Hey guys,
Thought I'd start another thread for those of us APDs/ADCs (read: spent too many years in school) who are applying for full time positions either earlier this year in the Spring (BCG) or now during the Summer.
Let's try to provide sufficient data so it's less confusing:
Current location(Northeast/west/south)/institute(target?): Firm(s) applied (spring/summer): When did you receive an invite/rejection: Additional info (invite or no? when are they scheduling the interviews?):
To start off:
Current location: southeast + semi/non target Firm applied: BCG (spring) When did you receive an invite/rejection: waiting Additional info (invite or no? when are they scheduling the interviews?): Last year, Bridge to BCG took ~2.5 weeks until invites went out. I think this year may be the first time BCG is recruiting for full time consultants officially in the Spring (heard some office is growing by 40% annually for the past few years).
FYI, last year's roster can be found here: //www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/2015-MBB-advanced-degree-candidates-interview-roster
Good luck to all of us!
Mod Note (Andy): Best of 2016, this post ranks #15 for the past year
Hey Guys, hopefully my post will provide inspiration rather than angst. I was offered for full time generalist consultant with McKinsey on Friday (8/19) about two hours after my final round interview concluded. I am an ADP candidate. I am very excited about this opportunity. I have interviews upcoming with BCG and ClearView (waiting to hear back from Bain) so I am not yet finished with this process . The goal of my post is to prove that your hard work does pay off, and that this is possible for those of us without an MBA. Good luck everyone in your prep and remember that you truly are competing against yourself to be the best person/consultant you can be, and not against the other candidates you see on interview day.
Thanks guys, I hope you all hear back soon too! I think my school is kind of on the radar for McK (they had an info session on campus) but I'd say we're not target because none of MBB actually recruit on campus at any level. (My undergrad was though.) I applied for the Consultant role.
Unsolicited motivational paragraph: Congrats to everyone getting interviews and offers! Everyone not getting "good" news, let's hang in there! Consulting at MBB isn't our only option; there are other firms and other jobs where we can thrive, and work isn't everything anyway ;) Not to downplay the accomplishments of those who are getting offers (and personally I can definitely think of a million mistakes I made in my 1st round interviews that got me eliminated) but I also know a bunch of people who didn't get interviews, didn't make it to the next rounds, or didn't get final offers who were equally brilliant, accomplished, hardworking people who put in the work into practicing cases and fit and just didn't have things turn out for them this time. This leads me to believe strongly that there is a larger element of randomness and luck in this process than I originally thought. These firms are looking for something specific, and you might even have "it" but not be able to demonstrate it on the exact day with the exact fit questions and cases they happen to give you. So just continue doing your best and don't take any of this too personally. I'll get down from my soapbox now :D
I agreed with xiaopangp and those who posted their experience on pure random luck playing in the game.
I'd like to chime in my thought on this application process although my personal look would be different from others. First off, Congratulations to those who made this far and who actually received a job offer. You guys deserved it because you all spent so much time in the lab and allocated your time for case studies over and over again. It's not easy when you have a family and think of an another career track which is entirely different from what we used to do in our labs.
Again, for those who didn't make it, including myself, are not so much worse in our life. We have proven ourselves that we are capable of doing independent research and critical thinking.
The very process of consulting jobs application itself has many variables that we have no authority over to change it. If you are productive in your PhD years, if you have proven your research by publication, when you go for a postdoc interview, it's just a matter of your previous science (Your prior institutions name rarely matter except your lab etc etc etc).
However, in this whole new level of ballgame, it's not our 5 or 6 years worth of science that matters, it's whole another randomness in their selection. Let's be real, consulting firms make money, not for the sake of research, so their priorities, as understandably, are entirely different.
If you're from non-target school, and you practiced case studies millions times, without personal connection, hoping for interview offer is like looking at the sky and waiting for a pizza guy. No amount of personal vindication will solve the mystery of why you're not chosen. Facts are there. Not that you cannot try, but at least be realistic about the situation.
If you're from target schools, you're one step closer, but it's also one in a million steps towards the desk.
[My personal anecdote: I'm at the target school, I have two stories. One of my friends applied to McK last year. He's got an interview offer. After 1st round, he's got dinged. The other one also got invitation for NY office. She got dinged in the 1st round.]
There is a limited number of slots for PhD applicants and when we put all the randomness into the game, I came to realize that my excitement and a dream of kicking out all those puny pipette tips and leaving the science once and for all becomes too much of a fantasy world.
But I'd say for those who made it, you guys deserve it, and enjoy a whole new career waiting for you.
I can confirm that with McKinsey it takes several days to hear back (if you're moved to the final round) - if you pass the first round, your application gets forwarded to your preferred offices. It takes a few days for your top choices to decide if they want to interview you and for someone to make the final decision. I interviewed earlier in the summer on a Thursday. Heard back a full week later - "congrats, you made it. Your final interview will be in X." On the other hand, many of my friends got rejected and they heard back the day after the interview - duh, not like McKinsey needs time to send your application to your preferred offices.
My guess is that BCG is the same. If you got rejected, you will most likely hear back sooner than if you made it to the next round. I would expect rejection calls to go out Monday, final round invites W-Fr next week. Enjoy the weekend in the meantime.
FYI for those interviewing for McKinsey no news is good news. You get a rejection call a day or two after your interview. If not then you are through. If you get rejection call afterwards it is likely you were good enough but then no office thought you were strong enough to interview you and so rejected you afterwards.
My office preferences were 1) San Francisco, 2) Boston, 3) Denver and I interviewed at 8:30am on Friday 9/16 in NY.
kk I'm officially out of the game for MBB so I probably won't be on the forum much anymore. [I may or may not apply for smaller firms after I graduate (and travel a bit and reflect more on life :D). (ps, are there any other firms that hire PhDs who aren't life scientists? lol)]
It's been great getting to play the anxious waiting game and commiserate/celebrate with all of you. Congrats to everyone getting offers, and congrats to everyone not getting offers for giving it your all anyway!