6 DO’s and DON'Ts for the Deferred MBA Resume | Deferred MBA Weekly Check-In: March 4, 2024
Your deferred MBA resume can be your best friend, IF you give it the love and attention it deserves.
Forget everything you know about resumes.
Well, not everything. All I’m trying to say is that the deferred MBA resume is a beast of its own.
Today, I’ll give you some of the DO’s and DON’Ts on how to get your resume in tip-top shape for your deferred MBA application!
On Your Radar
Check out these exciting admissions events coming up over the next couple of weeks, including an on-site info session at MIT Sloan!
UVA Darden: Future Year Scholars Program Workshop | Take a Turn as AdCom: Application Review Process
When: Tuesday, March 5, 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM EST
Where: Virtual
Description: “Application workshops are virtual events hosted by a member of the Admissions Committee. Connect with fellow prospective students through these interactive sessions, and gain insights into specific components of the application in these themed workshops.”
Berkeley Haas: Accelerated Access Info Session
When: Tuesday, March 5, 9:00 AM to 9:30 AM PST
Where: Virtual
Description: “Curious about Accelerated Access, the deferred admission application pathway to Berkeley Haas's top rated full-time MBA program? In this session, you'll learn about the value of an MBA, what makes Berkeley Haas special, and what we look for in outstanding candidates to the program.”
Harvard (HBS): 2+2 Program Information Session
When: Wednesday, March 6, 5:00 PM to 5:45 PM EST
Where: Virtual
Description: “Calling all college students! This virtual information session, hosted by a member of the MBA Admissions Team, will outline the enriching journey of the HBS MBA program, the admissions process, and financial aid.”
Berkeley Haas: Accelerated Access: Application Prep Webinar
When: Tuesday, March 12, 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM PDT
Where: Virtual
Description: “Our App Prep Webinar is one of the most valuable resources available during your MBA application journey. If you are a current undergraduate or graduate student and considering applying to the Haas MBA through Berkeley Haas Accelerated Access, our deferred application pathway, join us for our webinar.”
Harvard (HBS): 2+2 Program Application Q&A
When: Thursday, March 14, 5:00 PM to 5:45 PM EDT
Where: Virtual
Description: “If you’re a final-year undergraduate student (or master’s student) contemplating or gearing up to apply for the 2+2 program, this virtual session is for you. The session will be hosted by a member of the MBA Admissions Team and will include a short presentation on the admissions process and plenty of time for questions. As this event will be primarily Q&A based, we encourage you to attend a 2+2 Program Information Session beforehand and come with questions. We look forward to meeting you!”
MIT Sloan: MBA Early | On-Campus Information Session
When: Friday, March 15, 10:00 AM to 10:45 AM EDT
Where: MIT Sloan School of Management, 100 Main St Bldg E52 Rm 233, Cambridge, MA 02142
Description: “Visit us on campus to learn more about MIT Sloan’s MBA Early Admissions program. This in-person event will include a moderated conversation with an admissions overview.”
Wharton (University of Pennsylvania): Application Tips: Moelis Advance Access Program
When: Friday, March 15, 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM EDT
Where: Virtual
Description: “Are you planning to apply to the Moelis Advance Access Program—Wharton’s deferred enrollment program—this year? Join Jake Kohler, Director, and Maggie Karpauskas, Program Advisor, as they discuss application tips. This one-hour session will provide a short overview of Wharton, a walkthrough of application components, and Q&A.”
Yale SOM: Silver Scholars Admissions Q&A
When: Wednesday, March 20, 12:00 PM to 12:45 PM EDT
Where: Virtual
Description: “Join us for a live online Q&A session hosted by a Yale SOM Silver Scholars Admissions Committee member. These are small, interactive sessions where all participants are encouraged to share their audio and video, replicating the group conversation you would experience during an in-person campus visit.”
Northwestern Kellogg: KFL Program: Admissions Officer Information Session
When: Thursday, March 21, 11:00 AM to 11:45 AM CDT
Where: Virtual
Description: “Join an admissions officer for a virtual information session on our Kellogg Future Leaders Program.”
All times displayed are local to the respective institutions.
Looking for more?
I’ve compiled a list of all of the calendars for the top deferred MBA programs in the US. Check it out to see more events!
MBAxcel Tip of the Week: Your MBA resume ≠ your job resume!
The purpose of your resume in the context of a deferred MBA application is actually very different from, say, applying to a full-time role or internship.
Why?
Well, the admissions team isn’t looking for technical skills. In fact, in many cases, they likely care very little about the coding languages you know or the certifications you have.
The admissions team is searching for your leadership potential.
When MBA admissions teams are looking to put together a stellar class of potential students, they’re trying to answer two main questions:
Does this candidate have what it takes to succeed academically?
Will this candidate be a valuable resource to their fellow students and the MBA community?
The first question is generally answered by looking at your college transcript and GRE/GMAT scores. The second question, however, is more nuanced, and can be answered by your personal statements, letters of recommendation, and of course, your resume.
Consequently, the second question is the exact question you want to answer with 95% of your resume (outside of your GPA and college major/minor). What did you involve yourself in? What are you passionate about? And, most importantly, why did you do the things that you chose to commit time to?
So, take this time to craft a resume specifically tailored to the MBA program. One that communicates your value and impact, not just how smart you are.
With that, let’s go over some quick DO’s and DON’Ts in the deferred MBA resume game.
DO: Emphasize your leadership roles.
I mean, at the end of the day, leadership is what business school is all about, isn’t it?
Regardless of whether or not you had explicitly assigned leadership “positions” in your roles or not, it’s important to show that you are a leader in everything you do.
It doesn’t matter if all you did at your internship was grab coffee for the manager and play crosswords. Did you take initiative? How did you exude leadership DNA even at this junior level?
Conversely, it really doesn’t matter if you were the president of 20 clubs. What was your impact? What made you a great leader? I’m asking lots of questions here, but I hope this helps to jog your brain and realize what an amazing leader you are.
DON’T: Use technical/industry jargon.
Your Python proficiency really has nothing to do with what you can bring to an MBA class. Instead of focusing on the “what” behind your technical knowledge, bring out the “why.” Why did you pursue these skills? How did learning these impact your career? Did you proactively seek to learn these skills?
If you’ve got a lot of technical jargon in your resume, take this time to explain what you do as if you were explaining it to your grandmother. Avoid getting too specific: remember, this resume should be about you as a person, not your GitHub repository.
DO: Personalize your resume.
Show the reader what makes you unique. Do you have a cool talent or hobby? Maybe you studied a nontraditional background? Did you take on a unique volunteering experience? Pull on the “weird” side of your accomplishments to help you stand out better as an applicant.
In a sea of incredibly qualified, smart, high-achieving candidates, what makes you special?
DON’T: Put quantity over quality.
Your resume doesn’t have to be a list of everything that you’ve ever done. If it was, it’d be 10 pages long, and nobody wants to read that (no offense).
Instead, allow the resume to paint a picture that supplements the rest of your application. Write your resume in a way that supports the narrative you’ve crafted yourself on your personal statements.
What does that look like? If you’re looking to enter entrepreneurship, focus on the entrepreneurial aspects of your experience. If you want to go into investment banking or private equity, showcase your work that is adjacent to these fields.
DO: Include the background, action, and result of your work.
Have you heard of the STAR or BAR method?
When I was a career skills coach at Boston University as an undergrad, I helped students craft resumes using a method that we coined the BAR method: B for Background, A for Action, and R for Result.
Essentially, in your resume, you want to write your bullet points with the intention of answering three overarching questions:
B: Background – What did you do?
A: Action – How did you do it?
R: Result – Why did you do it (or what was the purpose/result)?
Here’s an example, using a bullet point I wrote on my MBA resume:
Background: Executed print and web advertising deals
Action: Via negotiation and invoicing
Result: Producing monthly revenue of $4,000+
Final Result: Executed print and web advertising deals via negotiation and invoicing, producing monthly revenue of $4,000+
Take a minute to look over your resume. Are you sufficiently answering the questions of the BAR method in each of your bullets?
Chances are, you aren’t! Before I learned this method, my resume only really included the Background and the Action part, but not the Result. That seems to be the most common mistake. No worries! Take a minute to try the BAR method out. Trust me, after doing one or two, you’ll get the hang of it really quick.
If you’re interested in reading more examples or learning more about this method, check out this one-pager from the Questrom School of Business Undergraduate Development Center (where I used to work!).
DON’T: Overlap with the rest of your application.
The resume is just one brush stroke in the masterpiece you are creating (your application). It’s there to supplement the rest of your application, not just to repeat what’s in your essays.
You’ve got limited space! Just one page! So, if there’s an experience that you wrote more about in a different part of your application, feel free to reduce its space on your resume to make room for the other amazing things you’ve done.
Postscript.
Looking for sample resumes or essays? I’ll be posting them for paid subscribers to this Substack over the next few weeks, so subscribe if you’re interested in getting some inspiration or just looking to support the work I do here as I provide this free resource to deferred MBA students!
Sorry for the late email today, but I hope your week is off to a great start! Remember, I’m here to help. Just send me a message and we can chat!