way to mbb

The thing with consulting is that there is no singular way to MBB. There is a traditional path, but I've seen people enter from undergrad with all types of backgrounds from VC internships to Mechanical engineering and everything in between. I'll summarize the generally agreed criteria.

- Academic Performance: a strong GPA is a great sign of competence, but the GPA requirement itself is usually relative. For instance, Business GPA standards are usually higher than Engineering or Math-intensive programs. And if your GPA isn't the best, many people supplement it by boasting about their own strengths or networking.  

 Work Experience: any corporate work experience offers transferrable skills, whether it's communicating with clients, detail oriented notes or work (like audit), technical skills in Python, Excel, JIRA, SQL, or other software. 

- Community Involvement & Leadership Experience: non-work leadership experience like club executive positions or case competitions are appreciated since it shows you take the initiative outside of your tasks. It also lets you show case your skills (like creating a case presentation or leading a team for a conference).   

- Interests/Passion Experience: interests and passions outside of the office are greatly appreciated at consulting firms. This could be anything from offering pro-bono resume or interview services to launching a solo startup to see how it progresses. It could also be a passion project like making something in Python for the sake of making it or even a book.   

- Bonuses: foreign languages, credentials (like CPA, CFA, CBV, CSA, etc.) to show competence/interest, Master's Degree, Coding Languages

Above all else, making a strong impact in your current work and networking in the firms you're aiming for well be the defining characteristics. I've seen a handful of colleagues and alumni pivot from Big 4 Audit => Strategy Consulting (sometimes within the same firm, sometimes recruited by OW, MBB, other Big 4).