Hi,
If I have a partner referral from a location in the US, can I apply to a different US office and the referral still would work? Would it be better to apply to the same office?
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McKinsey Partner Referral Question
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Hi there,
A referral is just a door opener such that the recruiting team will look through your application more thoroughly. Depending on the seniority, tenure and advocacy of the person referring you, you have a better chance of getting a first round interview. The more senior the person referring you is, the better. The longer the tenure of that person with the firm is, the better.
The reason is that such voices carry more weight than referrals coming from super junior or brand new people. They typically know the HR folks better and have been involved in recruiting activities for a while so it is usually assumed that they have a good grasp of what types of candidates with which sets of qualifications the firm needs. However, any referral is ultimately better than no referral.
Ideally, you get a referral from someone from the same office (or same country) you are applying to. But again, a referral from someone within the same firm but different office or even country organization is still better than no referral.
A direct rejection after the CV screening stage can still happen - even with a referral. In that case the HR team usually provides some feedback to the person having given the referral. So you should follow up with them to better understand the rationale in case that happens.
And as always, factors such as economic conditions and headcount/budget planning of the individual firm also matter significantly in these decisions - but they are not within your control.
Best
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Hi there,
I hope you are well!
Yes, the referral should still work. Usually you are able to specify multiple offices of interest to you while applying. If this is the case, then consider including the office the partner is from.
However, since it seems that both the partner and you are in the U.S it should not impact which office you decide to apply to.
Hope this helps,
Yousef
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Hi there,
I would be happy to share my thoughts on your question:
- Yes, as long as it is the same country, referrals are usually valid. However, the referral would still be strongest if it came from someone in the same office.
You can find more on this topic here: How to succeed in the final interview round.
If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming McKinsey interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.
Best,
Hagen
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Hi there,
1) If I have a partner referral from a location in the US, can I apply to a different US office and the referral still would work?
Yes, you can be referred by someone who is based in a different office (and even in a different country).
2) Would it be better to apply to the same office?
In general, a referral works well if someone is from the same office, however, it could work even if that’s not the case.
Good luck!
Francesco
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Hi there,
Yes, it will! :-)
Use these articles to start your prep:
All the best,
Florian
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Theoretically, yes. But it's stronger if you have a referral from somebody who is part of the office you are applying for.
But at this point, I wouldn't worry about it. As in, I wouldn't spend now additional time trying to find an additional referral if you have a perfectly good one already.
Best,
Cristian
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Generally works either way. There is no statistical evidence to prove otherwise. There have been successful referrals across countries as well.
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Yes, it still works. But yes, it works better if it is for the same office.
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Yes, referrals works across several offices.
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