McKinsey First Round Interview

Hey there. 

In this specific case, the your options all belong to the MEO (Middle East Office) and MEO is considered to be a single regional office in McKinsey. Your application will be reviewed primarily by your first choice office.

The thing here is, if your application is not successful in one office (due to low Solve score or not passing CV / profile screening) - then it will not be considered in any other office. This is because of McKinsey's global One Firm policy (meaning that they use the same bar for all offices), so failing in one office means failing in all offices

In principal, the only way / reason your application would be considered in another office to your first choice is if you are successful in both the Solve and Screening, but due to some capacity limitations (or something similar) you can't get into your first choice, then they could consider your other options. 

Wishing you all the best!

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the progress in the application process with McKinsey thus far!

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your question:

• First of all, your application will most likely be reviewed by your first-choice office.
• Moreover, if your first-choice office rejects you, your application will not be considered by any other office. The only exception would be if your first-choice office has reached its hiring capacity.

You can find more on this topic here: How to succeed in the final interview round.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming McKinsey interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hi,

Your first choice will judge your CV and Solve test results. If they have capacity, they will invite you for the interview; if not, they will pass your profile to the office of your second/third choice.

Let me know if you have further questions.

Mattijs

Hi there, 

What happens in almost all cases is that it's the first office that reviews your application and decides whether to progress with it or decline it. 

Only in exceptional cases, when they no longer recruit, would they forward your application to your secondary or tertiary choice. 

In essence, thus, the second or third option you've added to your application has little effect.

Best,
Cristian

Hey!

Your application and Solve assessment will typically be reviewed collectively by a central recruiting team for the Middle East region. They coordinate across offices, so you won’t be separately screened by each one. That said, one lead office will usually "own" your application based on demand and your background.

Let me know if you’d like help navigating next steps or preparing for interviews!

Best,
Alessa :)

Agree with what other coaches have said - the application will primarily be reviewed by your first choice location.