Resume Guidelines Jones Graduate School of Business Career Management Center jgscmc@rice.edu P: 713 348 3246 F: 713 348 5838 Resume Format Guidelines The one page resume format presented in this guide has been very successfully used at the Harvard Business School. Traditionally, MBA employers show a strong preference for the concise and consistent format of this one page resume style. Order of Information Name and Contact Information Education (as a Heading) Experience (as a Heading) Additional Information (as a Heading) Includingcommunity service and certifications (as Sub Headings) Headings Information headings, including your name, educational institutions, companies, and locations, must be set in UPPER CASE BOLD TYPE. Section headings, such as education, work experience, and personal, must be in lower case bold type. Titles (e.g., Associate Consultant) can occupy a separate line or be followed by a period and text. Titles can be in bold, italic, or standard typeface. Layout 10 12 point font throughout entire document Calibri preferred typeface Body text: left and right justified margins Top and bottom margins: minimum 0.5 inches, maximum 1 inch Left (page edge to section heading) and right (body text to page edge) margins: minimum 0.5 inches, maximum 1 inch Left text margin (page edge to body text):.5 inches and 1 inches June 2011
Microsoft Word Format Hints Before writing your resume, set a few formats in Microsoft Word to make the process easier. Margins and tabs can later be adjusted to make your resume visually appealing. Set Margins Under Page Layout, Margins, set the left and right margins to 0.5 to 1. The top and bottom margins should initially be set at 1.0. Format Tabs Under Page Layout, Paragraph, set three tabs: 0.75 with right alignment (right justify section headings and dates) 1.0 with left alignment (left justify institution names and text) 7.5 with right alignment (right justify locations) Establish Font and Size Under Home, Font, select Calibri and 10 point. Experience: Writing Bullet Points Writing bullets points to demonstrate your skills via your experience is the most difficult part of constructing a resume. It is imperative that you use the right word to communicate your strengths, knowledge and provide the reviewer with your accomplishments and results. Key items to include (or leave out) in your bullet points: Get rid of filler words like the and a they detract from impact you wish to convey and take up space on the page. Always begin with strong action verbsdescriptive bullet points utilize words such as: Managed, Controlled, Monitored, Collaborated, Created, Directed, Analyzed, Negotiated, Developed, etc. Use Action Verb resources provided on OWL Space under Resources Career Resource Documents or thesaurus. (Marketing, Finance, Consulting Keywords also available) Always list your top 3 bullet points first, with the most significant accomplishment as your 1 st bullet point. Think of it this way If a recruiter could only read 1 bullet point from that job which bullet point would want him/her to read?
Quantify, Quantify, Quantify whenever possible to show scope of responsibility and results ( i.e., Reduced turnover 30%; Controlled $5 million department; Supervised staff of four; Managed five large accounts.) Use evidence supporting your career goals. Use concrete examples; show accomplishments/results, not responsibilities. You might have been responsible for something that failed what did you accomplish? Never write: Responsible for After writing a bullet point you should ask yourself Why? For what purpose? Was the goal met? If you have answered this (by providing the result or the goal completed, then you have a strong bullet point) Experience: Writing Bullet Points Examples Example 1 Good: Researched and projected market conditions and made recommendations to adjust the salary structure in response to changing market trends and organizational needs (why? For what purpose?) Example 1 Stronger: Assessed industry and competitor trends, formed recommendations after analysis; created financial and quantitative models based on recommendations and presented results to senior management for organizational improvement standards Example 2 Good: Designed a complex forecasting module to track and improve the overall company projections (what was the result? Also, need to cut the and a ) Example 2 Stronger: Designed and implemented cash forecasting tool for analysis and tracking; ultimately improved monthly and quarterly cash projections by 15% to 28% companywide. Additional Information And other information, such as: professional development, community service, certifications, skills. Your Resume Your resume is what will open most doors for you during your job search. It should advertise your strengths and accomplishments in ways that clearly show the benefits you offer potential employers. Think for a minute about products you buy most people buy products for the benefits they will provide.
Resume Guidelines: 1. Use Microsoft Word to type your resume. Do not use smaller than a 10 point font. 2. Tie everything as much as possible to the field you are seeking; i.e., if you are going into marketing, play down your two years of banking/lending experience, but play up the customer service aspect of lending. 3. Start every descriptive bullet/line with an action verb: managed, controlled, monitored, supervised, created, directed, researched, negotiated, developed, etc. 4. Clearly note job titles and companies. 5. Dates in left margin; cities in right margin; otherwise, keep margins clean so dates and locations stand out. 6. Get rid of filler words like the and a resumes are advertisements and, like advertisements, are more effective when only key words/phrases are used. Resumes are not necessarily composed of complete sentences. 7. Never use I. 8. Do not abbreviate words; you may use postal abbreviations for states, but be consistent. Use them exclusively or not at all. 9. Use a Personal or Other Information sections to cover any unique skills, experience, languages, publications, professional associations, hobbies, licenses, etc. We urge you to devote one or two lines to this category. 10. Quantify whenever possible to show scope of responsibility and results; i.e., reduced turnover 30%, managed $5 million department, supervised staff of four, managed five large accounts. 11. Be a critic read your resume and look for evidence supporting your career goals. Use concrete examples; show accomplishments/results, not responsibilities. You might have been responsible for something that failed what did you accomplish? 12. With rare exceptions, one page is the standard. 13. Never falsify or exaggerate information if you are not sure how to word something without a strong possibility of misinterpretation, ask the Career Management Center for assistance. 14. Spell out degrees Master of Business Administration, etc. Do not abbreviate. 15. Note: cum laude and similar designations are always lower case, italicized letters.
16. You should mention above average (generally 680 or higher) GMAT scores and strong class rank or GPA. If your grades for your various degrees were all average, you may want to exclude them altogether. 17. Spellcheck your final copy and have another person read it for errors that Spellchecker does not catch. **STANDARD RESUME FORMAT on last page
MBA STUDENT 555 Elm Street, Apt. 55 Houston, Texas 77005 mba@rice.edu 713.555.5555 EDUCATION 201X 201X RICE UNIVERSITY, JONES GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS HOUSTON, TX Candidate for Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree, May 201X. GMAT[if score is above 680].GPA[if above 3.5]. Add concentration. List honors, club memberships, extracurricular activities. 199X 200X NAME OF SCHOOL CITY, ST/COUNTRY Degree awarded. GPA [score if above 3.5]. List club memberships, honors, scholarships, and/or other activities. EXPERIENCE 200X 200X NAME OF COMPANY CITY, ST/COUNTRY Give a brief company description only for smaller, unknown companies, in italics. Position Title Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. [Quantify bulleted statements, if possible (%, $, etc.) May have more than one sentence per bullet]. Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. Financial Position Examples: Developed financial models such as DCF, Net Asset Value, Dividend Growth, and other equity valuation models or Managed investment portfolio of $150mm. Business Dev. Position Example: Targeted new market for company business expansion through introduction of new industry technologies to XYZ market; new business generated 15% increase in new revenue in 2009. Marketing Position Example: Conceptualized and directed the development of new corporate logo and brand logo of additional subsidiary companies. Developed brand identity manual to enforce brand identity standards within company. 200X 200X NAME OF COMPANY [Put CITY, ST on this line if all positions in the same location; not per title as below]. Give a brief company description only for smaller, unknown companies, in italics. Position Title (200X 200X) CITY, ST/COUNTRY Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. Position Title (200X 200X) Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. CITY, ST/COUNTRY 199X 200X NAME OF COMPANY Give a brief company description only for smaller, unknown companies, in italics. Position Title Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. Accomplishment, result, or activity demonstrating a key skill. CITY, ST/COUNTRY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Languages: List any languages besides English and your proficiency (fluent, conversant, or basic) in the language. Certifications: List any certifications or licensures currently held or that are in progress. (Such as Series 7, Wall Street Prep course: Financial modeling Investment Banking). Skills: List any business specific/technical skills. (Such as SPSS, NPV, Monte Carlo, Java, MRP, C and C++ Programs, etc.) Leadership: List leadership roles. Activities: List outside activities not related to Rice University. (Or member participation, such as YPE or AMA) List any hobbies or other interests that you have. (Examples might include: managing own stock portfolio, playing tennis, Skiing, traveling internationally, etc. consider activities as they relate to career, team building, etc.) *note: if you do not have information for a sub section (ie: languages, leadership, etc) under Additional Information, then do not include it as a sub section.