Tips for writting a MBA CV

A CV for an MBA student is much different from the traditional CVs. Coming from a technology background it has been difficult for me to ensure that I do not use too many technical words.

Here are some interesting points to consider:

article source: http://www.mba.com/mba/ApplyEffectively/MarketYourselfLikeaPro/ResumesforMBAs.htm

What a Résumé Should Do

A résumé is often the first piece of information that an admissions officer or recruiter considers, because it neatly summarizes a candidate's skills, experience, and abilities. It is the primary tool you use to market yourself. But what should it contain? What is it that recruiters are really looking for?

What Recruiters Look For

The Graduate Management Admission Council® asked a number of important questions in our survey of corporate recruiters who typically hire MBA grads. The Corporate Recruiters Survey 2002–03 revealed that recruiters consider these the most important factors they look for in MBAs:

 1.  functional (job-related) experience and industry work experience/internships 
 2.  evidence of increasing job responsibility 
 3.  history of leading teams 
 4.  number of years of experience

Your pre-MBA résumé or CV (curriculum vitae) should demonstrate these attributes, because most employers of MBAs have expectations about your pre-MBA professional development that the degree itself cannot overcome. Your résumé must be an accurate historical record of your career achievements and supporting education to date—and their relevance to what you plan to do in your career once you earn your MBA.

What Admissions Officers Look For

Admissions officers look for many of the same things recruiters look for. Both of these readers of résumés look for evidence that your education and experience have prepared you to fulfill your goals, whether academic or career-related. The résumé that accompanies your admissions application should communicate a compelling case for why you belong at a particular MBA program or in a particular career or function. (That is to say, your pre-MBA experience is relevant to both admissions officers and employers hiring MBAs in your desired career function.)

What Your Résumé Should Say

As a historical document, your résumé should be accurate and factual, not subjective or editorialized. Include statements that are supported by evidence, particularly quantitative evidence, and are consequently not easily debatable. For example, an appropriate factual statement might be: "Managed 24 people over three years and increased employee retention 10% while also improving work productivity 15%." This is a factual statement of what you did and how well you did it, and it quantifies your success. This is the type of statement you want on your résumé.

You should avoid putting insupportable statements on your résumé—that is, assertions that are purely subjective and cannot be backed up by evidence. Here's an example of what you do NOT want to put on your résumé: "Exceptional people manager with extensive supervisory experience." Recruiting managers and admissions counselors with 10+ years of experience might well argue that your three years of experience hardly qualifies as "extensive." Also, "exceptional" is a matter of opinion. You'd prove more by stating the statistical facts (as shown in the first example) than by stating your opinion. If you believe your managerial skills were exceptional because of high employee satisfaction ratings, say that: "Achieved highest employee satisfaction ratings of 12 managers in my division."

Your résumé should provide detail only on experience, skills, and successes that are relevant to your career goals; less relevant items should be stated briefly. Try to show that your experiences trace a direct path to the future job you want. This helps guide an admissions professional or recruiter to what is most important on your résumé and how these experiences make a good case for your future success in the career track of your choice.

Here's an example: If you were a tax accountant early on but transitioned into finance and want to stay in finance, don't provide intricate details of your prior tax work. To do so might create a false impression that you want to continue on the tax accounting track. Instead, briefly summarize your tax work, making sure to show where you were and when (people who read your résumé will want to see continuity), and give a more detailed description of your finance work—the part of your experience you want the admissions professional or recruiter to focus on.

Your résumé should focus more on results and achievements than activities or situations. A strong, action- and results-based résumé is one primarily composed of statements like this: "Took over management of [situation] and achieved 10% customer retention improvement, $2 million in new sales volume, and 11% profit improvement through the following initiatives [how you did it—briefly]." That's a lot more compelling and convincing than saying, for example, that you managed a particular function and then listing the tasks you performed, without citing the results.

Your résumé should give your full contact information right at the top of the first page (address, phone, and e-mail address).

Your résumé should state an objective—if you have a specific one. Otherwise, let your current or most relevant job or most recent education serve to indicate your objective.

Your résumé should list your experience, by employer (company name), including locations, dates, job titles, and roles/achievements. You can present this list in one of two formats.

Your résumé can be set up in reverse chronological order (i.e., with the most recent experience listed first), or as a functional or skill- or experience-based résumé.

For the vast majority of MBA candidates, we recommend the reverse chronological format, including all jobs since your university years (including relevant internships). This résumé style shows the progression of experience and interests. (If reverse chronological order goes against the usual preference in the country in which you will use your résumé, you might want to use a chronological format that shows your most recent experience last.)

It may be, although it is unlikely, that a format highlighting your cross-functional experience would be more relevant to your career goals than a chronological presentation of your experience. In this case, a functional résumé might be most suitable. In a functional résumé, headings such as "Sales Experience," ""Management Experience," "Technology Experience," and "Budgeting Experience" take the place of simply "Experience," which you would use as the heading for a chronological presentation of your experience.

Your résumé should show your educational history—degrees completed, degrees in process, and certfications/professional courses. When you list degrees completed, be sure to include any distinctions or honors granted. For degrees in process, make it clear that the degree isn't complete by showing the future date of graduation. For certifications/professional courses, include such things as licenses you hold and corporate training you have had that is relevant to your goals.

Your résumé can reflect your hobbies or interests, if you think they will support your goals. You might want to list hobbies that provide insight into your interests and values (who you are), provided these interests aren't too controversial. Specific political or religious affiliations might bias certain audiences, so you might be better off not listing those but listing instead your community activities and volunteer work. In listing your hobbies and interests, be sure to mention any leadership roles you hold or have held; for example, serving on a governing board of a professional society or leading a scout troop or community organization.

General Résumé Tips for Candidates Considering an MBA

Whether or not you ultimately attend business school, understand that your résumé is a dynamic piece of information that should be updated at least annually as you evolve professionally. As you consider any decision about where to devote new energy and develop new skills ( e.g., MBA study), visualize its potential future impact on your résumé and marketability. Ask yourself whether the new pursuit will help lead you where you want to go, when added to the résumé you already have.

The majority of a graduating MBA's résumé content already exists prior to the start of an MBA program. An MBA over one or more years is just one additional piece of content, albeit an important one. It alone cannot compensate for serious gaps in your experience and résumé, but it can develop your knowledge and skills, making you better able to launch a fulfilling career, move up in your current career, or change careers. Do you have all that you need on your pre-MBA résumé to graduate with your ideal post-MBA job offer? (Refer back to the discussion of what employers are looking for, at the beginning of this article, to help answer this question.) Examine your résumé carefully before you apply to business school. Consider ways to enhance your résumé with relevant additions before enrolling and throughout business school.