About me: I am preparing for final round of interview for a generalist consulting role at a McKinsey office in the US. I have 11 years of progressive experience in F500 CPG companies and hold a PhD and a MBA (both from non-target schools).
Situation: When the recruiter interviewed me initially, I was told that given my experience, they may consider me for a EM role. Fast forward several weeks, I cleared the round zero telephonic case interview and the Solve assessment, and was invited for the final round. When I asked for what specific role, I was told that interview is for the Associate role but I am also being considered for an EM role. When I asked would it be a different set of interviews for the EM role, the recruiter said they would get more clarity soon. This was last week and I hope to hear back from them in a week or so. Meanwhile, I am doing my own due diligence.
Question:
(1) Is it a common practice - interviewing a candidate for both roles and making an offer decision and the employment level decision based on the interview performance?
(2) What is the difference in interviews for a EM role vs Associate role? Are the EM cases tougher? or separate PEI expectations?
(3) Is it even possible to get an offer directly for an EM role coming from a non-consulting background?