Hi,

Of course, you can. The company does not expect you living in the street for a year.

Best

I´m actually in your shoes right now. Got the offer a few months ago and still working at my current company. I frankly didn´t even ask myself the question if I can work, what else are you supposed to do, sit at home and wait for one year? Even if you are working for a competitor even in the same country, I don't see a problem with it and neither would MBB.

Btw, congratulations!

Yes, you can do that in this fixed time if you are dedicated to your word and decided to work hard. just think positive.

There is a ton of resources out there to read about interview preparation. Forums, blogs, books, it is easy to get lost and feel overwhelmed. And that is why we are centralizing all the information you need on to prepare in one place!

There are really only 3 sources you need to read, so no need to browse for hours:

1. The website of the firm you are applying to, and in particular the recruitment section. Below are the links for a few top consulting firms. Of course, there is a lot of overlap, so don’t create confusion for yourself and only read about the firms you are applying to:

- McKinsey

- BCG

- Bain

- Deloitte

- Accenture Case and Accenture Skills interviews

2. Case in point, by Marc Consentino. My advice is simple, although controversial: learn the 12 frameworks by heart. Some people will tell you that you shouldn’t learn any frameworks, but what they really mean is that you shouldn’t use generic frameworks during a case, which I totally agree with. But learning the 12 frameworks will give you valuable inspiration, a basis upon which you can build and adapt your framework, a mental crutch to lean on when all you have is 1 minute, a blank sheet of paper and a consultant staring at you.

3. The ZeroToMBB website of course! Sign-up to receive our free preparation package when the pop-up window appears.

Pre-write and rehearse

While it is impossible to anticipate which case you will get, there are some other parts of the interviews that you can actually prepare, which will save you a lot of stress, improve the quality of your answers, and ultimately give you a valuable edge:

1. Your elevator pitch: 2-3mn maximum. Keep it simple by answering the following questions:

a. Which roles and skills have you taken on/developed in the last 5 years?

b. Why did you choose such role/skills? Consultants love passionate people!

c. Why is now a good time to join management consulting + this particular company + this particular location?

2. Your personal experience stories. Click here to learn more about how to prepare for this.

3. Questions for the consultant. At the end of the interview, you usually have time to ask 1-2 questions to the consultant. I recommend that you prepare them in advance to save you some stress. Just keep in mind that they need to be targeted because you will usually only have 2-3mn left at the end of the interview. Avoid “what projects have you done so far?” or “what do you like and dislike about consulting?”. Instead, focus on something you really want to know, and that is not available online easily.

Practice, practice, practice

This is the most important part of your preparation and we offer many options to adapt to what you already know and help you get the job. But here are some tips on how to prepare:

Practice with an experienced consultant. Do not practice with your friends, family etc. if they don’t have a clue about consulting and interviews. Not only this is a waste of time for you and them, it is also counterproductive. Practice with someone who has worked in management consulting and who has experience in interviewing and coaching. If you don’t know anyone, welcome to ZeroToMBB where all our coaches are experienced interviewers from top firms! Also, when you apply and get invited for interviews, make sure to ask for a “buddy”, i.e. a consultant from the company who will accompany you through the preparation process, in particular, you can ask him/her to do a practice case. Lastly, you may dream of getting into a specific consulting firm, but remember that you will increase your chances if you apply to several consulting firms at the same time.

Pro tip: First schedule interviews for the firm you like the least, so you can get some free practice!

Focus on 5 skills for case interviews: structure, creativity, chart analysis, quants, and synthesis. Sign-up to receive our free preparation package when the pop-up window appears.

Also, sign-up to receive free preparation package which includes a free MBB-level case with answers, videos and more!

Visit the best consulting website https://www.zerotombb.com/ and start the journey to get your dream job.

Best of luck

You can definitely work! In fact, your firm will probably like it since it gives you more valuable experience! Bain actually let one of my former colleagues delay their start date by over a year as he had secured a highly competitive 1 year placement at Apple - Bain saw this as very valuable to his skillset and was happy to allow it as long as he signed to come to Bain after - he's now a top performer

Can I ask why the start is in 12 months? Was this your choice due to university or the MBB's due to staffing needs?