Office selection strategy & flexibility to transfer offices

Question

Hi, I am a post MBA applicant. I'd like to seek advice on office selection / transers. I have noticed that for MBA hires, it seems pretty common that applicants apply to overseas office, and firms are quite okay about this. However, given that I have graduated from MBA and started working for another firm, I will be applying to MBB not through the MBA recruitment channel. Does this office location flexibility still exist? I'm currently working in Canada, but for personal/family reasons I tend to prefer to work in US. Would you suggest me to apply to the office where I'm based currently and then transfer office in 1-2 years, or directly apply to the overseas office? I'm worried that if I don't get my foot in US as soon as possible, I won't be able to accumulate enough local industry knowledge, and it will become a barrier if I want to transfer in the future. Appreciate your advice.

Answer 1

Hi there,

In general, I recommend candidates apply to offices where they have any of the following (the more the better):

Citizenship/working rights
Prior work/life experience (i.e. a job or education in the city/country)
Personal network / referral

Generally, you can select multiple offices when you apply. It doesn't hurt to put your 1st selection as your "Reach" office (i.e. the US), and another as your safety (i.e. Canada).

Best of luck!

Answer 2

Hello!

You have a good advantage here, since Canada-US transfers are indeed among the easiest :)

This also applies in terms of visas, since for a Canadian obtaining a US visa is much easier than for most of the rest of us.

This said, I would apply to the office in the location that gives you a stronger case (e.g., connection, language, visa, previous experience, etc.)

Hope it helps!

Cheers,

Clara