Requirement of prior consulting experience for applying at MBB

Question

Hello there,

I'm considering applying for MBB in Switzerland, but I'm somewhat hesitant as I don't have any prior consulting experience. I have in total 1.3 years of non-consulting corporate Forbes 500 (one of the top companies in Switzerland with excellent reference letter). Is it worth already applying for MBB or is it worth waiting until I have secured an internship in a lower tier consulting company? I don't want to get unnecessarily blacklisted..

Thank you for your help.

Best regards,
Jérôme

Answer 1

Hi,

Prior consulting experience is not required. Most of the MBB consultants don't have the prior consulting experience. In your situation you need to demonstrate a set of things:

Good education and grades
Well-known company and achievements there
Extra-curricular achievements

Best

Answer 2

Hi!

Consulting experience is not explicitly required. What you need to showcase is experience in strategic and analytical context in fast paced and demanding environments. This you can gain in many different settings outside of consulting - including industry of course.

Cheers, Sidi

Answer 3

This is no issue at all - many of us were in this case. I joined BCG after ~15 total years in industry for example

MBB is looking for potential, and assumes they will have to train you. Indeed, they even assume they will have to untrain you from your current practices, and retrain you to theirs.

Assuming you aren't about to graduate from a target school, you first need to focus on networking, getting ready for a possible case interview, and then actually apply. Once you do get an interview, you will be treated the same as other more traditional candidates.

Answer 4

Hi A,

Prior consulting experience is not mandatory for getting a job at MBB.

They want you to be open-minded, have potential, and relevant to consulting characteristics. Once you're already invited to the interview it doesn't matter whether you have experience or not. Just try your best to convince them you are the one they want to see in their team.

Best,

André

Answer 5

Hi Jerome,

Your strategy should be to network with current consultants/ recruiters to get a referral. This will guarantee that you are not blacklisted.

However overall your background seem to match their entry requirements.

But you may also target Tier-2 firms to get interview experience.

Good luck!

Answer 6

Typically, in depth screening is completed by the ACs / Consultants at the office that you are looking to apply to on... (read entire answer)

Typically, in depth screening is completed by the ACs / Consultants at the office that you are looking to apply to once you have made it past the initial filters. HR will assist... (read entire answer)

Answer 7

Let me take a crack at this (in English) since no-one has addressed this. Top consultancies typically want the best... (read entire answer)

Let me take a crack at this (in English) since no-one has addressed this. Top consultancies typically want the best people regardless of their background. Yes, some roles are... (read entire answer)

Answer 8

This is a great, great question... that I suspect no-one can systematically answer :) Unless you have spent significa... (read entire answer)

This is a great, great question... that I suspect no-one can systematically answer :) Unless you have spent significant time working for or with all three, how can you truly com... (read entire answer)