Tag mba applications indonesia | Sutra Pandawa Communications

Six functions of the CV/ resume within the graduate admissions process

Clients sometimes ask, why can’t I use the same CV to the admission committee that I use when I’m seeking work. Of course, we don’t advise that. When you think about it, the reason it’s not a good idea is because, as a graduate admissions candidate, you’re interested in joining the ranks of a diverse, prestigious graduate school in places like the US, UK, Holland and Australia — not looking for a job in Indonesia.

Here are six ways the CV/resume functions within the admissions process:

1. Footnotes. As discussed in the post about 9 steps toward grad study overseas, your CV and personal statement (PS) complement each other. You could say that your CV functions as footnotes for your PS. You aim for a certain “echo” effect by strategically repeating certain themes.

2. Evidentiary. A CV serves to prove statements the candidate makes about herself as part of the admission application process. Don’t lose 10 points worth of credibility to gain 5 points of embellishment value.

3. Branding. What brands are on your CV? Everyone would like to have some household names UN, Royal Dutch Shell, Schlumberger, Indonesian Ministry of Finance, Bank Indonesia, PT Telkom. Maybe it’s not too late. Who’s on your Facebook? Send out an SOS.

4. Fit. Admission committees will try to determine, based on the CV’s and other documents you submit, whether you’ll be a good fit for the 2010 or 2011 entering class. You may be familiar with the social networking application LinkedIn. How easy would it be to create a LinkeIn profile if there were no drop-down menu? Pretty tough, because you’d have to know the official name for everything and everyone you wanted to link to. You would have to come up with your own words to describe your background, identity, relationships and experiences. And that’s exactly how you begin you CV — with a white sheet of paper. Of course, if you get in right – bingo – you’re linked up with everybody that matters to you.

5. Travel log. Let’s take the USA for example. Many Americans only recently heard of Indonesia. (Funny, but true.) Your CV is an opportunity to demonstrate your cross-cultural fluency. Don’t say “faculty” if you mean “department.” These aren’t the same in the US. Also, no need to mention how you won th respect of your “seniors” as well as your “juniors.” It just doesn’t translate cross-culturally.

6. Flexibility. Knowing how to use a CV in the applications makes you more versatile. Let’s say you discover you must substantially alter your entire admissions strategy, eg, different degree, different program, different test, etc. Your CV/resume won’t mind at all. The vain little beast may even enjoy all the blood, sweat and tears you put into the makeover exercise. You’ll come out with a CV that shows the “other you” by adding new experiences and interests to the CV, realigning the existing ones with your target program.

Applying to graduate school from Indonesia — what’s my next step?

Congratulations on putting all your masters degree admissions tasks on one piece of paper. You can see the calendaring work has been checked off the 9-step list below. That means you only have 8 more steps to go.

Good luck and don’t hesitate to add your own tips in the comments section.

Order	Action	Why
1	Your calendaring exercise comes first. Gather together information about test dates and applications deadlines and requirements. Decide which programs you’ll apply to and when you need to E-mail and/or post the application documents.	Timing is one of the most challenging aspects of graduate applications. Calendaring is the first step in coming up to speed.
2	Control the test (eg GMAT, GRE, etc) situation. Which tests will you take and when? Plan to spend all your time preparing for your test, except the time you need for applications.	You will be more confident and focused after you have a test strategy.
3	Control the letters of recommendation (LOR) situation. Make a list of who (eg, professors, supervisor) you want as a recommender and come up with a strategy that will turn them into your strong supporters. Include at least two back ups.	The letters are a “question mark.” You need extra time in case things don’t go smoothly.
4	Write a first draft personal statement (PS) as soon as possible. Be creative. Start with a story. You statement is like an advertisement: it provides information in order to sell a product; and you are the product. You need to differentiate yourself from “competing brands.” A boring PS won’t sell.	The 1^st draft requires full concentration. Your strategy: get it out of the way. Turn to other activities. Start the 2^nd draft with a fresh mind.
5	Stop writing your personal statement and turn to your CV. Your graduate applications CV is a complete but concise record of all the important, impressive things you have done. These considerations apply to each potential CV entry: Omit it if many or most other applicants also have the same activity, award, etc; UNLESS it was carried out in an unusual way, unusual place, unusual language etc Use creative labels to combine activities of shorter duration into more substantial CV entries Don’t confuse local and global. If the admission committee is in the USA, then SD in means South Dakota not sekolah dasar. A few acronyms – like ASEAN, UN, MBA, HTML – are OK. Everything else should be translated.	Your CV and PS work in tandem. Without a strategically designed CV, your PS is just poetry.
6	Despite the name PS2, the second draft of your PS isn’t fun. But it’s better than PS1. Use the PS to emphasize your CV entries which are substantial and relevant but also interesting to discuss. Stuff that’s important but boring can remain in the CV alone but with added emphasis.	Your CV and PS might look similar at first. But eventually they need to work independently of each other.
7	Give your CV and essays to some people who have some idea how it will be used and ask them for feedback.	This is a critically important opportunity to hone both your writing and your “self sales” technique. Effective assistance from others can and should feed back into your application strategies themselves.
8	Forget about the PS now and study for the test.	You can consciously shift gears – from synthesis into analysis. (Test prep will seem fun compared to Steps 4-7 : -)
9	Even if English is (more or less) your first language, you should have your CV and personal statement edited by a professional.	First of all, great writing requires good editing. Second, the admissions committees frankly admit that this is standard practice. This is another way of saying that they expect it. So this is a strategy for staying competitive.

MBA 2011 — masih ada waktu (tapi sedikit ; )

Fall 2011 admissions update:

Welcome back from holiday. Please notice that it’s not yet too late for fall 2011. If you don’t have time to read the entire post, at least download the deadline/ application information link (.pdf) so you have all the information for top MBA programs next fall. It’s a great resource. It will help you make your decisions faster this week.

For that matter, today is a good time to put all your test prep and applications tasks onto one calendar. Then print it. The whole process may take you 5 hours or more. But it’s worth it. I promise you can finish the calendaring process in one day.

Here’s what I would recommend:

Your TOEFL/ IELTS should be complete by now
So, go online now and create candidate profiles/accounts at all your target MBA programs
Now, draw up a short list of referees (to write your letters of recommendation) and send them an E-mail tomorrow
You should register for GMAT by Friday (this week)
Purchase your study materials this week
Once you’re familiar with what you have to study, put your test day and all study tasks and goals to complete before test day on the calendar
Schedule 2 days “holiday” from your study routine to make an 1) outline 2) rough draft of your personal statement
Add DHL / Fed-Ex dates to calendar (leave 5 days for hard copies to reach the admissions office from Indonesia)
Working backwards from your the DHL/ Fed-Ex dates, add your other applications tasks to the calendar so that everything can be finished in time (notice this may require you to revise your “budgeted” test prep hours)

Finally, E-mail calendar to strata.g.indonesia@gmail.com. Time permitting, we can provide my general observations about the practicality, ambitiousness and risk factors entailed by your goals and calendaring. (You’ll need to complete our intake survey so we know your academic profile and current employment demands.)