Hello all. When consulting firms interview candidates with advanced degree and MBA, do they use the same set of cases? Do they set different standards for these two types of candidates? For example, they would expect much less business acumen from an advanced degree candidate? Thanks.
Wayne
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The case may be similar but the expectation of answers may be a bit different. If you have a business-related undergrad and an MBA you will not be expected to answer in the same way as an engineer with a PhD
The bar for solving the case is the same, but a PhD is given more leeway on business terms. For example, I was given a P&L and asked a question regarding EBITA. The partner then asked if I was familiar with the term "EBITA". I suspect he would assume an MBA is familiar with the term.
While you may not be expected to know Porter's 5 forces, or how to do a SWAT analysis, you should be familiar with basic concepts like NPV, interest/growth rates, fixed vs. variable costs, etc.
quite frankly, the mbb partner who interviewed me assumed me knew nothing about profit, and explained to me in detail what fixed cost and variable cost are.
so i dont think even NPV is expected for a phd.
Was that partner a PhD? One partner, at a recruiting dinner, told me that he is more lenient with PhDs/MDs because that was also his background. I wonder if it is partner specific.
But I would say the short answer is that the bar for solving the case is the same as an MBA, but a PhD wouldn't be penalized for asking to clarify business terms. There is a score for business acumen, so assuming a PhD doesn't need to know anything about business I think would be a mistake.
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