MBB and 2nd Tiers Core Schools?

So I had read that McKinsey recently made Duke a core/target school for recruiting and I think I read that BCG did the same with Duke, but what other schools are considered 'core' or 'target' schools? I know obviously the m7 get heavily recruited at by all of MBB and the like but what does McKinsey, Bain, BCG, LEK, Monitor, Parthenon, etc consider their core schools in the Top 15?

 

Smaller boutique firms are actually much more selective in where they recruit since their recruiting budgets are smaller. MBB recruit more widely, even at top public schools that many would not consider traditional targets (e.g. UNC). Many firms like Monitor only recruit in their area, e.g. at northeastern schools.

Otherwise, most of the top 10-15 are targets. There are some notable exceptions, typically where consulting isn't too popular of a career choice. I think UChicago is one place that isn't a heavy target for undergrad-level recruitment.

 
Best Response

This is a relatively difficult question to answer. I think the top tier firms will all recruit at the "usual suspect" schools, but there are exceptions.

Let me provide an example. HEC Paris (the MBA program) is not a target school for Consulting firms. However, HEC was part of the ATK Global Case Comp, and as a result had great exposure to consultants and leaders at the firm. From this, and other efforts by the school, at least one student got an interview, and received an offer. ATK is now going to be visiting HEC again, albeit on a smaller scale than with larger local MBA programs, like INSEAD.

Another example. In Canada, U of British Columbia is not a target school. But the school has a consulting class that ~30 students take a year. In that class, the top students (10 I believe) are identified and sent to Toronto on the schools dime. The firms have agreed to open the doors to some of these students, and I can tell you that they have been receiving offers.

My point is that even if you don't go to a target school, it doesn't mean you have zero chance of getting an interview. Granted, it will be a challenge. But it's not impossible. I often tell my students to fire off some e-mails, and make a few phonecalls. You would be surprized how many consultants will respond. If you make an impression, it could lead to them asking for your resume, which could lead to more informal meetings, perhaps even formal ones and an interview. I've seen it happen many times.

boozer:
OK here is the aggregate for new MBA hires at my firm (NY office mostly, a few others)-

Harvard- 6 Wharton- 5 Sloan- 1 Stanford- 2 Columbia- 11 Michigan- 3 Darden- 1 Yale- 1 Kellogg- 7 Chicago- 14 Dartmouth- 3 NYU- 1

This is a rough sampling (not all of them) but enough to give you an idea of what proprtion of each new MBA class comes from which schools.

Cool...anyone else got more info or stats to share? new MBA associate hires for M/B/B only, in particular looking at top 10-15 ranked schools.

 
consultant16180:
I don't have concrete stats, but when I was interning, most people I met were from Harvard, followed by Stanford, Wharton, Chicago, Columbia, Sloan and Tuck. Didn't really meet people from other schools.

I would add Kellogg to that list (the "M7" schools include those listed above sans Tuck, plus Kellogg). Darden (UVA) also does reasonably well.

 

Well to put it bluntly, you would have problems coming from a 10-15 school. These jobs are reasonably competitive at the top 10 schools, so not many trickle down to the 10-15, especially given how status-conscious firms are at the MBA level. It is tough to get hired from a 10-15 firm, empirically most from 10-15 schools have a consulting background (usually strategy at MBB or more often, strategy at a big 4), ibanking background, internal referral from an existing employee, or have done very well in b-school.

Take my advice with a grain of salt because I don't have much exposure to MBA-level recruiting but I don't think too many people on this board will be able to provide much more accurate guidance. Even if you go to a 10-15 school, it's definitely nowhere nearly as hard as trying to land MBB out of undergrad. Join the consulting club, network with alums (much more of a viable option than at the undergrad level) and you should be able to land an interview at a top firm. But just in case, get in to an MBA business schools">M7.

boozer:
from a 10-15 firm, empirically most from 10-15 schools have a consulting background (usually strategy at MBB or more often, strategy at a big 4), ibanking background, internal referral from an existing employee, or have done very well in b-school. .....and you should be able to land an interview at a top firm. But just in case, get in to an MBA business schools">M7.

Agree with most of what you said. However the part about folks from top 10-15 schools coming from M/B/B. that's totally off. Kids who can get into M/B/B out of undergrad,if they choose to go back to bschool, will most definitely get in Harvard, Stanford, or Wharton. There might be the lone ranger that chooses Columbia or Kellogg for personal/location reasons, but VERY RARELY (M7, it's easier said than done. Which is why I wondering how to get into M/B/B at lesser schoools.

 

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