I had an interview with McKinsey yesterday, and am waiting for the call to know what's next. There seems to be only one first-round interview in several offices this year. I am sharing my experience here as there is less direct information on the APD recruiting experience out there.
The fit part of the interview went over 30 minutes. I enjoyed the fit interview - it was a very casual but focused conversation.
The case interview was very fast-paced with a lot of interruptions from the interviewer. The prompt was very very long as I already expected. I don't think I had a great structure (wasn't allowed time to make a detailed structure - I am a bit slower than average here). I was able to get the right insights from the exhibits (from what I recall) and was able to do math without any issues (my APD is in math/physics). We didn't have time to conclude the case. The interviewer told me that the math is right and my process to compute the metric asked is right, and zoomed off to the next interview.
My thoughts:
1. After several months of diligent preparation including interviewer-led casing, I know that I couldn't have prepared any more than what I had done while doing a very intense day job. So, I am at peace ✌️.
2. This is by far the most stressful professional situation I have been in, and I thought nothing other than my research could stress me out.
3. I know McKinsey and other firms have training programs for APDs who join them. So, I know that I am not expected to be perfect, and all they are testing is my thinking and problem-solving method. As an educator myself, I would really like to see the grading metrics and the rubrics too.
4. I am sending love ❤️ and hugs 🤗 to everyone who is going through the recruitment cycle now.
