I am female experienced engineer in energy industry and hold and MBA.
I have been rejected by BCG MEA at final round (consultant role) and I am concerned that I may not be able to apply again given my age (37) and 14 years experience in a specific industry (Energy).
What do you think? Need some help here as I am quite discouraged right now.
Thank you
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Hi there,
Sorry to hear that. I believe you can apply again also at BCG, but possibly for more senior positions – so may be in 2+ years. You may verify with them how long is the ban in your specific case. I helped candidates who were 40+ to join MBB so that’s definitely possible also later on.
In the meantime, you have additional options if you want to work in consulting:
The best thing would be to have a good referral strategy, you can find more on that here:
https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/hey-everyonehope-all-is-well-3176
Even if your final goal is BCG, it will be easier to do a transition there if you land a consulting offer in the meantime.
Best,
Francesco
Hi there,
I'm very sorry to hear this :/ That said, remember, if you made it to the final round you absolutely have what it takes!
If they didn't think you were good, they would not have invited you to the 2nd round - I promise. If you can make it past the 1st, you can definitely make it past the 2nd...try again!
In regards to age, let me ask you something: Is 38 different to 37? Not at all!
Now, if your question is: Is MBB right for me given my current career goals, aims, ambitions, and stage in life? Well, different question. But, if you want to know if you can apply again in 1 year and succeed in getting the role, 150% you can!
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thanks a lot for your encouragements !
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Hello!
Sorry to hear that, understand it hurts when you put that much effort.
Honestly, I don´t think that the window here closes for you. You can always join later in a more tenured position, so don´t consider it lost.
Furthermore, what about other firms?
Hope it helps!
Cheers,
Clara
Sorry to hear that! But rejection is part of the game and pretty much everyone faces this. So, I hope you are dealing with this well. Every rejection only gets you closer to where you should really be.
Try again please. But this decision is less so about age and more about whether MBB/Consulting is the right career option for you. Is it the right fit with your values, aspiratons and risk apetitie? If yes, then make a plan, keep practicing, be patient & positive. It will happen.
All the best.
Thank you so much, very nice from you
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Hi there,
Sorry to hear that!
Hope you are dealing well with that. Try to consider rejection as a part of the game. Because rejection can only help you to be closer to where you should really be.
If you’re going to apply again, It’s better to focus on the positive side: your improvement, achievements, relevant experience that you gained.
Demonstrate that you are a good fit for the company.
Hope it was helpful,
GB
Sorry to hear it didn't quite work out this time round. As long as you are still interested in joining, there should be nothing stopping you from reapplying after the cooling period of 12-18 months. It's not common but I have seen a few people join MBB in their 40s and so I think it comes down more to personal appetite.
thanks for reply, are those people joining at consultant level or another type of role?
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Yes! Internally, I think it's more of a mental barrier; your senior colleagues being younger than you, work-life balance, willingness to un-learn certain things that will help you learn the consultant toolkit, etc.
Thank you very much for your reply, yes I will start working at Alix Partners shortly. I had in mind it was difficult to transition from Alix to BCG.
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Regarding your response ''possibly for more senior position'' could you please elaborate on that, i.e. why do you think senior would be more relevant than just reapplying next year? thanks a lot !! thank you so much
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Hi Yasmine, you can apply again in one year for the same position if you have a ban of 12 months - you should verify with HR if that’s the case as the standard ban is up to 24. You have to see though if it makes sense to apply again for the same position and start again as consultant after the ban given the opportunity cost of your current career path. For some people it doesn’t make sense and they prefer to wait for possible openings for expert / more senior roles later on. Hope this helps