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Location selection for MBB application

Bain & Company location officelocation
New answer on Mar 31, 2022
5 Answers
1.7 k Views
Anonymous A asked on Mar 29, 2022

Hello, community! 

I would really appreciate your help with some questions! 

I am about to apply to MBB from abroad. And doing my research to choose the location specifically for the Bain application now. I consider only English-speaking locations. And I see that I can apply for Amsterdam, Dubai, as well as Nordic offices. Although all the locations are English-speaking I doubt how to prioritize these locations? whether the chances to get in for the foreigner are the same across all locations?

I am wondering if anyone could share tips or information to consider in order to make a proper choice? 

Thank you!

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Andi
Expert
updated an answer on Mar 29, 2022
BCG 1st & Final Round interviewer | Personalized prep with >95% success rate | 7yrs coaching | #1 for Experienced Hires

Hi there, 

In fact, within MBB, all of these 3 locations are very well-known to be accommodating foreigners / non-native speakers. From my experience, success chances from that standpoint will be quite comparable across the offices. Also, business dynamics at the moment are quite favorable across the board (and attrition rates high), hence it's a good time for recruiting in all 3 - probably worth pointing out though that it would be much easier via campus recruiting route. Going back to your question - wouldn't worry too much about optimizing for odds among the 3.

With that in mind, the real question is, which location do you actually want to be in? Which culture can you most resonate with, where do you want to live most? The will be quite significant regional differences you should factor in. I'd prioritize applications according to where your network is strongest + based on the factors you care most about - throwing out some thought starters (not exhaustive) below..

  • Office culture & size (Nordics smaller, AMS med, Dubai large)
  • Comp (Dubai by a wide margin better than the other 2)
  • Work/life balance (AMS typically best, Nordics good, UAE a bit tougher)
  • General culture in the country
  • Cost of living
  • Focus industries
  • Proximity to family, friends
  • Climate
  • etc etc

Would really recommend you to get clarity on what are the most critical 2-3 factors to YOU and prioritize accordingly.

Feel free to PM, if you'd like to learn more about the regional differences / speak to someone from my network. Happy to help. I have worked with BCG in UAE for quite a while and also have decent network in both AMS, Nordic offices through BCG as well as my MBA cohort.

Regards, Andi

(edited)

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Ian
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Mar 30, 2022
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate

Hi there,

You have 2 choices:

1) Apply where you want to work

2) Apply where you have the best odds

Careful applying to places where you'll be unhappy - the job is hard enough, let alone when you're away from friends/family and in a country/city you don't like!

In regards to applying where you have the best odds, you need to consider:

1) Demand vs. Supply - “general” odds

2) Your match - your specific odds

Apply where there is a lower ratio of applicants to roles ("unpopular" offices which are hiring) AND where you match.

In terms of supply vs. demand…this changes! You need to research/network, and, honestly, it's pretty easy to get wrong/imperfect information and never really know.

Ultimately, my strongest advice is to apply where you match. That means, apply where you have working rights/citizenship, past work experience, past educational experience, linguistic match, and/or have networked effectively.

Good luck!

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Florian
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Mar 31, 2022
Highest-rated McKinsey coach (ratings, offers, sessions) | 500+ offers | Author of The 1% & Consulting Career Secrets

Hi there,

Depends on your preferences

  • Work life balance: Nordics > Amsterdam > Dubai
  • Salary: Dubai (tax-free) > Nordics > Amsterdam
  • Cost of living: Dubai (if you want to live properly) > Nordics > Amsterdam
  • Exit ops: similar on a global scale, of course better in the region you have been working
  • Lifestyle: purely depends on your preferences (AMS and Nordics are pretty similar)
  • Chances: Middle East is hiring like crazy at the moment (for McKinsey)

Cheers,
Florian

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Cristian
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Mar 29, 2022
#1 rated MBB & McKinsey Coach

Hi there, 

While the official party line is that the standards in the recruitment process are the same everywhere, the reality is that some offices are more competitive than others. 

So if the office location makes little difference to you and you're rather interested in getting into the industry / a specific firm, I'd prioritise offices that are least popular in terms of number of applications. 

The second thing I'd look at is whether you can claim a connection to that location or a reason for being there. I know from a hiring Partner in McK that for him it's crucial that people want to be in that market long term because he is interested in growing them and not having them as tourists for 2-3 before transitioning to another office. 

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Udayan
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Mar 29, 2022
Top rated Case & PEI coach/Multiple real offers/McKinsey EM in New York /6 years McKinsey recruiting experience

Are you applying as part of campus recruiting or just submitting your application online? If you genuinely want to get in this will require a lot of networking etc if you are not part of a target school where these offices recruit from. You cannot get into MBB by just applying and hoping for the best, the competition is way too high for that to work. I know this is not the answer to your question, but I hope you think about this before clicking the apply button.

 

Udayan

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