonstrate thought leadership in specific field or way of thinking? Does this
align with a schools research centers and initiatives?

Professional Dimension
The Professional Dimension includes your career trajectory, achievements, demonstrated leadership and teamwork,
global mindset, and other characteristics.

Promotions/Advancement

Have you progressed in your career with promotions? For instance, if you are a technology consultant you could have
progressed from analyst to lead to project manager to client relationship manager. Promotions can also occur in
matrix organizations (like Microsoft) in which you advance in title and role separately. Ideally promotions would have
occurred with the same company, but could have occurred over multiple companies as you left for higher positions.

Impact

What has been your demonstrated impact versus your peer group (applicants with similar roles in similar industries
and from similar regions)? Impact is best shown as affecting other entities and people besides yourself whether
organizations, divisions, teams, individuals, etc.

Leadership

What has been your demonstrated leadership versus your peer group (applicants with similar roles in similar
industries and from similar regions)? Leadership can be by authority or influence. Leaders have different leadership
styles (such as participative) and capabilities. Although impact and leadership are often correlated these are not
necessarily the same. A salesperson would show impact, but not necessarily leadership, by exceeding his or her
quota as an individual producer. The same person could show both impact and leadership by leading a team or
establishing a training program to empower many people to exceed their quotas. Ideally, when choosing answers to
essay questions (especially leadership essay question types) the applicant is both able to demonstrate impact and
leadership.

Teamwork

How do you contribute in a group when you are not the leader or leadership is shared? How do you manage conflict
(this is relevant both when you are a leader and teammate)? Have you developed specific teamwork skills that skills
include facilitation, consensus building, morale building, mentoring, etc.? Teamwork is tied to interpersonal and
group communication skills which MBA admissions committees evaluate in your essays and especially during your
interview. Whartons team-based interview format is specifically designed to glean this information.
Global

Have you worked in multiple countries and/or with people from different cultures? Have you led or managed
differently to attain results in these environments? How has your perspective been broadened given these
experiences?

Characteristics

Have you conducted yourself with integrity and/or positively handled ethical dilemmas? Have you demonstrated
initiative? Have you shown resiliency (often addressed in answering failure essay question types) and emotional
intelligence?

Community Dimension
Community encompasses extracurricular activities and community service (activities outside of school). When
discussing the Community dimension you still want to show promotions, impact, leadership, teamwork, a global
element and other characteristics but how you discuss each of these and what you highlight might be different.
Community involvement is important because admissions committees want to admit good people who will positively
impact the world and be engaged with the school through its clubs, conferences, programs, etc. Pre-MBA community
involvement is a strong indicator of community engagement while at MBA school.

Promotions

Promotions in community service could be position-based (selected for a board seat of a non-profit) or role-based
(advancing from a member of a group to its leader for a fundraising team participating in a marathon)

Leadership

How do you lead in non-professional settings when involvement is often voluntary?

Teamwork

How do you positively contribute to team dynamics when some members might be paid staff and other members
volunteers?

Global

Do any of your community service or extracurricular activities encompass a global scope or involve a global mission?

Characteristics

What is the underlying motivation (such as altruism, education, freedom, opportunity) that drives you to dedicate your
non-work time to these non-professional activities? Where is the passion that defines you as a human being?

Personal Dimension
MBA Admissions Committees also look at your background, perspectives, and pursuits outside of your professional
and community involvements to build a diverse class with unique and relevant viewpoints. Do you come from an
underrepresented minority group or global region? Have your risen from especially difficult circumstances (and has
this influenced your professional, community and personal goals)? Certain essay questions might ask about your
family background, the different experiences that have shaped you, something that might surprise the Admissions
Committee, etc. If not asked, you might include this information in your optional essay.
Overall Fit
All MBA Admissions Committees seek candidates with a strong academic profile and an excellent history of
promotions, impact, leadership, teamwork, a global mindset and other characteristics in professional, community,
and personal dimensions. Schools, though have different evaluation criteria and guiding principles that influence
their selection process which you can learn from thoroughly researching the school. MIT Sloan publishes What We
Look For and Haas Guiding Principles are Question the Status Quo, Confidence Without Attitude, Student
Always and Beyond Yourself. MIT Sloan does not feel that your short and long term goals dictate your future
success as a business leader (and hence MIT Sloan does not have a goals question), while Columbia considers the
alignment of your goals with their recruiters and academic programs as an important criterion (and hence why
Columbia does have a goals question). So, in closing, prepare your applications based upon the generic and specific
criteria that MBA Admissions Committees will use to evaluate your candidacy.

How to Write a Resume for MBA

Admissions Applications
By Kyle Watkins (last updated: January 1, 2015)

Applicants often spend months cramming for the GMAT; they obsess over every word in their
essays; they rehearse scores of answers to potential interview questions. Yet their resumes
remain woefully under polished, despite the fact that top MBA programs are putting a greater
emphasis on a candidates CV while slashing essay requirements.

Ive found that MBA applicants typically underinvest in their essays for a combination of two
reasons:

1. Most applicants already have a resume that theyve used in their professional life. As
such, they (mistakenly) feel like they only need to update and tweak it a bit to reflect
their latest positions and accomplishments.

2. Preparing a resume isnt a brand new endeavor like taking the GMAT, writing essays, or
practicing for admissions interviews might be, and so applicants (again mistakenly)
feel more comfortable with it.
Underinvesting in preparing your resume can fatally damage your application, and
unfortunately it is a mistake applicants make far too often. So, as you consider your
application to business school, here are a few tips on how to write a resume that will impress
admissions committees.

How to Write a Resume for MBA Admissions Applications

While weve provided some good tips in our 10-step guide to preparing a resume, there is a lot
more to consider.

Start from scratch. I can appreciate that applying for business school is a lot of work. You
have to invest a ton of time in writing essays and studying for the GMAT, and one corner you
can easily cut is recycling an old resume with a fresh coat of paint. But you shouldnt. First,
resumes are often documents that are built over time, and the content at the bottom tends to
linger a little longer than its optimal shelf life. We become better writers with practice, and our
narrative changes over time. Your resume your whole resume needs to reflect both of these
evolutions. Second, resumes for MBA applications need to be written through a whole different
lens. Consider the following bullet point, some version of which I see on almost all candidates
resumes:

Evaluated opportunities to increase downloads of companys mobile app

Seems reasonable enough, but its so bland, and its so easy to fix.

Make it about people, not profits. Resumes written for private sector, nonprofit, and
government jobs all require that the applicant demonstrate her value to the
organizations bottom line however that is measured. In contrast, a resume written for an
MBA application needs to demonstrate the applicants ability to affect and lead people. This
doesnt have to be through formal manager-subordinate relationships; rather, it can manifest
itself in a number of ways. But it absolutely needs to be the central message that admissions
committees see in your application:

Led a team created to evaluate opportunities to increase downloads of companys

mobile app

Dont confuse achievements and results. The former describes what you did, and the latter
tells the reader why he should care. Like our example bullet point above, bullet points so often
leave the reader wondering, So what? What impact did you have? Every resume bullet must,
first and foremost, answer this question. To check if your resume clears this hurdle, try adding
the words resulting in to every bullet point. If you can slide the phrase somewhere in the
middle of the bullet, then youre probably in good shape. If it fits best at the end and is left
dangling there like an unanswered question, then you may need to think about how to answer
it:

Led a team created to evaluate opportunities to increase downloads of companys

mobile app;deployed recommendations resulted in an increase in downloads.

Always quantify what you can. Being ambiguous about the context of your accomplishments
by leaving out quantifiable data will only serve to increase suspicious among admissions
committees. When there is no easily quantifiable figure that you can drop in, do your best to
estimate (and be honest about how you came to that estimate). This skill the ability to
estimate impact is one you better have if you are going to be successful in business and
business school; so you might as well demonstrate you have it on your resume:

Led a three-person team created to evaluate opportunities to increase

downloads of companys mobile app; deployed recommendations resulted in a
10% increase in downloads versus prior quarter.

Count your prepositions and conjunctions. Candidates often want to jam a lot of qualifiers and
information into a single bullet point on their resume. They get so wrapped up in the details
that they lose sight of the bigger picture they are trying to convey. As a result, many are left
with convoluted sentences that are difficult to follow. Fortunately, this is easy to detect. One
good measure of a sentences complexity is the number of prepositions and conjunctions it
uses (and when I say prepositions, Im including instances of words that are often prepositions
but also used as other parts of speech; for example, to is often used as part of an infinitive
phrase). If your sentence relies on four or more of these types of short, connecting words, then
you might be in a danger zone:

Led a three-person team created to evaluate opportunities to increase

downloads of companys mobile app; deployed recommendations resulted in a 10%
increase in downloads versus prior quarter.

Yikesthats a lot. And, as you might notice reading it, the sentence does start to become a
little hard to follow. Keep your sentences tight and to the point:

Led a three-person team created to accelerate companys mobile app downloads;

recommendations drove 10% growth versus prior quarter.

I like this bullet a lot. Its focused on people and leadership, it clearly states what results the
applicant achieved in quantifiable terms, and its straightforward and simple.

But its also only one piece of your resume. There are still a lot of other things to consider:

Curate your story. You dont need to provide admissions committees your entire biography.
Pick and choose the points that you think are most important. Come up with creative,
straightforward ways to group positions that require less explanation but that still need to be
listed.

Provide enough context. Some applicants are applying from companies and positions that
admissions committees may be very familiar with (for example, McKinsey or BCG). But often
times our jobs require a little more explanation and context. You should always be providing
that in the sentence directly under your job title. Include facts and figures about an
organizations size (revenue, headcount, etc.) and your specific job responsibilities there.
Then, use the bullets under that introductory sentence to describe your achievements and
results. So, a simple way to think about it looks like this:

[Job Title], [Company]

Responsible for doing [X] at [Company], an $Xbn company dedicated to [Y].
- Achieved [X], resulting in [Y]
- Achieved [X], resulting in [Y]
- Achieved [X], resulting in [Y]
Finally, make sure your resume supports the rest of your application. Even more so than when
applying for a job, applying for an MBA program requires you have a broader narrative that
is, the reason the admissions committee should admit you. Essays are often the easiest place
to spell out this narrative, but make sure your resume supports it. The two pieces dont stand
alone; rather, they compliment one another.

Hopefully these tips provide some good guidance as to where to start writing a resume for
MBA admissions applications. Were happy to review your resume as part of our free
consultation service, and for those looking for more in-depth resume editing, we provide that,
too. However you choose to proceed, remember to invest as much time in your resume as you
do in your essays, GMAT, and interview prep. Its the foundation on which all winning MBA
applications are built.

Preparing Your Resume

10 Steps to Preparing Your Resume
1. Every word matters. From the personal interests and skills sections to college internships
and extracurriculars, every line on your resume should have a purpose. If you list something,
be prepared to talk about it in depth during your interview, as admissions committees love to
focus in on small details.
2. Quantify each accomplishment. Seriously consider whether something should be on your
resume if you cant quantify it in some way. A good resume doesnt just say its author had an
impact on an organization; it demonstrates it through facts and figures. Anything else is just
empty filler.
3. Avoid jargon and platitudes. Another good sign youve got too much filler on your resume: its
overflowing with industry jargon and platitudes.
4. Drop adjectives and adverbs. While youre deleting all the jargon and platitudes, drop those
adjectives and adverbs, too. Instead of labeling something a major initiative, show it by
quantifying how many people it affected. Instead of writing about the extensive report you
published, demonstrate its reach by quantifying how many pages it spanned. If you drop the
empty adjectives and adverbs, youll force yourself to make each accomplishment measurable.
5. Keep it to one page. If youre applying to business school, your resume should be one page.
There is no excuse for it to be longer. Focused and concise headline-style writing will allow
you to stick to this rule and still convey everything you need to convey.
6. Be multifaceted. Business schools want to admit dynamic students that bring multiple
perspectives into the classroom. If youve only worked at one company, make sure you
highlight the other clubs or organizations youre involved with outside of work.
7. Demonstrate growth. Your resume should have an arc to it, and that arc should demonstrate
clear growth from where you started to where you are now. Within each organization and
throughout your resume as a whole, focus on telling a clear story of how you evolved.
8. Communicate clearly. Dont force the reader to search for simple facts like dates, locations,
titles, and organizations. If a title seems a little ambiguous or an organization is relatively
unknown, make sure you communicate it clearly by giving it context. Dont leave the reader
guessing.
9. Enlist reviewers. A second, third, and even fourth pair of eyes will go a long way to ensuring
youre communicating clearly and not overlooking any silly errors. In addition to just friends
and family, try to enlist a few readers that dont know you as well; theyll be less likely to fill in
gaps if something isnt clear and to give you feedback on the overall arc of the resume.
10. Be honest. The easiest way to ensure youll be dinged from admissions is to get caught
exaggerating or lying. Be honest about your titles, roles, and experiences.
Delve Into the Nuances of the MBA
Resume
Avoid industry jargon and including an objective when you
craft your MBA application resume.

By Stacy Blackman | Contributor Aug. 2, 2013, at 9:00 a.m.

MORE
Delve Into the Nuances of the MBA Resume
MORE

(ISTOCKPHOTO)

Most MBA programs require a resume submission as part of the written application. This
single-page document should highlight important aspects of an individual and often is an
untapped opportunity for an applicant to stand out.

Resume details can serve as icebreakers, or fuel the conversation during a business
school interview.

"For me, the resume is just as important as your essays," Soojin Kwon, admissions director
at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, wrote on her blog last fall. Distill your
experiences down to a few meaningful lines of text, regardless of whether you submit a
stand-alone CV or transfer that information to the application.

When crafting this version of your resume, keep in mind this audience is unique. The reader
of your MBA resume will be different than the person hiring you for an investment banking
job or an engineering position.

[See three ways to stand out in a competitive b-school applicant pool.]

Rather than focus on specifics, admissions representatives want individuals who will become
successful leaders in highly collaborative work environments. They want to see skills that
are transferable to almost any industry. Revise your resume to highlight the aspects that are
important to an MBA program.

For instance, a typical resume for a lead engineering role would need to show proficiency in
JavaScript an essential skill to this specific job. But an MBA interviewer at Harvard Business
School doesn't care if you can write code. That skill won't help you excel at leading
organizations, build great companies or create innovative products and services.

Likewise, when interviewing for a transactional banking role, many candidates will list out
specific deal names with dollar amounts. However, this type of detail won't be useful to the
admissions committee at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. Kellogg
will be much more interested in understanding how you worked with a team to close these
deals.

Schools want to verify your overall quantitative skills. Beyond that, the fact that you
collaborated with an international team, or developed and trained others on a new analysis
technique will be much more relevant.

Avoid a resume chock-full of jargon. Speak the same language as the admissions committee
and don't expect them to be experts in your particular niche.

Many applicants include an objective at the top of their resume. However, in the context of
the MBA application process, everyone has the same objective: to go to business school.
Thus, the mission statement is irrelevant and a waste of valuable real estate.

[Learn how to craft a well-balanced MBA admission essay.]

When considering which details to emphasize, remember the general qualities that most
business school programs are looking for. In addition to telling the chronological story of
your academic and professional career, focus on supporting three things: demonstrating
growth and progression, showcasing leadership and highlighting other "MBA relevant" skills.
These include traits like strong teamwork, collaboration and innovation.

Applicants who have been in the workforce for a number of years, possibly at various
companies, may need to be selective in detailing professional progress. When deciding
which experiences to include and which to ax, ask yourself if the work was meaningful and if
it can be used to illustrate a specific skill set or important accomplishment. Consider if it
supports your career path as well as your future goals, and include it only if it makes sense
for your overall story.

Demonstrate that over the course of your career, you have picked up new skills, assumed
new responsibilities and developed as an individual. Emphasize that this growth has been
recognized by others.

[See the MBA programs that lead to the most student debt.]

If done effectively, the resume reviewer can develop a good grasp of your abilities and
responsibilities and understand how you have progressed in your career.

Sometimes, you can illustrate your leadership or other important skills through examples
that are tangential to your basic job responsibilities. As you consider how to describe a
certain job, don't forget to think about some of the following activities, which are all
important even if they were not part of your core job.

It's important to note if you manage one or more people. Even if you informally supervise
and mentor someone, it's worth including on the resume. Mention if you've taken a lead in
recruiting, as it means you're acting as the face of your company. This demonstrates that
leaders at your company respect you and trust that you will represent them well.

Perhaps you spearheaded that new filing system, created a template for a new and essential
report, facilitated relationships with an important partner or streamlined routine processes.
Anything that illustrates how you identified an opportunity and took initiative is a great thing
to include. All of these examples highlight the skills that MBA programs value.

Don't underestimate the power of a well-executed resume. As the Ross admissions director
puts it, "How you describe your experiences matters. What you choose to highlight matters.
Think of it as a trailer for the movie about you."

3. Add some personality: Top b-schools know you have the credentials; the essays
offer them a chance to see your personality. You may not be a natural writer, but that
doesn't mean you can't make an effort to inject some humor and empathy, or talk
about your vision or your fears. Peel back the layers a little bit, because talking
about what's inside is what will differentiate you from all of the other analysts and
engineers in the applicant pool.

1. Tell your personal story: Whether in writing the essay or during an interview, every
time you talk about what you've done, also tell why. Share the things in life that
inspire you, what matters to you, or what moved you to make the decisions you have
made.

2. Tell what you value and believe in: Business schools really do want to know who you are
the whole younot just you as a professional. You want to present a balanced, well-rounded
human being who has many dimensions to contribute to an MBA class. When you talk about
your love of basketball or your concern for global warming, explain why those subjects are
meaningful to you.

"Often times, applicants belittle [or] overlook their hobbies," said Megan Solinger, assistant
director of admissions of the Carey Business School at Johns Hopkins University, in a
recent live chat on standing out in MBA admissions.