Common MBA CV mistakes

By: Together Abroad 03-12-2015 12:18 PM
Categories: * CV / Resume,
As an MBA graduate, you would be highly valued by the job market worldwide. But have you checked all the details on your CV? The followings are the common mistakes that applicants may have.

Achievement driven CV
MBA students try so hard to stand out that their CV turns into the Superhero’s biography. A good recruiter will be able to acknowledge your outstanding performance if you are clear in the description of your previous responsibilities. You don’t need to highlight in every sentence how excellent, outstanding and superb you were, while performing them and that you were a winner of that and that award. A recruiter expects you to be objective and realistic.

Education experience: It is fine if you start with your Education. After all, you have devoted so much time and effort in obtaining the MBA degree. However, employers are more interested in knowing whether you are the most appropriate employee for their company, and so it is not largely decided by which university you graduated from but your experience. Hence, keep your educational experience short and to the point.

More than two pages: Imagine how many CVs HR go through every single day. If your CV has multiple pages and the front page does not provide what they are looking for in regards to the role you applied for, your email may directly go into rubbish box. Make sure your CV is as concise as possible. Your application should be the most impactful channel that tells them who you are and what makes you different from other MBA graduates such as your interest and extra-curricular activities. Fonts also matters, 8 is too small for readers, please use at least 10 instead. Moreover, There is surely no space for MBA reference lists, but you could add ‘References on request’ instead.

No need for paragraphs: bullet points for outlining your responsibilities in previous work experience would suffice. No matter how much you have done, no more than five bullets per experience. Regarding the content, you could list ½ for your own accomplishments.

Missing employment dates: while listing job positions, it is wise to mention the date of employments as it may be difficult for some corporations using ad com systems to trace back your career progression, so now you know why you didn't receive a response from the HR team. 

Too much jargon: One of the most common mistakes is using technical terminologies for the industry. Not all career center and organisations may be aware of what you were dealing with in the specific sector. Make sure your resume is term free.

Long list of job responsibilities: Applicants always want to make a long list to showcase their practical experiences apart from their schooling. However, in most cases, employers would focus on the quality of your previous experience rather than quantity. Therefore, it is crucial to list those relevant experience only. Moreover, it needs to be in reverse chronological order rather than starting from your summer work experience at a restaurant.

Last but not least, proofread your resume until it is mistake free! You can make errors, but try to avoid errors in your grammar. It is wise to ask a second reader to proof read your CV to get their impressions and help improve it.
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