MBB from a non-target school

Hi everyone,

I am writing this in the hope of connecting with someone who works at MBB and has a degree from a non-target school, or perhaps knows someone :)

Here’s my situation: I am currently an international student pursuing an MS in business analytics at a small private university. Recently, I discovered MBB and BIG 4. I got really excited and started preparing to secure an internship there. However, I found out that it’s really hard to get into MBB.

It’s not something very critical to me, but I’m genuinely curious if there is someone from an average university background. My university is a small private one, and from what I see, it may even be considered below average. I'm aware that the chances of getting into MBB with my situation are very low, especially considering I need visa sponsorship and my undergraduate degree is in Journalism.. I’m devising a plan. Apparently, I can first try to get an internship at a small consulting firm and work on my resume with different consulting projects and case studies. I understand that these prestigious companies seek the best talent and hiring someone from Harvard is reasonable and logical. However, is this really the most important factor? Are there any exceptions?