JOB APPLICATION

Question

I wanna work at a consulting firm, my specialization would marketing, sales and growth, but i have no work ex, what should i do, gain some work ex and then apply at a consulting firm or should i apply directly?

Also, currently i am pursuing my masters in the USA and i'm learning all required tools like excel, power point,word, tableau, alteryx

Answer 1

Hi Guneet,

Q: What should I do, gain some work ex and then apply at a consulting firm or should I apply directly?

Consulting firms do hire students and new graduates, so you can apply now to start with. If it doesn’t work out, you can work for a few years and apply again (the ban after an application that is not successful is usually 12-18 months).

Given that you don’t have any work experience, to increase your chances, I would recommend looking for a referral. If you can secure an internship before the application and add it to your resume, it would also help a lot.

You can find some tips for what is needed to maximize the chances of being invited below:

▶ How to Get a Consulting Interview Invitation

Good luck!

Francesco

Answer 2

Hi Guneet,

With no work experience, it might prove difficult to move past the resume screening stage.

All consulting firms are usually looking for the following:

Strong academic performance (prestige and brand program and a target uni ideally, top GPA,…)
Relevant work experience (several strategic, financial - internships or ft positions)
Extracurricular activities and leadership experience
Time spent abroad

Generally, the higher you aim (e.g., MBB), the more of the boxes you need to tick (several times, i.e. several strong internships with F500 companies for instance or a combination or F500 and smaller consulting firms).

However, even for smaller consulting firms, you would need to demonstrate some relevant work experience.

On the other hand, you don't need to be proficient in any of the tools you mentioned.

What is evaluated during the screening is your potential as a consultant (based on the things I mentioned earlier) and during the interviews you are tested on things like problem-solving, analytics, storytelling, etc.

All the best,

Florian

Answer 3

Hi there,

I would probably finish the masters first and then apply from there.

In terms of the tools, it's great that you are learning these relevant tools, but do note that knowing those honestly have zero impact on your ability to either gain an interview invite OR pass the interview and land an offer.

Focus on creating a strong application and improving your casing.

All the best!

Answer 4

Always apply directly. It NEVER hurts you.

Consulting firms prefer smart fresh graduates.

Then smart people with relevant experience.

Then smart people with less relevant experience.

So if you are able to join earlier is better than later.

Answer 5

Hi Guneet,

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your situation:

First of all, I would highly advise you to gain some relevant work experience before applying directly to consulting firms.
Moreover, I wonder how you can have a focus on marketing, sales, and growth, if you do not have any work experience? Is this coming from your educational background?

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen