Resume formats for apps and recommenders

Question

Hey guys, quick question to you all. Im about to start revamping my resumes for the upcoming apps, as well as to provide my recommenders. I found a ton of useful info and discussion on the board from past app seasons, but one thing I wasnt entirely clear on was what format did you guys use when submitting resumes ?

I did manage to find the resume books of some b-schools, so did you tailor your resume format on a per school basis ? If so, what did you do about the schools for which you couldn't get a resume book ? And finally, for those of you who did provide your recommenders with a resume, what format did you use there ? Im squeezing everything onto one page, as it seems to be a good rule of thumb to follow.

Pathfinder · Answer

Keep everything on one page - that seems to be the golden rule. Although in Europe is seen everything, even 4-5 pages, US schools are very clear when it comes to resume. Pack your contact information tight in the header, then present the rest in the order: Education, Work experience and Other.

Although there are some argues whether Education or WE should come first, I've read somewhere that you should put education first when you are applying for b-school because education is something you are "looking for" from them. When you apply for a position, you should put your WE first. That explanation sounded very reasonable for me.

I've found couple of resume books and they seemed pretty much the same to me. I haven't noticed some major differences? I could say I used something that was very similar to Wharton's and Tuck's resume book and I used it both for US and Euro school I applied to.

isa · Answer

I used a one page format, fairly similar to the standard Kellogg format. I think if you do a search of the forum, you can find it laid out somewhere.

I gave my recommenders the same version of the resume that I gave the schools. I also gave them a document, highlighting key experience and goals. In Kryzak's knowledge vault, there are links to suggestions for the type of information those documents should contain.

pmenon · Answer

Thanks, guys. The plan is definitely to stick to one page, and I have read arguments both for and against putting education first. The way I have it right now, W/E is first, then education, then others (i.e. hobbies and extracurriculars).

I wasnt able to find the Kellogg format anywhere, but let me try searching again.

I wasnt able to find the Kellogg format anywhere, but let me try searching again.

unhedged · Answer

any special tips on having 1 employer resumes? I have 1 employer since graduating from college, and also had 2 technical (CompSci) internships during college? Should I leave only my full time employer on my resume? How can I use only 1 employer to fill a page?

ashaker · Answer

I had a one employer resume..focus on the details of the role..if you had multiple roles..discuss them separately..feel free to pm me..

depending on the number of years experience..i dont think there is much value in discussing internships..

bsd_lover · Answer

LBS is one page - very strict, but you can take some liberties with font size etc. I had to fit 9 years WE and 7-8 different roles in 1 page. Good luck

Put education first if you have been working for less than 2-3 years and if your undergrad is particularly impressive. Otherwise, put work experience first.

Jerz · Answer

I had a 1 employer resume, and listed each of my 2 positions with that employer separately so I could talk about each separately. My layout and approximate % of space on the page was:

Header (contact info)-5%
Education-10% (listed basic info: degree, majors, GPA, scholarships & honors)
Work experience-50% (brief overview of responsibilities for each role, with more space devoted to accomplishments)
Extracurriculars-35% (overview of involvement & detailed accompishments)

Even though I agree since it's a academic resume the education section should come before w/e, I wanted to highlight my w/e and extracurriculars more than education in my resume, both because I graduated from undergrad 8 years ago and also because with transcripts and other academic info elsewhere in the application, I didn't want to devote valuable real estate here to duplicative info.

isa · Answer

My resume had:
- header - 5%
- education - 15%
- WE (full time, two key internships) - 65%
- ECs - 15%

I've had only one full-time employer since college but had three separate roles at that company (the one I was hired into, then two subsequent promotions). I broke out the roles, and had 3-4 bullet points underneath each one, describing my key achievements. I also included two key internships, one demonstrating my int'l experience and another that highlighted some analytical work that I did. Each of these had 2-3 bullet points as well.

Oh and also, all my bullet points followed the STAR format: situation, task, action and result.

pmenon · Answer

isa, thats a good point about the STAR format. I hadnt taken that into account; can you give an example ?

So far Ive focused on using action words to start off every bullet, like 'led', or 'developed', and have tried to remove as much technical language and focus on the impact of the actions

cozmo8 · Answer

where can I find resume books. I tried searching this forum but couldn't find any

pmenon · Answer

cozmo, do a search on the forum for Tuck resume book and Wharton resume book. I found those two posted here from a couple of years ago. Id get you the links, but Im too lazy and late for a meeting :D

unhedged · Answer

Here is a link I found from Foster about the STAR format: https://bschool.washington.edu/career/BC ... Resume.pdf

isa · Answer

They're probably not that great but a couple of examples from my resume: (I took out the numbers and replaced them with letters)
- Re-engineered and optimized system usage in a large organization of X hospitals and Y clinics; resulted in increased system adoption among clinical users from Z% to W%
- Manage an X-member multi-product team in the design and implementation of a $Y million electronic medical records project in a large organization of Q hospitals and W clinics
- Managed a team of X analysts in rapid implementation of electronic medical records at a Y-bed hospital; achieved client goals Z% under budget and in a considerably shortened timeline

Some opening words for bullet on my resume: managed, led, supervised, designed, coordinated, achieved.

Resume formats for apps and recommenders

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