Rescheduling a consulting interview: need more time to study
Have an interview with a consulting firm the plans for which I made this morning. I feel like I could use an extra week to study as I'm moving the week before and I haven't done any case interviews in a while. The HR person (the interview will take place with a manager) just emailed me to see if I could push the interview back an hour, should I see about pushing it back a week? I feel like the further out I reschedule the better, but how taboo is it to try and reschedule in general?
Depends on the firm -- I've been able to reschedule a week out with many of the lower-tier firms but I think in terms of MBB/OW/Booz/etc. they're a bit stricter since they have a more structured recruitment schedule (and would be unwise to push your luck there...)
So an IBM/Accenture would probably be a no? I think I would only push back a couple of days/a week at most, how much leeway do you think there is?
Thanks for the help!
Accenture, I had a friend try to reschedule and - from what I understand - communications ended up so screwed that they eventually didn't even give her an interview. This was a few years back though. IBM, no idea. I've interviewed at IBM for other roles (non-consulting), and they've been really flexible. Not sure if HR for consulting is separate for HR for other roles, but if it is one and the same overarching HR structure then I wouldn't be too worried.
It doesn't hurt to ask. Just mention that the day a week from now is better for you, but if absolutely necessary you'll take any of [insert a few dates here that you're free].
Rescheduling an interview? (Originally Posted: 05/19/2013)
From previous posts on this forum, it seems like it's generally bad to reschedule an interview, no matter what the reason?
I'm interviewing with a buy side firm, and the process so far has been pretty informal. I'm supposed to have another interview tomorrow. At the last minute, I get an email which basically indicated that the interview will be more intense than I thought it would be. Then, the interviewer emailed me again to see if I could come in an hour earlier.
I know I would do much better if I have more time to prepare, so I took the opportunity to ask if I could postpone the interview. Was this a mistake?
Only reschedule if there is a genuine reason why you actually cannot make it. Wanting more time to prepare is not a good reason. If you told the interviewer you wanted to postpone without giving a legitimate reason it makes it sound like you're underprepared.
say you are sick.
If you really have to then reschedule it. They should understand. It should not hurt your chances.
Rescheduling an interview (Originally Posted: 10/09/2012)
Unfortunately, have had a death in the family. I'm in 2nd rounds with a MBB Consulting firm and I had already asked before if we could do the interview at a later time because of a conflict with work, but they wanted to do it this week. I learned this morning of a death in the family, will they understand and reschedule or will they think I'm just trying to delay the interview?
I think that they are likely to allow you to reschedule. That said, I think it will put you at a mild disadvantage, however unfair that may be.
Thank you for the response, just wondering why you think this will result in a disadvantage? Because I'll be interviewing after others? Not accusing you of being wrong or anything, just wondering...
On the other hand if you do perform well you are more likely to be remembered. Most people remember the first and last individuals they interact with in a group. They also remember hot girls, so if you're a hot girl then you've got that advantage as well.
There's no way they WON'T do it. It'll make them look terrible. But, whether they'll just interview you to go through the motions or actively consider you is a different question altogether. I think there's a chance the latter will still hold. Consulting firms aren't nearly as douchy as investment banks.
Is it okay to say that I want to reschedule the interview for a couple weeks from now instead of this week, because, due to recent events, I haven't had time to prepare for the interview, and would like a little more time? Or is it bad to say you need time to prepare? Should it be more like you're always ready to go?
Thanks for all the help guys!
Not really.. If you're asking them to accommodate you, you have to be as flexible as you possibly can.
A couple of weeks is to long. And that will look poorly on your part. Postpone it a week and start now. A week is MORE than plently to prepare.
"Reschedule" Interview (Originally Posted: 09/19/2011)
Hi all,
I have a phone case interview to schedule with a credit card company. I passed the assessment tests and am now moving on with the Business Analyst application, but the recruiter wrote me this morning saying they'd like to schedule a 30 minute case interview for Tuesday or Wednesday evening (tomorrow or the day after).
The problem is I am flying out Thursday for a final-round interview that I need to prepare for and I will have very little time to prepare for this short case interview. This will be my first case interview ever and I can't afford to spend a few hours preparing for it and then lay it off to the side because of the more critical on-site interview this week.
How should I approach this situation? It's a phone interview, so I can't write them back saying I'm going to be in and out of town throughout the week and won't have a good time. Will it look really bad if I ask them to move it to next week?
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
It's tough, but you should probably get it over with before you fly out Thursday. Interviews will overlap, and you can't really do anything about it. If I were you, I wouldn't sweat too much over case interviews. Just go over a practice case interview a couple times and get familiar with the process, there's really nothing to it. And obviously, focus more on the final round interview that you have. Good luck.
there's WSO case interview guide. If you can't get it through university (my school has the access), let me know and I'll see if I can help. can't help you with mock case interviews, especially in such short notice. Maybe try your school's career center?
How to reschedule an interview (Originally Posted: 12/10/2012)
I had an interview scheduled a few weeks ago but I also last minute got another the evening before and had to cancel the next day because of the extensive travel involved.
Problem is I said I was sick and I had forgotten that during my intital telephone interview phase, I was genuinely sick and had to change a date.
I've tried calling and leaving emails for the HR team but they arent getting back to me. Any idea what I can do? Just carry on trying?
I'm not sure why you lied to them. There was no reason to lie. They know that you are likely interviewing with other places and may have to try to schedule around that. It probably looks to them as if you are lying/are flaky and they may not want anything to do with that.
As far as what you can do, i'm not sure there is anything you can do but send a few more emails/phone calls that way. Try to express as much genuine interest as you can without bombarding them. Maybe reach out to a contact you have there and explain the situation. They may be able to help you out. It's not going to be easy, though.
I lied because it was incredibly short notice and I felt they may consider me to be disorganized.
I guess I am going to have to be persistent. Not sure how I can avoid being annoying though. I had a contact in the HR team but she moved to a different role.
At this point, it's done, stop obsessing about it. It may not have negatively effected you or it may have. It's impossible to know. Just don't lie in the future. And try to show genuine interest going forward without being completely insufferable.
Wow, an HR team that's hard to get ahold of? I was under the impression that they just sat around on Facebook all day. You must really be in the doghouse.
Yeah worried about this. Problem is my other job, although I killed the interview, somehow they didnt offer me the job (not going to get into details as worried about my identity and firms identity) so I'm back to square one.
Help: Interview Reschedule and Then No Feedback (Originally Posted: 04/02/2014)
Hi guys, I made into the final interview for an investment bank and was scheduled to do a phone interview with an MD who also was the staffer for the recruiting. Then the MD had some urgent matter so the interview was rescheduled several times but was not finalised. Then I waited for the feedback of the reschedule for about a week and emailed the HR who said the update regarding my interview was not available. I waited another few days and felt really upset. Any suggestions on how to handle this? I am worried that the posts have been filled or I've been denied since there are other candidates who already did the interview with the MD.
I tend to take the view that until I am told that I have been denied that I still have a chance and that I need to continue to practice polite persistence until I receive an answer.
I would continue to follow up until they give you an answer either way. The key is to not be pushy/desperate. They have what you want. They don't owe you anything.
Thanks for the advice. I am trying to stay calm and patient. The thing is I cannot directly reach out to the MD and feel like powerless in making an impression or anything.
Animi exercitationem sit facere nulla quia. Dolore asperiores vitae necessitatibus sapiente ratione. Ea ratione nam ut deleniti quia perferendis nihil. Optio qui iste magnam vitae repellat numquam sit. Assumenda sequi et enim et eos. Quod dolor qui qui harum quasi consequuntur laudantium nam.
Esse quia dignissimos alias. Sed est sint autem ut rerum. Libero velit voluptas unde dolor deserunt fugit repellendus quibusdam. Commodi consectetur qui totam recusandae. Occaecati rerum rem dolorem nihil qui repudiandae ut.
Non quam autem ut quae et. Nemo sequi et voluptate. Rerum hic dolor impedit aliquam officiis alias. Quia est et deleniti ut. Voluptatem saepe voluptatem perferendis suscipit sed omnis.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Id nobis et modi id ducimus vel voluptate. Quo nobis modi cum iusto voluptatem dignissimos aut. Sit commodi aspernatur consectetur illum nobis vitae possimus eveniet. Non quia dolore nihil facilis reprehenderit tempore.