How to get into McKinsey, Bain and BCG as a Management Consultant? -By an ex-Management Consultant at Bain
Insight #1: "Build as much pedigree as you can."
This means going to the right schools, the right clubs, the right academics and the right extra-curriculars. This also means that you need to get good brands on your resume early and fast. Working in NA, EMEA, Singapore and Australia is typically a plus point.
You typically need to go to M7 schools or IIM-BLACKI or ISB to even have a remote shot at getting in. This means great GRE/GMAT scores are a necessity. This also means that you need to really nail your LORs. Finally, you need to have exceptional spikes that changes the way people perceive you and your potential translating into a resume.
Insight #2: "They care about optics a lot." The way you look, speak and conduct yourself is probably the biggest thing you can do to improve your odds of getting in. Being at the right places is important. This means if you are already in social circles with Management Consulting folks then some of their habits will rub off on you. This also means that playing Tennis, going to the Gym, going Golfing/Squash/ whatever rich guy sport, the right parties, restaurants and clubs is an underrated advantage.
Insight #3: "Prepare for Case Interviews" Case interviews are a crucial part of the consulting recruitment process. Practice solving case studies and seek guidance from mentors or resources to improve your case interview skills. 'Case in Point' is your fucking bible and you need to make sure that you can work your way around guesstimates and reach a conclusive solution in an insight driven manner.
Insight #4: "Be prepared to walk away."
MBB is not the end of the world and you can out do your peers in terms of Money earned per unit effort spent easily in other fields. So, don't care about what happens. Double down on your Plan B instead.
But if you want to travel the world, walk shoulder to shoulder with some of the smartest people in the business then it is not a bad option.
Picture: From one of my trips to Bangalore(2023)
Talking product sense with Ridhi
9 min AI interview5 questions
"rich guy sport" 💀. What's yours?
@Tony_Montana Squash over the weekend and after that dry sauna followed by a cold plunge.
@PaininBain full Patrick Bateman vibes
i don’t agree with being from m7,BLACKI or ISB to have a remote shot line.
bain hires folks straight out of bachelors as well for business analyst. Personally know folks from DU working at MBB.
i can’t agree more on being in the right place at the right time line. if you have a way around words, you can do wonders in consulting.
there are tens of firms that pay equally well as MBB
Those folks work in MBB back offices…BCN, McKc and the like….its not the same as MBB front end.
oh is that so, can you tell me more about back offices? do project quality differ or what exactly is the difference?
also, does that mean only mba grads work as consultants at mbb?
MBB experience is not what it once was. When FMCG, traditional manufacturing companies were dominant (early 2000s), they typically considered MBB alumni for senior leadership roles. However, tech companies mostly hire for one another and the MBB experience don't matter that much. I rarely come across MBBs in Meta, Nvidia , etc. I think maybe only G and Amazon might be the exception (still very less than traditional companies)
That is now going to change in the next 5-10 years. With the AI wave, folks with industry and domain knowledge, who can provide that context in the decision process will enjoy some good times.
The balance will again be established with the tech folks who mastered the game working and moving between elite tech workplaces not having a definitive advantage over MBB type folks, who have built domain knowledge in a particular problem area which can feed into the models
Pass.
Are you high too?
Doing all these in life to commit suicide because of Work Pressure . It's better to be an entrepreneur than any of these consultants if you want to enjoy what you are doing 😄
Swanky McKinsey, Bain, or BCG aim? Bhai, IIM-BLACKI, M7 or ISB padho, GMAT/GRE scores mast hona chahiye. Make sure you're a part of the right social circles, sports, and clubs. 'Case in Point' is your guide. If not MBB, there's a whole world outside. Acceptable? Or still living in lala land thinking only MBB is life? "Acche khaase" options explored kiye?
