Didn't Write Cover Letter

So I just sent in my applications for MBB, and only BCG required a cover letter, the other 2 as "optional". I did not include one for Mck/bain because I was told that "a good cover letter won't help you but a bad cover letter can hurt you." After doing some more research..it seems like the cover letter is the most important aspect of a consulting application..which is odd as my previous internship experiences in a different industry never required a cover letter and was never read.

Am I going to get auto-dinged in this situation? I have a pretty strong resume..4.0 GPA, 2 good internships, some "decent" leadership. Should I follow up with a recruiter from Mck/bain to send my cover letter to them via email? This is for full-time recruiting.

Thoughts?

3 Comments
 

Where did you hear that cover letters are the most important part? It's certainly easily trumped by resume and probably even by test scores. (FWIW, common perception seems to be that McKinsey U.S. offices genuinely don't care about it).

 

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