What Makes a Strong MBA Resume

If you’re set on attending a top business school, you’ll need to find ways to stick out from the competition.

That’s why your MBA resume is of particular importance. An MBA resume gives admissions officers a quick overview of your professional accomplishments and shows what talent and experience you can bring to the table. US News recently spoke to experts on what a strong MBA resume consists of and what you should do if you want to catch admissions officers’ attention.

RESEARCH

Fit is one of the top considerations that admissions officers are looking for when reviewing an MBA application.

“It’s important to remember that not only are you looking to see if a school is the right fit for you, the school is also looking to see if you are the right fit for them,” Lily Bi, president and CEO of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (also known as AACSB International), tells US News.

That’s why, Bi says, it’s important to do thorough research prior to crafting your resume.

“Doing your research on the AACSB-accredited institution of your choice and providing examples of how their specific programs and extracurricular offerings will help you reach your goals will show admissions officers that you are invested in the school – and invested in yourself.”

QUANTIFIABLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Rather than simply listing your roles and responsibilities on your resume, experts recommend quantifying your results whenever possible.

“Things such as the number of people involved, budget amounts, number of visitors to your website, monetary value to the firm of your client – these types of metrics strengthen your resume by demonstrating impact,” Jody Keating, an admissions coach at Fortuna Admissions, says.

Measurable results don’t have to be grand numbers either. Highlighting your impact in a role and organization can be helpful, even if you don’t have many results to show.

“In the early stages of your career, it’s tempting to overstate your involvement,” Maya Parikh Gandhi, a senior admissions consultant at Menlo Coaching, an admissions and test prep company in California, says. “Chances are you aren’t leading many client engagements, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have an important role. Point out if you led research, interacted with senior leadership or met regularly with important stakeholders.”

CONCISE

Experts recommend keeping your resume to one page. Admissions officers will only have a few minutes to review your resume, so it’s important to only include the most important highlights.

“There is such a thing as diminishing returns,” says Jason Rife, senior assistant dean of the Career Management Center and Graduate Admissions for Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University in Texas. “We’ve got GRE, SAT, GMAT, ACT scores and some of them are good. We don’t need five or six and we don’t need every club you’ve been a part of, just the ones where you were president, vice president or treasurer, and describe the impact you’ve had.”

Sources: US News, Fortuna Admissions