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Learn what truly sets the UC Riverside MBA apart and how it helps in your professional growth
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If you’re applying to Columbia, NYU Stern, or Yale SOM, you need more than strong stats. Each school defines “leadership” differently, and your essays must reflect that. Join Sia Admissions founder, Susan Berishaj on November 20th
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Get the inside scoop on what makes Emory’s Goizueta Business School great, learn how you can present a strong MBA application, and connect with an Admissions Director to get your questions answered.
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Learn how to craft powerful, authentic essays by mastering the 3 “WHYs” every top MBA program looks for: Why MBA, Why Now, and Why This School.
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MBAGuide
Joined: 24 Jul 2019
Last visit: 11 Nov 2025
Posts: 2,282
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Given Kudos: 28
Location: India
Concentration: Operations, Marketing
Schools: Insead Sept'18 (A$$) ISB '19 (A)
13 Mar 2023, 05:27
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Your MBA resume is one of the key components of your application package, along with your essays, letters of recommendation and transcripts. Admissions committees receive thousands of applications every year, so having a resume that highlights your unique skills, experiences, and accomplishments can help you make a memorable impression. A great resume can showcase your leadership skills, professional achievements, and demonstrate how you are a good fit for the program.
However, you may feel intimidated by the stiff competition and wonder how you can differentiate yourself to get noticed through every aspect of your application, including your resume. Here are some key tips that will guide you no matter where you are in your resume preparation journey.
First, showcasing a clear career progression in your MBA resume is key. Schools view your promotions and increasing job responsibilities with your current or former employer as a sign of your potential
What should you do?
You want to show your development over the years. Therefore, list your accomplishments and job responsibilities in reverse chronology in your MBA resume, giving appropriate space to achievements under each role. With every job progression, it is acceptable to point out what additional responsibilities, larger teams, larger regions, P&Ls, or budgets you have taken on over the years.
Second, show your business acumen by relating your position to a larger corporate goal.
To showcase your business skills, it's crucial to relate your position to a larger corporate objective, even if you were an individual contributor at your company. For instance, if you were a technical manager, your focus on aligning the product with the market could have enabled market penetration, while as an assembly line engineer, you could have directly impacted the supply chain and working capital efficiency. To demonstrate your impact on the bottom line, use the Problem Action Result (or STAR) approach to structure each bullet point as an accomplishment and quantify your achievements.
Structuring Resume Bullets to demonstrate impact is key
As an example, consider which of these 2 resume bullet sets generates more interest in an applicant with niche marketing goals in the pharma sector
Set 1- Lazy bullets , not recommended
• Designed Patient Support Programs in Asia-Pacific using primary market research and competitive insights for cancer patients; Successful delivery became gateway for future collaborations worth ABmn$ with the client
• Streamlined US and EU go-to-market strategies for a cardiovascular drug aiming to capture 20% share in a $25Bn market by 2022; Won the ABC award for innovation
• Trained teams to adopt unstructured problem-solving methodologies; Hosted 5 monthly knowledge sharing and networking events for 50+ team members before and after COVID-19
Set 2- Carefully crafted bullets that show impact, recommended
• Drove patient-centric market research to involve the patient’s voice at multiple stages of the product lifecycle for a $25B pharmaceutical company
(Sub-bullets)
o Investigated needs of lung cancer patients in Australia and Singapore and attained rich, qualitative data to segment patients based on their disease journey and support needs as a part of launch planning for a new lung cancer drug
o Identified challenges faced by breast and prostate cancer patients during and after treatment initiation in Australia, Korea, and
Taiwan via in-person engagements as well as focus group discussions; Project became an exemplary Playbook on patient-
centric marketing strategies that consider differences in attitudes, behaviours, and cultural backgrounds
o “Avant-garde” research studies led to $AB Mn in further collaborations with client
• Devised Go-To-Market Strategy in the US and EU for a blockbuster cardiovascular drug predicted to capture a peak at 20% share in each market; Received ABC award for excellence in marketing innovation, awarded to only one team annually
If your resume currently has bullets that look like the 1st set, there is much scope for you to go deeper into your projects and bring out the impact. Vague terms such as "unstructured problem-solving strategies:", "received award for innovation" etc. do not demonstrate the intended impact. Your resume should be so clear and carefully crafted that the admissions office must see and acknowledge the value of your candidacy and connection with your goals in the first glance.
Of course, in a B-school application, you're not just selling your past accomplishments, but also your vision for the future. It's important to show how your career goals intersect with your past experiences in order to make a lasting impression on the admissions committee. By highlighting your academic achievements and articulating your future aspirations, you can create a compelling case for why you're the ideal candidate for the program. It is also a good practice to mention the countries where you have worked in project teams to illustrate the international exposure and breadth of projects.
Third, look for unusual themes in Extracurricular that schools do not automatically associate with your profession.
While many applicants are tempted to list traditional extracurricular activities such as volunteering or sports in the additional activities section, it's important to remember that the admissions committee is looking for more than just a laundry list of activities.
One way to stand out from the competition is to highlight unusual themes in your extracurricular activities. These are themes that may not typically associated with your profession or industry. By doing so, you can showcase your unique perspective and demonstrate your ability to think creatively.
For example, if you are a finance professional, you could highlight your love of cooking by discussing your participation in a culinary club or your experience organizing a food festival. This could show that you have a passion for creativity and innovation, even outside of your work.
Similarly, if you are a software engineer, and maybe an individual contributor at work, you could discuss your experience in a theater group or your participation in a dance club. These activities demonstrate your ability to collaborate and communicate effectively with others, skills that are highly valued in the business world.
When highlighting unusual themes in your extracurricular activities, it's important to connect them back to your professional goals. For example, if you are interested in pursuing a career in marketing, you could discuss how your experience in a creative writing club has helped you develop your storytelling skills.
Last but most importantly, showcase your academic Pedigree and academic potential.
When it comes to applying to business school, it's important to not only showcase your current skills and accomplishments but also your academic pedigree and potential. Many schools have built up substantial brand equity over the years, and being a graduate of a highly competitive school can help grab the attention of anyone who reads your CV. However, even if you didn't attend a target school, there are still ways to highlight your academic achievements and set yourself apart as an academically focused individual.
One way to do this is to mention any scholarships you received, exceptional GPAs you achieved, or awards you won during your undergraduate years. Perhaps you participated in hackathons or case competitions or held leadership positions in various clubs and organizations on campus. These experiences can help demonstrate your commitment to academic excellence and your ability to excel in a competitive environment.
The resume drafting process can be daunting, but by following these tips you can set yourself up for success and make a lasting impression on the admissions committee.
However, you may feel intimidated by the stiff competition and wonder how you can differentiate yourself to get noticed through every aspect of your application, including your resume. Here are some key tips that will guide you no matter where you are in your resume preparation journey.
First, showcasing a clear career progression in your MBA resume is key. Schools view your promotions and increasing job responsibilities with your current or former employer as a sign of your potential
What should you do?
You want to show your development over the years. Therefore, list your accomplishments and job responsibilities in reverse chronology in your MBA resume, giving appropriate space to achievements under each role. With every job progression, it is acceptable to point out what additional responsibilities, larger teams, larger regions, P&Ls, or budgets you have taken on over the years.
Second, show your business acumen by relating your position to a larger corporate goal.
To showcase your business skills, it's crucial to relate your position to a larger corporate objective, even if you were an individual contributor at your company. For instance, if you were a technical manager, your focus on aligning the product with the market could have enabled market penetration, while as an assembly line engineer, you could have directly impacted the supply chain and working capital efficiency. To demonstrate your impact on the bottom line, use the Problem Action Result (or STAR) approach to structure each bullet point as an accomplishment and quantify your achievements.
Structuring Resume Bullets to demonstrate impact is key
As an example, consider which of these 2 resume bullet sets generates more interest in an applicant with niche marketing goals in the pharma sector
Set 1- Lazy bullets , not recommended
• Designed Patient Support Programs in Asia-Pacific using primary market research and competitive insights for cancer patients; Successful delivery became gateway for future collaborations worth ABmn$ with the client
• Streamlined US and EU go-to-market strategies for a cardiovascular drug aiming to capture 20% share in a $25Bn market by 2022; Won the ABC award for innovation
• Trained teams to adopt unstructured problem-solving methodologies; Hosted 5 monthly knowledge sharing and networking events for 50+ team members before and after COVID-19
Set 2- Carefully crafted bullets that show impact, recommended
• Drove patient-centric market research to involve the patient’s voice at multiple stages of the product lifecycle for a $25B pharmaceutical company
(Sub-bullets)
o Investigated needs of lung cancer patients in Australia and Singapore and attained rich, qualitative data to segment patients based on their disease journey and support needs as a part of launch planning for a new lung cancer drug
o Identified challenges faced by breast and prostate cancer patients during and after treatment initiation in Australia, Korea, and
Taiwan via in-person engagements as well as focus group discussions; Project became an exemplary Playbook on patient-
centric marketing strategies that consider differences in attitudes, behaviours, and cultural backgrounds
o “Avant-garde” research studies led to $AB Mn in further collaborations with client
• Devised Go-To-Market Strategy in the US and EU for a blockbuster cardiovascular drug predicted to capture a peak at 20% share in each market; Received ABC award for excellence in marketing innovation, awarded to only one team annually
If your resume currently has bullets that look like the 1st set, there is much scope for you to go deeper into your projects and bring out the impact. Vague terms such as "unstructured problem-solving strategies:", "received award for innovation" etc. do not demonstrate the intended impact. Your resume should be so clear and carefully crafted that the admissions office must see and acknowledge the value of your candidacy and connection with your goals in the first glance.
Of course, in a B-school application, you're not just selling your past accomplishments, but also your vision for the future. It's important to show how your career goals intersect with your past experiences in order to make a lasting impression on the admissions committee. By highlighting your academic achievements and articulating your future aspirations, you can create a compelling case for why you're the ideal candidate for the program. It is also a good practice to mention the countries where you have worked in project teams to illustrate the international exposure and breadth of projects.
Third, look for unusual themes in Extracurricular that schools do not automatically associate with your profession.
While many applicants are tempted to list traditional extracurricular activities such as volunteering or sports in the additional activities section, it's important to remember that the admissions committee is looking for more than just a laundry list of activities.
One way to stand out from the competition is to highlight unusual themes in your extracurricular activities. These are themes that may not typically associated with your profession or industry. By doing so, you can showcase your unique perspective and demonstrate your ability to think creatively.
For example, if you are a finance professional, you could highlight your love of cooking by discussing your participation in a culinary club or your experience organizing a food festival. This could show that you have a passion for creativity and innovation, even outside of your work.
Similarly, if you are a software engineer, and maybe an individual contributor at work, you could discuss your experience in a theater group or your participation in a dance club. These activities demonstrate your ability to collaborate and communicate effectively with others, skills that are highly valued in the business world.
When highlighting unusual themes in your extracurricular activities, it's important to connect them back to your professional goals. For example, if you are interested in pursuing a career in marketing, you could discuss how your experience in a creative writing club has helped you develop your storytelling skills.
Last but most importantly, showcase your academic Pedigree and academic potential.
When it comes to applying to business school, it's important to not only showcase your current skills and accomplishments but also your academic pedigree and potential. Many schools have built up substantial brand equity over the years, and being a graduate of a highly competitive school can help grab the attention of anyone who reads your CV. However, even if you didn't attend a target school, there are still ways to highlight your academic achievements and set yourself apart as an academically focused individual.
One way to do this is to mention any scholarships you received, exceptional GPAs you achieved, or awards you won during your undergraduate years. Perhaps you participated in hackathons or case competitions or held leadership positions in various clubs and organizations on campus. These experiences can help demonstrate your commitment to academic excellence and your ability to excel in a competitive environment.
The resume drafting process can be daunting, but by following these tips you can set yourself up for success and make a lasting impression on the admissions committee.
