Werde aktiv in unserer Community aus über 452.000 Gleichgesinnten!

Verabrede dich zum Casen über das Meeting-Board, nimm an Diskussionen in unserem Consulting Q&A teil und finde gleichgesinnte Case-Partner, um dich auszutauschen und gemeinsam zu üben!

Chances to break into American consulting for an international MBA student

international student visa
Neue Antwort am 21. Mai 2022
5 Antworten
557 Views
Anonym A fragte am 19. Mai 2022

Hi everyone, 

I will study at the Ivy League school as an exchange MBA student (the home MBA program is not the target school). 

I have a consulting background but worked in Tier-2 in the developing market.  

Does it make any sense to apply to consulting firms in the US or the chances are so low that it's better to invest in other things? (I don't hold American or Canadian passports)

Many thanks in advance!

Übersicht der Antworten

Upvotes
  • Upvotes
  • Datum aufsteigend
  • Datum absteigend
Beste Antwort
Ian
Experte
Content Creator
antwortete am 20. Mai 2022
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate

Hi there,

Frankly, the chances are low, especially coming from a developing market.

If you want to optimize your chances, you should likely apply to other offices.

Of course, you don't have to pick one or the other. You can diversify your bets by selecting different offices for different firms. When selecting 3 offices in your application, you can have 1 of them be the US.

Ultimately, networking should play a role as well: The places where you have networked well and they seem to like/want you are where you will also likely have higher odds.

Good luck!

War diese Antwort hilfreich?
Clara
Experte
Content Creator
antwortete am 20. Mai 2022
McKinsey | Awarded professor at Master in Management @ IE | MBA at MIT |+180 students coached | Integrated FIT Guide aut

Hello!

TBD, the issue here is the visa. 

MBA students in the US have either F1 or J1 visas, and both of them have a OPT extension and then STEM extension (this sums up to 3 years in the case of F1). 

US in terms of VISA is a total nightmare, and this is one of the first questions asked when applying. And if you don´t have a US visa, I honestly think it´s close to impossible and I wouldn´t even try. 

This said, talk to the recruiting people of both unis, they should confirm this. 

Hope it helps!

Cheers, 

Clara

War diese Antwort hilfreich?
Lucie
Experte
Content Creator
bearbeitete eine Antwort am 20. Mai 2022
10+yrs recruiting & BCG Project leader

Hi there, 

To be very honest, your chances without Visa are close to 0 for the USA.  But the easiest way to go around that is by joining BCG in your country and after approximately 6-12 months you will be able to apply internally for a role in the USA or anywhere else, or you could take any of the different programs available (e.g. Ambassador). This is quite easy for the top performers. 

Good luck

Lucie

Was this answer helpful?

(editiert)

War diese Antwort hilfreich?
Adi
Experte
Content Creator
antwortete am 20. Mai 2022
Accenture, Deloitte | Precision Case Prep | Experienced Interviewer & Career Coach | 15 years professional experience

Its going to be very tough but not impossible with good planning, networking and strong application.

Depends on what you are willing to trade off by applying to US offices and not elsewhere with a better (and perhaps easier) chance of getting in.

All the best.

War diese Antwort hilfreich?
Cristian
Experte
Content Creator
antwortete am 21. Mai 2022
#1 rated MBB & McKinsey Coach

Hi there, 

I would apply if I were you, especially if you'd like to be in the US long-term. 

To good thing about having had some sort of experience in the US, even if it was as an exchange program, is that now you have a link / story to argue in your favour as to why you'd want to relocate to the US. This should come across clearly from your cover letter. 

Many thanks,
Cristian

War diese Antwort hilfreich?

Ian

Content Creator
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate
1.097
Meetings
77.760
Q&A Upvotes
232
Awards
5,0
151 Bewertungen