Australia student looking to apply for undergraduate entry level roles in the US

Question

Hi all,

I am currently an Australian student who will be on exchange to UT Austin for the Fall Semester this year (August - December 2018) and I will be graduating at the end of November 2019.

I understand that the recruitment period for undergraduate entry level consultants for MBB and other firms being around September. I would love to take advantage of my time here and would like to participate in this recruiting season however because I am an Australian citizen and I graduate at the end of 2019 so I am uncertain as to whether these firms would even consider my application. I am very flexible and would love to work in any American office however I am aiming to apply for the MBB.

Can someone please advise me as to:

What the recruiting process is like for the MBB in the US? (e.g. how many stages/interviews/tests)
Prospects of success for a student from another country (i.e. Australia) versus a domestic student from the US?
If a student is successful, whether they allow the candidate to defer their offer a year to start of 2020 for the September 2018 recruiting season?

Thank you very much for any responses!

Answer 1

Hi,

Can answer based on my experience with MBA recruiting in US (however many things will be applicable to your case):

You can find this information on the official websites. The process is roughly the same across the countries. You can also talk to the elder students or the career development department to check if the process is different at your University
Chances are equal to other students at your University if there is no language barrier or visa issues. MBB in the US are ready to sponsor the visa. However, you should have an official 1 year OPT training with F1 visa after school (since it takes a year to get an H1B visa). With OPT you can start working immediately after school. Alternatively, you should have a green card.
They defer the offer in the rare cases. Chances are much higher if you do an internship.

Best!

Answer 2

Hi,

The MBB process varies. A typical process may be CV Screen, Phone Screen, Test, 2x Rd1 interviews, 3x Rd 2 interviews.
Your chances as a candidate will come down to your Australian University and the target state of UT Austin - I am not sure on this university. Obviously then it comes down to your grades, leadership, work exp etc. Also, your ability to network. There could be potential issus too as you are not a US Citizen and would need to discuss this with HR - I dont belive it could pose a block for your hiring though.
Generally, MBB are good with deferring an offer if you get it, so no worries there.
A good option could be to aim for MBB in Australia, then request an office transfer or secondment after a few years to the US.
A final point- As you have said you dont mind where in the US, go to an easier office (stay awy from NYC, SF, Chicago etc).

Good Luck Mate!