Got rejected for an internship. Should (can) I apply full-time?

Question

I got rejected from screening at an MBB firm, Middle East office, although I applied through a school application queue. The application was for an internship. I was surprised that I got rejected instantly from screening as one of the recruiters had reached out to me 2 months ago and said I should apply.

I could only conjecture what got me rejected. This is what's on my mind:

Grades. My undergraduate GPA isn't the best. Further, my MSc is still in its very first stages. I'm doing well, but I still don't have an actual grade report.
No referral. I thought that applying through the school application queue would be better than a referral (which I had secured), but in hindsight that was a mistake.
Global economy isn't exactly the best, and this firm may have overhired last year.

I have a plan. Firstly, I'll try to get a job elsewhere for now (currently interviewing for IB and big4 company). After I obtain my full grades, including thesis grade some time in August/September, I will reapply full-time in October-December. If I had got the internship, I would've started FT in January anyway, according to the recruiter. I'm also thinking that, by the time, analyst 2 cohort will have turned over so there might be vacant places. I will also use my referral this time around.

I'm just curious, given that I was already rejected, would I be allowed to apply again this year? Is it worth it to apply again or is going to be another rejection?

Answer 1

Hi there,

First of all, I am sorry to hear about the rejection!

I think this is an interesting question that may be relevant for many people. I would be happy to share my thoughts on it:

First of all, unfortunately, I fear that you will not be able to interview again this year. The ban period in strategy consulting lasts for 12-18 months after you were rejected at any point in the application process, independent of the region, country, office, or position for which you applied.
Moreover, I would advise you not to worry anymore about what you have or have not done. You cannot do anything about your grades anymore, and personally, I would also consider applying through the university application queue to be somewhat as strong as with a referral. Still, I would highly advise you to reach out to a coach the next time you apply to ensure that you submit the strongest possible application.
Lastly, I would highly advise you to review where your motivation comes from. If you are willing to work in investment banking or at a Big 4 company yet do not consider any other strategy consulting companies, this is something that would seem questionable.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to address your specific situation, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Answer 2

Hi there,

Sorry to hear about the rejection. In terms of your question:

Q: I'm just curious, given that I was already rejected, would I be allowed to apply again this year? Is it worth it to apply again or is going to be another rejection?

In some cases internships and full-time are separate channels. The best strategy would be to find a referral, disclose the previous rejection and ask to check if the application is possible for full-time with your target firm (finding a referral would be a good strategy in any case as you mentioned).

Additionally, you talked about an MBB. So worst case, you should be able to apply to the other two MBB and Tier 2.

You can find more on referrals below:

▶ How to Get a Consulting Interview Invitation

▶ The Exact Steps to Get a Referral

Good luck!

Francesco

Answer 3

Hi there,

You are right on points 1-3.

But remember, there are 2 ways to fix a problem. 1) Address the problem (points 1-3). 2) Find other “enhancers” (resume, extracirriculars, etc.)

Also remember how big of a deal this is and, how if you had invested in a coach they could have told you all of this (thereby drastically increasing the chances you get the interview). Invest in one next time.

Unfortunately it is unlikely you can reapply in Oct-Dec. You will have to wait 1 year. That said, get networking during that time period. From there, you can test the waters and see what they specifically say.

Answer 4

I second Francesco's answer, which I find spot-on

1) Let some months pass, then get referral and try

→ Channels are bit parallel in some Geos, so it is not ensured that you will not be able to get through for FT

2) Start preparing heavily and then apply across the board. People forget it is (in general) a bit easier to get to MBB from Tier-2 than from outside (highly geo / time dependent but true in my experience)

Hope this helps

Answer 5

Hi there,

Most offices have a roughly one-year freeze policy after they reject you. Meaning that they don't consider your application unless you can demonstrate that you've made significant progress within the timeline.

On the other hand, most firms also don't do an excellent job of keeping track of which applicants applied when and I've heard of multiple cases of applicants re-applying with a different email address and not being discovered.

My suggestion would be to apply anyway. You have nothing to lose. Worst case scenario, they reject you because one year hasn't officially passed. Aside from this, I would suggest that you apply widely to other firms to diversify your risk. Here's an article that might help in terms of how to network effectively through coffee chats and obtain referrals:

How to network and get referrals

Best,
Cristian