0Most often, candidates, while going for their MBA interviews, carry in their CV a miniscule version of what they actually are. Yes, the dance competition they won when in eighth standard was a small thing, and so was the 1 year cooking course that they took. Yes, the huge collection of sketches that they draw in the leisure time was just a hobby, and so was being the die-hard follower of football. But did you know, all this matters?
I remember carrying a petite, poorly drafted CV for all my MBA interviews. Credentials, good interview and luck did help me get through the things with flying colors, but believe me, I was just 50% of the total me in the CV.
However my MBA experience gave me an immense learning of the how well can/should we present our CV and yes, how big impact it makes to your success. A lot of candidates either present less in their CV or present it bad.
A good CV definitely helps you in two things:
1) Creating a good first impression
2) Raising the self-confidence
Hereunder, I have listed some key pointers of what works well in a CV:
1) Good Formatting: Most important points should show in the first glance. If they don’t, work on the formatting.
2) Well-Structured Lines: Some short lines; some long lines, some stretching upto two lines; all this makes your resume looks cluttered and there is no one thing that shows out clearly from the CV. All points look the best when they are one full line each.
3) More Data And Less Of Supporting Words: Your achievements, responsibilities, impact, project, etc. should be presented well with data and not generic verbose lines. Everyone believes facts.
4) Carry Supporting Documents Along: I vividly remember this girl, carrying with herself her sketch book and many other loose sheets of the sketches she had made. Believe me, interviewers had a great time looking through them and believing that little point she wrote in the CV.
5) If You Don’t Have Credentials, Create Some: This is one point which may not be very helpful at this time for those who have interviews lined up. However for people who plan to give CAT 2017, if you target good colleges, then know that you will be competing with some good students. There are many candidates who fall short of any good stuff except having secured good marks in 10th, or 12th or Graduation. However, this is not enough to secure your place in a top B-school. What you can do here is, utilize this period of one year to create some. For example , if you travel a lot, be a travel writer ; if you write well, start your blog; if you love food , be a food critic; if you like football , start playing/following/discussing on public forums like Quora etc. There is a lot you can do.
6) Fool Proofing: Get your CV checked for formatting with two or three people.
7) Discuss: Show and discuss your resume with as many people as possible, take their opinions and make the required changes.
