McKinsey Virtual Academy Programme

Hi there,

I appreciate you laying it all out here, and we are here to support, but you also need to change your attitude! Remember, you're applying to one of the most competitive companies in the world!

1. Most people applying to most companies get "ignored". Don't take this so personally! The people have busy jobs/lives!
2. "Pretty good" academic records and internship and a no-name school doesn't make you anything close to a slam-dunk for an interview!
3. You can't make an assumption like "Language is likely the reason", without evidence, and then insult the virtual event process as being biased against language. You have no evidence this is the reason...it's a strawman argument and shows poor logic/critical thinking ability i.e. bad consulting!

Now that we've hopefully shifted your mindset a bit into positivity, can-do attitude, no judgement of others, and not viewing yourself as the centre of the world, let's help you :)

1) You need to network - reach out to people. Talk to them. Don't ask for a referral, but just get to know them, be interested in them, devleop a connection, and show yourself as someone they might want to work with. Leverage a chat to then chat with someone else (in another office, industry, or of a similar background to you). Eventually, you'll be offered a referral and/or be able to reference them in your cover letter.

2) Fix your CV/Resume + Cover Letter - It's already clear it's not good enough. For whatever reason, no matter what you think. Send it through to me and I can tell you if there are some quick fixes (formatting, wording, etc.) OR if you need more experience

3) Be Smarter - Yes, obviously apply to offices where you speak the local language and have some sort of ties (have lived there, worked there, or have a citizenship there)

4) Be more determined - You need to speak to a lot more people and a apply to a lot more places. You will get rejected. A lot. Everyone does (I did). Don't give up. It's a numbers game, so make the numbers big.

Hi there,

It is unfortunate that you have to keep going through the rejection process however, I would recommend to slightly change your approach:

• Focus on your region - Try to get into consulting in your own region and after 1-2 years you could apply for international transfers - It is tough to get into consulting (even for an event) for a country that does business in the local language and in which you are so fluent.
• Life goes beyond MBB - have your tried networking and applying for tier-2? Yes, MBB is the target for most people, but again, RB/OW/Kearny/S&/etc are excellent consulting companies and you might have higher chances of getting invited for their interviews or student programs.

Keep it up! and if you need any CV help, feel free to reach out.

Best

Khaled

Let's break down who are the target audience of this programme. Based on the event page (https://www.mckinsey.com/careers/virtual-academy), if we take a closer look at the footer there is a note stating "The Virtual Academy is just one of our many programs aimed at helping individuals get to know McKinsey better."

The page also contains three key information:

• further develop your problem-solving and analytical skills
• learn about digital topics or design thinking
• leverage your strengths, learn how to experience meaning, improve your resilience and build authentic confidence

Hence from my inference, this program is aimed at applicants who need help to develop themselves in the area of knowledge and skills (going from good to great).

Assuming you already have the relevant skillsets and experiences, the program would not be a right fit for you.

(edited)

Hi,

It's unclear without seeing your resume. Feel free to send it to me.

I would not overthink the Virtual Academy reject since:

1. There is a limited number of places
2. They are trying to prioritize certain groups (female, experienced hires, etc)
3. It's unclear whether you had a right office / background match

Best

Hello!

Feel free to PM me the CV.

Any idea of the number of attendees invited? This would be a key piece of info we are missing here.

Hope it helps!

Cheers,

Clara

I also got rejected and I am doing a PhD at Oxbridge... I guess the competition was fierce.. Don´t give up! :D

Dear A,

Thank you for explaining your situation so broadly. But I would recommend you to send me your CV that I can provide you more substantial feedback.

Feel free to reach out,

Best,

André

I was selected to this programme. We are just 158 participants and were told there were thousands of candidates. It seems they chose a few (or even just one) by office because there is a stage in which we get a mentor from the office we chose. My CV isn't that great, but I'm a top 3% student in my college and in my country it is the only engineering college from which McKinsey recruits (and the programme is for non business students).