What weight is given to previous consulting internships vs a target university?

Question

Hi, I am targeting Bain (Warsaw office) as an Associate Consultant straight out of my graduate degree. After reviewing the profiles there, I am concerned that I did not attend a European target school, which would give me a competitive background.

I did my bachelor's at an Applied Science University in the Netherlands and a Master's in Financial Economics at Maastricht University. Overall, I had solid grades, and in my master's, I graduated in the top 10%. I have done three 3-month internships, one at BizOps in a F500 company, one as a Business Analyst Intern at Arthur D. Little, and one at Kearney again as a BA Intern.

My question is: after having a couple of solid internships, is education taken less into consideration when thinking of who to invite for an interview?

Thanks a lot for the help.

Answer 1

Hi there,

thanks for the details, it seems to me that you have a very solid profile for breaking into Bain!

There is no golden rule but the recruiter will always look at the full package, so if you do not have any relevant work experience, the university curriculum is the only thing they can focus on. In your case this should be a much more balanced decision with some very solid Tier 2 names in there for internships.

Also, I would not say that a Master's at Maastricht is not a relevant target university for them.

Hence, I would say that your chances are pretty good when applying! One advice: Do not put all of your eggs into one basket. Successfully breaking into MBB depends on a lot of factors. I would apply more widely and then see what works.

Feel free to reach out anytime in case of questions.

Best,
Sebastian

Answer 2

I think there is another reason why you see so many consultants from target universities at Bain. It’s not necessarily that they were selected because they attended a target university. Rather, students at these universities often have much more direct access to the interview process through recruiting events, consulting clubs, alumni networks, career fairs, and personal connections with the firm. As a result, they may enter the recruiting process through these channels rather than relying solely on the standard HR screening.

With your profile - top 10% in your Master’s + internships at Arthur D. Little and Kearney - I would definitely apply. At this stage, your relevant professional experience is a very strong signal and can compensate significantly for a non-target background.

My main advice would be: don’t rely only on the online application. Try to create a personal entry point:

Search LinkedIn for Bain Warsaw consultants who are alumni of Maastricht or your previous university and approach them with a short, specific message.
Ask about their experience and, if the conversation goes well, whether Bain has a referral process.
Look for Bain recruiting events, university events or career fairs you can attend. Speak to consultants there, ideally also some senior levels and follow up afterwards.
Use your ADL/Kearney network as well — consulting is a relatively small world, and someone may know people at Bain Warsaw.

Referrals are useful for both sides: many firms incentivize employees to refer strong candidates.

Of course, I’m not speaking for Bain or their HR team — this is simply my perspective from around nine years in management consulting and several years of interviewing candidates. But with your experience, I would focus much less on whether your university is officially a “target” and much more on getting your CV in front of the right person.

If you’d like, feel free to reach out - I’d be happy to take a look at your CV and help you optimize how you position your experience for consulting applications.