What are some reasons people would reject MBB offer?

Question

What made you turn down your MBB offer? I'm curious about the factors that led consultants to reject offers from McKinsey, Bain, or BCG, especially at the associate level (3+ years experience).

Would love to hear from others who turned down top consulting firms and what alternative paths you chose instead.

Answer 1

hey there!

People turn down MBB offers for a variety of personal and professional reasons, even at the associate level. Common ones include preferring a better lifestyle balance, wanting to specialize earlier (e.g. in tech, healthcare, or sustainability), choosing a firm with a more defined path to industry, or simply not resonating with the culture. A coachee of mine recently turned down an MBB offer to join a smaller Tier 2 consultancy where he could focus on pharma from day one — same pay, but more relevant experience and a tighter team fit. It's often about long-term alignment, not just brand.

Alessa

Answer 2

Hi there,

I have seen people decline it to work in smaller firms connected to themes they were excited about in a friendlier and balanced environment, and others that decided for other industry considering long term goals.

MBB marketing itself as the best job one can have, but that is not the reality (an obvious statement that must be made anyway). There are great jobs outside consulting that provide fast learning, good benefits and a healthier lifestyle.

MBB culture is sustained by the famous “insecure overachiever” type that more often than not values the prestige of the role and the brand recognition so that this idea of “best job I can get” keep going.

Sincerely,

Mari

Answer 3

Hey there,

From my candidates that have rejected MBB offers, the reasons range from a variety of personal and professional reasons. There really are an infinite reasons, but some common ones from my candidates were:

Inability to get guarantees on specialization on specific topics that they'd want to (vs a specialty boutique or T2)
No MBB office in a specific city or region that they really want to live in
No guarantees on ability to transfer at a later date (to another city / region) or to limit amount of travel time (based on their personal circumstances)
Onerous immigration requests (i.e. before being able to join an MBB in a certain region - they first have to live in another region for immigration purposes)
Reduction in pay / role seniority (vs corporate / industry roles) for more experience hires

Feel free to reach out if you'd like me to put you in touch with some of my candidates who went through these experiences for you to learn more from them directly

All the best