Got Rejected from Mckinsey and Bain !

Question

Hi,

I am Chartered Accountant, having an experience of around 8 years from Deloitte and EY. I got an invitation from Mckisey of game which I failed and got an rejection email from Mckinsey the very next day that I would able to apply again after 12-18 months then in January 2023 I got an invitation from Bain & Company Middle East for Sova Assessment, I did that assessment and today I got an rejection email from Bain but they did not mention the reason of rejection neither the advice me to reapply after 12-18 months so I am confused here. What I did wrong in my both applications. I don't understand the reason of rejections.

Do I need to work on my resume or cover letter or do I have not a sufficient knowledge which they are looking for? before taking an interview how I do just got rejection based on some assessments?

Looking forward for the answers!

Answer 1

Hello!

Your CV and CL are most probably good, having in mind that they invited you to the first round of tests.

The reasons why you were rejected might be the following (I will focus on the McKinsey game because this is the one I am familiar with):

1. Did you practice beforehand? I know that both McKinsey and Bain say that no preparation is needed for these tests, but the truth is that you need to familiarize yourself with each one of them before you go for the actual one.

2. Did you manage your time as you should? One of the most important skills that are being tested through these assessments is time management. Did you manage to finish all 3 parts of the game? How did you allocate your time? This is something that comes with practice, and if it was your first time seeing this assessment it could be a problem.

3. Did you have in mind that your skills were being tested or did you consider it a game? Because of its nature, many candidates are often confused and face this test as something that will show off their true personality, when in reality it is not like that. Your skills are being tested including time management, critical thinking, adaptability, situational awareness, etc.

Having said that, you'll be happy to hear that for BCG Middle East you only need to do an online case with a chatbot, which if you've been practicing cases, it's easier to understand and solve.

Hope this helped! Have a nice day!

Answer 2

Hi there,

sorry to hear about the outcome. The reason was probably not your CV or cover letter since they got you into the round of online assessment. So presumably your scores there were not sufficient enough and got you filtered out of the funnel.

However, if you intend to reapply in 12-18 months, you will have to showcase relevant advancements on your CV between now and then in order to be considered again for interviews.

Usually these online tests don't have upside for candidates, only downside. If you do extremely well, you don't get brownie points in the following interviews but if you don't do well, your recruiting process ends there.

To maximize chances of success, you need to familiarize with and practice all components of the recruiting process

Answer 3

Hi there,

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

It sounds like you have been rejected from both McKinsey and Bain due to your performance in the pre-interview assessments.
If you want to reapply to McKinsey or Bain, you should focus on making sure that your resume and cover letter show significant progress in your career. Additionally, it may be helpful to work with a coach to prepare for the pre-interview assessments as it will give you an opportunity to practice and improve your skills.

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 4

Hi there,

This is why people get coaches!

Would you rather save a few hundred $ and not get the offer or spend a few hundred and dramatically increase your odds? Especially when you get "1 shot".

Here are the things that could have gone wrong (we can't tell you exactly what it is unless we dive deeper…and it could be a combo):

Not a strong enough profile overall
Not a good/strong resume
Inadequate networking/referral
Poor performance on the test

Answer 5

Hi there,

Sorry to hear about the rejections.

Based on your description, my hypothesis is that the results on the tests you took weren't great.

There's also a possibility that the results were decent, but when they judged your game results with the rest of your application (CV, cover letter, referral) they were discouraged about the rest.

My recommendation would be to work on all of these, especially since you know how the time for it (i.e., within the next 12 months or so). Also, aim to apply to more firms than just these two.

Feel free to reach out if you want to build a proper application strategy and a great application pack.

Best,

Cristian

Answer 6

Hi there,

Very sorry to hear!

At the moment, it is a very difficult recruiting environment across the globe and for all firms. Many have stopped or frozen hiring altogether. This might have played a part.

There are other factors as well that we cannot see from the outside:

Strength or your resume (cover letter carries no weight for McK and little for Bain)
Performance in the assessments (product and process score for McKinsey, product score for Bain)

My advice would be to stay close to the firms, and network with consultants to score a referral for when it is time to re-apply.

All the best,

Florian

Answer 7

Hi there,

Really sorry to hear and sorry to say that there's no way of knowing. It could be your application or/and the test, to which they invite pretty much everybody (without having seen their applications in most cases).

If you want to do better next time with the same firms or other firms, I suggest getting some coaching for submitting great applications, with or without referral. This should not be an uncertainty as it is now.

Wish I could be more helpful but at this point and with the information provided, it's not possible.

Best of luck!

Moritz

Answer 8

Hi there,

Sorry to hear about the Bain and McKinsey processes.

Usually you CV/ application will not be assessed again after the initial screening tests, and since you got invited for the initial screening it means your CV/ cover letter were good enough.

However, only the candidates who meet the min score requirements for the screening assessment will be invited for an interview, everyone else will be rejected.

I have seen many good candidates not making it through the initial screening due to lack of preparation. For next time, definitely suggest investing a good amount of time to prepare. There are some online resources you can leverage, especially now that you are well familiar with the format. For Bain Sova assessment, you can find a candidate prep area on their website here: https://sovaassessment.com/candidate-preparation-hub/our-assessments

Best,

Lilit