Get Active in Our Amazing Community of Over 451,000 Peers!

Schedule mock interviews on the Meeting Board, join the latest community discussions in our Consulting Q&A and find like-minded Case Partners to connect and practice with!

Are interviews different if you switch amongst consultancies?

BCG Bain McKinsey MBB McKinsey
New answer on Jan 06, 2020
4 Answers
1.3 k Views
Anonymous A asked on Jan 04, 2020

Hello! I am preparing interviews at McKinsey, but I am not a fresh graduate. I have worked at another global consulting firm for 2 years and have now been offered interviews at McK in an emerging market. I wonder whether these will be in the usual format or if I should expect significant deviations given my background?

Thanks for your input!

Overview of answers

Upvotes
  • Upvotes
  • Date ascending
  • Date descending
Best answer
Sidi
Expert
replied on Jan 04, 2020
McKinsey Senior EM & BCG Consultant | Interviewer at McK & BCG for 7 years | Coached 350+ candidates secure MBB offers

When I switched from BCG to McKinsey (Consultant (BCG) / Associate (McK) level), I was basically facing the identical interview process (apart from the fact that I did not have to do the PST anymore). The difference was rather the standard against which I was rated: there were higher expectations regarding seniority in demeanor, structuring abilty, prioritization, and contextual intuition regarding how to implement certain measures. But the general structure of the interviews was identical.

Hope this helps!

Cheers, Sidi

Was this answer helpful?
Clara
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Jan 06, 2020
McKinsey | Awarded professor at Master in Management @ IE | MBA at MIT |+180 students coached | Integrated FIT Guide aut

Hello!

The process will be identical in terms of process and people who will do it.

The difference will be in the expectations, since you already know what consulting is, so you shoud be a rounded profile in many things tested in the interview (e.g., top-down communication, problem solving, etc.)

Furthermore, they will insist on "why this change" in the FIT part quite a lot.

Hope it helps!

Good luck,

Clara

Was this answer helpful?
Antonello
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Jan 04, 2020
McKinsey | NASA | top 10 FT MBA professor for consulting interviews | 6+ years of coaching

Hi,
the process will be the same, expectations will differ: you will have to show advanced top-down communication, problem-solving, and prioritization skills.

Best,
Antonello

Was this answer helpful?
Luca
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Jan 04, 2020
BCG |NASA | SDA Bocconi & Cattolica partner | GMAT expert 780/800 score | 200+ students coached

Hello there,

The format of the interview is pretty much the same. There are just 2 points that you have to keep in mind:

  1. McKinsey often use Interviewer Led cases
  2. Fit part will have a key role and will take more time, build a strong story to motivate your change and your willingness to join McK

Hope it helps,
Luca

Was this answer helpful?
Sidi gave the best answer

Sidi

McKinsey Senior EM & BCG Consultant | Interviewer at McK & BCG for 7 years | Coached 350+ candidates secure MBB offers
429
Meetings
5,842
Q&A Upvotes
78
Awards
5.0
134 Reviews