Consulting Summer Internship Applications a complete failure, Advice needed
Hey everyone,
This is my first post here. I'm a 1st year Masters student at Bocconi, top European university. Regardless, I got rejected from most of my consulting summer internship application s. I applied mostly to Dubai as I was convinced competition is somewhat weaker than say London. Didn't feel like it. I can attribute my failure to 2 drawbacks of my applications: 1.) I don't have a great GMAT (under 700) and did not mention it at all and 2.) Despite summer internships every year, I have no big name on my CV (other than an EU member state government institution). Which one would you say played a bigger role?
I have not given up and keep applying, just short of deadlines. I'm being realistic here and expect more of the same. And that's where I need your help. How should I improve my application? What sector/firm would consultancies like to see on my CV best? Should I re-take the GMAT? Any suggestions for tier 2-3 / boutique consultancies where I may get in easier?
At this stage, any advice is welcome. Thanks!
From what I've heard, there's been a drop in hiring across most firms in Dubai. Bocconi is a reasonable name for companies there. You'd be better off trying to apply in mainland Europe where Bocconi carries more weight. You may also try for MBB and PWM in Dubai - they happen to be hiring quite a bit.
In my opinion, applying to Dubai was the mistake - although one might argue that competition is lower than in London, there are also significantly fewer spots available for interns.
In London, major investment banks take up to 60-70 interns in IBD every year, and Bocconi is very well represented - in my BB intern class, 10-15 guys were from Bocconi. I have even seen people from Bocconi MSc Finance with little to no experience getting into BBs.
What to do now? Well, if you are really set for IBD, you should apply to smaller boutiques in London that have not yet finished recruiting. Plenty of guys from the Bocconi MSc Finance actually get their summer internship during the second year (from what I have seen) so everything is not lost and you should probably focus on getting some M&A-related experience this summer to get the perfect stint next year.
Hope that helps!
Thanks for the info, but it's consulting I'm after. Anyway, could you let me know what's your BB, it seems it favors Bocconi more than the rest (PM me)?
Assuming you applied to MBB/high tier 2 firms, I would say the name factor is the greater issue, and applying "away" from Bocconi's home base made it worse. If you're set on consulting for full-time, I would try to get an internal consulting internship at a recognizable company (e.g. UBS, BASF, American Express, some airline) or an operations/ less prestigious strategy consultancy. For many European MBBs offices, it is reputably easier to get in through full-time interviews than through internships interviews and an offer, so your chances are still pretty good, especially coming from Bocconi.
Thanks for the reply. I will be looking into these!
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