Hi Flo,

As a general rule, consulting firms apply the so called ‘reject re-apply rule’. It is not unusual that the interviewers believed that the candidate was capable, smart, a good fit and thus has a great potential, but there were also things that were not good enough (e.g. bad business sense, bad performance at the online test). ‘Reject re-apply’ means that they won’t make you an offer right now, but they believe the candidate has a lot of potential and, with the right preparation and experience over the course of ~1.5/2 years, they will be happy to consider your application again (even if it might feel bad now, it is a positive sign).

My recommendation is to apply to the other consulting firms if you haven’t done it already (e.g. McKinsey, Bain, AT Kearney,...) and if you do not land an offer in consulting now well that is not a big deal; you can get some professional experience in the industry as well and just apply again after 1.5-2 years (I know many successful candidates who have done that). In that case, it would be important to show a professional growth in the meantime.

I hope this helps, good luck!

Jacopo