Receiving rejections and trying to figure out what to work on

Question

Recently applied to MBB and several tier 2s, and genuinely to my surprise, I didn't even get an invite. Ego is a tad bruised, but that's life and it's time to reset and look at what to change.

I have a feeling it was my resume, and thankfully that is easy to address. I'm more concerned that it may be my credentials, so please PrepLounge, feel free to rip my background apart and look for the issues.

Education:

My thoughts here is I'm from non-target schools, and I wasn't a stand out while there b/c of my grades. However, I had some pretty awesome achievements and projects while at both. Reality is being in the classroom vs actually doing what I had felt was meaningful work led me to put less effort into the studying. I can see both ways this can be seen as a negative or positive. Personally, I value the work more than the classroom, and that a keypoint I consider when interviewing or reviewing candidates now within my company.

PhD - Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (2020; Florida State University; 3.72)
- 11 publications between primary and co-authors
- Multiple award winner during my time for the tech I developed and for professional accolades
- Led HBCU program with Lockheed Martin to complete mechanical testing for the Orion Space Capsule
- Worked with NASA and multiple Fortune 500s for my dissertation work
Masters - Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering (2018; Florida State University; 3.72; In-Flight)
BS - Composite Materials Engineering (2015; Winona State University, 3.38)
- Independent Research project (This university's equivalent of honor's thesis for that department)

Professional:

This is where I think I truly shine because I'm in my element.

Most recent employer I rapidly grew starting from Engineer 1 to Program Leader in a little over 2 years. While here I've created fundamental tool sets for strategy development including supplier selection for aerospace and created a common currency model for program KPPs to automate engineering trade study decisions to maximize profit potential. Also, I worked on patents and established operations standards.
Employer before that was a lab at my graduate school where I worked on a NASA program for next generation textile. Some of my work had an article within about it in Popular Mechanics. Also, led a group of undergraduates for an HBCU program where I taught them about composite material testing. This program main mission was to test for Lockheed Martin Orion Space Capsule mid-deck to verify that the parts were manufactured correctly as this was a safety critical part of the emergency abort system.
In 2021, I started a real estate company and in 1 year I scaled it to 9 units and stablized it to a 14.4% cap and 10% CoC.
2015-2018 I taught 2 different classes at FSU including Senior Design in Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
2013 -2015 I was an R&D intern at a Fortune 500 and helped develop the material used for first certifed thermoplastic primary aircraft structure

Awards, Volunteering, and Leadership:

Several national awards from industry specific professional organizations
Ran 2 seperate government funded (one via NSF and the other AFRL) Research Experiences for Undergraduates
Elected president, VP, or Chair of several professional committees throughout my early career (I have recently resigned from my last one to focus on my current job as it's far more demanding)

Answer 1

Hi there,

Sorry to hear!

I think the core of the issue is right in the beginning:

“My thoughts here is I'm from non-target schools, and I wasn't a stand out while there b/c of my grades.”

Adding that to the current hiring slowdown with much fewer invites for interviews being sent out (even to people from target schools), I think this could explain the rejections.

I'd try to network extensively for the next recruiting period (hopefully a better market) and score some referrals before re-applications.

All the best,

Florian

Answer 2

Hi Yourri-Samuel,

First of all, I am sorry to hear about the rejections!

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

First of all, even if nobody can seriously answer why you were rejected, I could imagine that studying at non-target universities could be a major factor in your rejections.
Moreover, as the most experienced coach in terms of consulting, interviewing and coaching experience, I'd be more than happy to help you identify and work on the most likely reasons for your recent rejections.

You can find more on this topic here: How to deal with a rejection from a consulting company.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on your specific situation, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Answer 3

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