Career path advise

Question

Hi! I am a recent graduate with a Bachelor degree. I have gone through some case interviews lately. Although I worked hard(sometime gave some breaks)& was dedicated, I could not lend an offer from BCG(my dream company). I have questions in my mind about how to move forward and begin to my career. 1)I will have some interviews with a boutique consulting firm and two companies from Big4. On the other hand, I will also have some interviews for positions such as: Project Engineer, Management Trainee in reputable companies, venture capital analyst, investment banking analyst. 2) I may work for 1 year and go to masters next year. 3) McK, Bain and tier-2 recruitment season will start on November here. What do you recommend for me in this position?

Extra question: How do MBB and tier-2 companies see boutique consulting(since their brands are not known as MBB, tier-2,3 companies)?

Some backgroud info about me: Engineering + Business Analytics graduate with high honours from a target school in my country. Had several internships in reputable non-consulting companies.

Thanks for your answers!

Answer 1

Hey,

You clearly have a lot going on in terms of options. Well done! But dont fall into the trap of illusion of choices. Not every firm is a great fit for you and neither are you a great fit for every firm. I always advice people to focus on mutual fit more than anything else.

You can definitely cast your net wide and then figure out the best fit. Boutique experience is good but needs to be 2-3 years at least for it to be credible.

In addition have a look at this article I have recently published on "How do I know which Career is Right for me". Plenty of tips you can borrow: https://www.preplounge.com/en/how-do-i-know-which-career-is-right-for-me

Answer 2

Hi there,

First, I would let the dice land before making decisions. You may have offers from all of these companies, none of them, or some subset. By waiting to truly decide, you're going to 1) Make your future decision a lot easier and 2) Not get disappointed (by deciding you really want x before you even get it).

That said, there's no harm in applying for Mck, Bain, and other tier 2's in November, regardless of what happens with your interviews.

In terms of your Master's, decide once you're at one of these companies - see how you like the work and see how it fits into the plan!

Finally, MBB does value boutique consulting, but not 1 year's worth. You need to work there for multiple years and show real progress (promotions, large responsibilities, diverse set of projects, etc.)

Good luck with the multiple paths ahead of you!

Answer 3

Sorry about BCG but these things happen for the best. You may end up working at another company that is much better suited to your skillset and interests.

All options you have laid out are good options. It is very important to work in a role you enjoy and can make a true impact in. If you prioritize for anything else it will not be worth it as you may end up not performing well and also not enjoying a crucial part of life. You can join MBB from any of them that is not an issue. My main piece of feedback to you is if you decide to to a masters, make sure it is an MBA if you want to get in to MBB. Other programs are not feeder programs and you will have a hard time leveraging them to get in,

In terms of recruiting at MBB after boutique contuling - that is usually not a problem especially if you are recruiting from an MBA program at a target school where people come from all sorts of backgrounds.

Best,

Udayan