I'll be done with my MBA at the end of this school quarter and will be looking for a new job soon. I currently work in tech and am interested in moving over into business.

In the Education section of my resume, I've listed my MBA with a note specifying that it will be completed at the end of this quarter. Does anyone know how much of a difference this makes?

Would my resume look a lot better if I were to wait until the MBA were completely finished? Then I could list it without any qualifying notes at all.

I'm curious about this because I'm eager to start job hunting as soon as possible. I'd like to start now, but will wait a bit longer if it helps my chances. Any input is appreciated. Thanks.

 

I would probably just put:

University of XXX 2003-2005

You will be able to discuss when you can start during the interview. I don't see how waiting will be beneficial. On the other hand, hiring will probably increase dramatically after X-mas.

I was looking for a job last year and found nothing between Sept-Dec. Starting Jan 2nd, I was getting 4-5 calls a day!

 

Actually, I've posted my resume on a few of the usual job sites and have gotten a number of calls since doing so. But, sadly, they've all been for tech jobs, which makes sense since I've been working in tech for about 5 years.

I'm hoping that the MBA will allow me to make the switch over to business. I know that it's far from a sure shot, but that's what I'm shooting for.

Do you know if it's considered "legal" to list something like "MBA, University of Blah, 2003-2005" when you're not completely finished with it yet? I'd love to do that (it looks much nicer) but I don't want anyone to think I'm claiming to have a degree that isn't technically mine yet. I'm currently taking the very last class in the curriculum and will be finished with it in 2 months.

 

Well you can always make the next line, "Will be completed this December", or something. It might be helpful to ask a headhunter. Your school should also have an employment center that can offer advice as well. My school has meetings for this kind of stuff every couple months.

 

C'mon man... Why ask a recruiter or career center when I can post here and ask a bunch of random people on a car board that may or may not know anything about this? That would almost make sense. :scarylikehell: j/k Actually I do plan to. But the thought just sprang into my head and I was interested in seeing if there was a general consensus. Thanks dude.

 

I am one of those random people that may or may not know anything about this.

But, what I put on my resume were the months:

University of XXXX Sept. 2001 - May 2005

When i started looking for jobs before my actual graduation, employers didnt seem to mind that i put the months. I think it actually helped by giving some sort of timeline as to when i can start working.

 

Go ahead and put the school along with the month and year you will graduate.

at the very bottom, put down the month and year you will be eligible for work. That will be fine.

Also, stay away from fancy fonts and graphics. If it doesn't scan into a database in one pass, you will lose a lot of opportunities. Resumes at this level of the game are judged on content, not how "pretty" they are.

 

Cool, thanks guys...

So, would something like this be okay?

----------
BS Bullcrapping, University of Bullcrap, June 2000

MBA, University of Whatever, December 2005
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Or would this be preferable?

----------
BS Bullcrapping, University of Bullcrap, September 1996 - June 2000

MBA, University of Whatever, February 2003 - December 2005
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Or are they pretty much the same? Thanks a lot to everyone so far.

 

No problems with fancy formatting in my case... My resume is as simple as it gets -- I boldface each section heading and that's it. Everything else is in plain font with indentations to delimit each job, skill, etc.

About the eligibility for work, I won't be done with the MBA until December, but I'd be willing to change jobs right now if I find the right position. Would it suffice to simply omit eligbility information in this case? Thanks.

 

I would list your MBA first, not your BS. I would think the month the degree was awarded would be acceptable. I know my Dad doesn't even put the dates down on his resume anymore because too many companies use those dates from a long time ago to weed him out because he's "old". You probably don't need to worry about that.