Hi!

Agree with everyone ese.

One additional thing that (from my experience) usually works very well, especially with Bain, is if you have another offer at another consulting firm at the higher level (Consultant). If this is the case, in my experience they are very open to shift.

Cheers, Sidi

Hi,

I would concur with my colleague to clarify pre-interview.

Also, there may be avenues for clarifying during "Experience Bain" webinars if there is one before your interviews.

In the meantime, good luck with your prep!

Hi!

The doctors I have seen join Bain with your level of experience have all come in at the Consultant level. Just clarify now with the recruiting team that you want to interview for the Consultant position.

Doing so after after receiving an offer or at the interview will be very awkward and is not advisable!

Hi there,

an Associate Consultant role with 5 years of experience seems a bit strange, even if your work experience is unrelated to consulting. I agree with the other comments, it makes sense to clarify this upfront. I would try at least to agree a fast-track where after 6 months you are promoted to Consultant.

Best,

Francesco

Ask HR - much better to clarify this upfront. For reference, in McKinsey all doctors joined as Associates - which equates to consultant at BCG

Hello!

With my knowledge about Bain you would need to come in as Consultant, so better cross-check with your recruiter.

For reference, this is the career path at Bain:

• Associate consultant
• Senior associate consultant
• Consultant
• Case team leader
• Manager
• Principal
• Partner
• Director

Hope it helps!

Cheers,

Clara

Hello,

An associate with 5 years of experience sounds quite weird.
One explanation could be that they will offer you a fast track: you will spend 6 months as associate to get used to the new world (since you have not done something similar in the past), with an agreement that you will be promoted as consultant after that period.
I would suggest to clarify your expectations with HR before the interviews, but without closing any door. Once that you start your interviews and that you will get invitation to the subsequent rounds, your negotiation power is stronger.

Best,
Luca

Hi,

Bain tends to downgrade the role, especially in bad economy. I recommend clarifying now. I've seen the situations when people started clarifying after getting the offer and ended up with an additional interview round (not successful as you can guess)

Best

I agree with the other experts that you should clarify the level before you interview.

I have seen this happen before though at Bain. The argument would be that whilst you have five years of working expereince, its unlikely to have alowed you to build out all of the competencies required at the Consultant level.

Consultants are already expected to lead workstreams and should be proficient in using the consulting toolkit and leading/ teaching junior consultants. Whilst starting at a level below where you believe you should be may be a short-term setback, in the long-run, it does set you up for success and allows you to build core skills.

My advice would be to focus more on where you can be in 3-5 years rather than in 1-2 years.

Kind Regards,

Adam

Hi,
I recommend to openly discuss it with recruiters during the process. After the offer, it will be difficult to change

Best,
Antonello