Schedule mock interviews on the Meeting Board, join the latest community discussions in our Consulting Q&A and find like-minded Interview Partners to connect and practice with!
Back to overview

Consulting Resume - By Date or Best experiences?

Hi! When putting together my consulting resume, should I organize experiences by date, or prioritize showcasing my best/most relevant experiences first? What's the norm?

Thanks!

9
100+
8
Be the first to answer!
Nobody has responded to this question yet.
Top answer
Daniel
Coach
edited on Apr 28, 2025
Ex-McKinsey, Bain & Kearney | 5+ yrs consulting, coaching & interviewing | 95%+ candidate success

Hi,

Order: always organize experiences by date (reverse chronological order), newest to oldest.

Content: Highlight your most relevant achievements within each role through strong bullet points.

Examples:

Work experience
Deloitte Consulting - Consultant
London, UK | 2021 – 2023

  • Led a client workstream to reduce operational costs by 15% across EMEA offices
  • Conducted market entry strategy for a fintech client expanding into Europe

Education
University of Oxford - MSc in Management
2020 - 2021

  • Graduated with Distinction (Top 10%)
  • President of Consulting Club

If you have questions, happy to chat. Best of luck!

Pedro
Coach
on Apr 28, 2025
Bain | EY-Parthenon | Former Principal | 1.5h session | 30% discount 1st session

Roles are presented chronologically.

Specific examples or project within a role (i.e. "bullet points"), you should go from most to least relevant.

Alberto
Coach
on Apr 28, 2025
Ex-McKinsey Associate Partner | MBB Coach | 95% success rate | +13 yrs in consulting | +2,000 real interviews in 3 firms

Recruiters expect to read your resume in chronological order.

Don’t make them work to figure out your story—you’ll lose points fast.

Best,

Alberto

Explore my latest case inspired by a real MBB interview: TitanTrail - Operations Outsourcing

on Apr 29, 2025
1st session -50% | Ex-McKinsey, Ex-Coca-Cola Strategy |Offical McKinsey Case Coach | +250 coaching sessions

Hi,

I would go date first and list the jobs chronologically. 

Then under the date you can give the best experience

 

Why.. You need to give a true representation of your journey

Have a look at these  templates https://www.preplounge.com/en/cv-templates 

Template 1 is my favourite one for its clean look.

Mafalda
Coach
edited on Apr 28, 2025
BCG Project Leader | Engineering background | Middle East and Europe context

Hey!

I would always keep the jobs in chronological order but the details by relevance. What I mean by this is:

Job 3 (2023 - present)

- Key Experience 1

- Key experience 2

Job 2 (2022-2023)

- Key experience 1

Job 1 (2019-2022)

- Key experience 1

 

On CVs, you have to guide the reader to the most relevant piece of information without having them wonder about any blank spaces or order or things. You can assume the reader will only look at your CV for ~30 seconds, you don't want those 30sec to be spent wondering what order your career unfolded.

A good trick I give is to have someone external to your life read your CV just for 30sec and ask them what did they retained/have them tell it back to you: 

- Did they mention your most relevant experience or were they caught in something insignificant?

Best of luck!

Mattijs
Coach
on Apr 28, 2025
Free 15m intro call | First session -50% | Bain| Hiring team | 250+ successful candidates

Hi,

You always need to structure by date (more recent to less recent). You can provide more information for longer/more relevant experiences.

Feel free to reach out via chat for more info.

Mattijs

on Apr 28, 2025
#1 Coach for Sessions (4.500+) | 1.500+ 5-Star Reviews | Proven Success: ➡ interviewoffers.com | Ex BCG | 10Y+ Coaching

Hi there,

Q: Should I organize experiences by date, or prioritize showcasing my best/most relevant experiences first? What's the norm?

As mentioned in the other comments, you should organize by date, that’s the norm.

Good luck!

Francesco

Mariana
Coach
on Apr 28, 2025
You CAN make it! | xMckinsey | 1.5h session | +200 sessions |Free 20-Minute Call

Hello,

Besides what has been said, I suggest you to make sure to write your content around achievements, not tasks.

E.g.: instead of saying “Performed data analysis of area X and presented results biweekly to executive audience”, say: “Uncovered $X in cost savings of area X related to Y”.

Best,

Mari

on Apr 28, 2025
#1 rated McKinsey Coach

By date. 

That's the standard. 

The CV itself should be your 'best experiences' or 'highlights', but it should still be ordered inverse chronologically.

Best,
Cristian

Similar Questions
Consulting
ZS Unstructured Interview: Question Types and Examples
on May 16, 2025
USA
8
1.7k
Top answer by
Mattijs
Coach
Free 15m intro call | First session -50% | Bain| Hiring team | 250+ successful candidates
27
8 Answers
1.7k Views
+5
Consulting
Pre-health to Life Science Consulting
on Apr 28, 2025
USA
5
1.3k
Top answer by
Hagen
Coach
#1 recommended coach | >95% success rate | 8+ years consulting, 8+ years coaching and 7+ years interviewing experience
76
5 Answers
1.3k Views
+2
Consulting
How Long Does It Take Bain To Respond to Application
on Mar 03, 2025
USA
8
2.2k
Top answer by
Pedro
Coach
Bain | EY-Parthenon | Former Principal | 1.5h session | 30% discount 1st session
55
8 Answers
2.2k Views
+5
How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or fellow student?
0 = Not likely
10 = Very likely
Thanks for your feedback! Your opinion helps us make PrepLounge even better.