All questions tagged MBA Experience - Consulting Q&A - PrepLounge.com

Hi,

It's hard to say without knowing your University. But in most of the cases MBA is different in the following:

• Learning method - Mostly case method with little to no lectures
• Electives - they are totally different from BBA
• Diversity - lots of internationals
• Networking - your classmates already have 3-5 years of work experience and can contribute the discussion
• Recruiting activities - totally different

Best

Currently doing the MBA, however turned down Bain's very generous offer for financial support since I will be switiching careers post-MBA.

Disclaimer: Depends on the specific contract you have with Bain and the country.

Bain has already multiple times updated the specific model they apply to calculate your financial support. Typically the amount they offer depends on your performance (review ratings) especially within the first two years at Bain. Support consists of (1) tuition support and (2) livelihood support.

Tuition: Depending on the level of your rating (Strong contribution, frequently exceeding etc.) you can expect a wide range. I know current and former MBA Bainies who received 100% of their tuition (up to 150k), however I also know some who received 25k.

Livelihood: Also depends but you could expect an overall amount they take and divide by the length of your program in months. For a classic 24 months MBA you can expect around 1.5K EUR net in your bank account per month.

Important: If you take the money, you are locked in. Also depends on the country - you can expect 2 years. If you decide not to come back although you have taken the financial support, expect heavy surcharges (especially taxes). Also, you are only eligible to receive the support if you get promoted to Consultant (i.e. successfully passed Associate Consultant and Senior Associate Consultant level).

Best,

Denis

Hi,

I had a somewhat similar path to BCG.

I did my Global Executive MBA at IE Business School after around 15 years of experience in industry and digital consulting. I came in to BCG late last year on the expert track as a Principal (now Associate Director).

Based on your profile, it sounds like you have a pretty good shot at an expert role, either Project Leader or AD level. My honest opinion is that trying to come in as a PL in generalist track will be extremely difficult and also very hard to succeed in, but I don't know your specific skillset and strengths (or ambitions).

The INSEAD EMBA isn't required due to experience, but it will make a big difference in getting your foot in the door. It would be quite hard for an average person with 10 years of mixed experience to get an interview without it or something else quite notable.

Hope that helps.

Hi there,

Could you clarify if you're asking about the experienced hire path for obtain an interview OR during the interviews?

To obtain an interview, you can improve your odds by making sure you have a top-tier resume and have networked (ideally getting a referral)

In regards to networking tips:

a) Reach out to people in your network

b) Reach out to people once removed from your network

c) Reach out to people with a similar backgorund to you (i.e. same alma mater, same historically underrepresented demographic i.e. gender, orientation, ethnicity, etc., same career switch, etc.)

d) Tailor a message to them specifically both showing interest in them and their journey and demonstrating that you have done your research and could be a valuable hire

e) Play "tag" across calls you get so that you can work your way towards the company/office/role you want

f) Never directly ask for a referral, but "hint" at needing one (this is nuanced and important...happy to talk through wording)

In terms of experienced hire interviews

Take a look at the following prior Q&As:

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/regarding-experienced-hire-final-interviews-7681

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/industry-knowledge-required-in-interview-experienced-hire-6096

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/mckinsey-round-1-experienced-hire-8012

Hi Anonymous,

many questions here. I generally agree with Guennael and added my perspective based on my experience as founder post BCG.

Does an MBA give you all the basic business fundamentals to successfully build and scale a company from zero to 100+ employees?

An MBA is not the best path to learn how to build and scale a company. The best way to learn how to do so is to actually start your own company. Many entrepreneurs achieve success after two or three attempts, often failing in the first one (think Travis Kalanick). You learn how to become successful as entrepreneur acting as entrepreneur, not studying it.

An MBA will mainly give you three things:

• Business knowledge (in broad sense - including soft skills)
• The opportunity to "reset" your previous career and become interesting as an hire for companies that otherwise would have not found you interesting
• A network of Alumni from the program

Out of these, the most relevant for building a company is the third one (good option to raise money/sell your company in the future). However, you have to consider if it is worth to pay $100k+ and invest 1-2 years for such opportunity, versus investing the same money and time in your own business (and learn exponentially more on how to build a company).

There is also a big hidden problem with MBAs - it will increase a lot your opportunity cost to found your own company. Founders usually get $0 or very low pay for the first year or two. Out of an MBA you could easily do $100-150k. You may also have debt deriving from enrolling in the program. And you will be older, maybe with a family and kids. This makes a lot more risky/difficult to start your company then.

This doesn't mean you cannot succeed building a great company with an MBA - there are several examples of successful founders who did it. But if you want to build your own company, there are probably better ways to invest such time and money.

Is there a possibility to go into a school like INSEAD for an MBA with my computer science degree. I'm not sure because i think that i need better grades and a more recognised university instead of a university of applied sciences?

There is no much sense to do an MBA right after a bachelor degree, thus you would have to work for some years. If you get a top brand name (eg MBB) you can definitely get there.

So will i learn more with the undergraduate and master degrees St. Gallen instead of 11 months at INSEAD because i invest much more time?

You will learn more technical stuff in your bachelor+master. But as mentioned you don't do an MBA to learn technical stuff only.

The costs for swiss cizitens to study at the university of st. gallen is very low (BA + MA around 10'000$ )when you compare it with an INSEAD MBA (> 100'000$). Which way would you go? Every answer and experience is welcome.

If your final goal is to build your own company, I would go for the following options:

• If you have a solid team, tested idea, can ensure funding and are ok with the idea you will probably fail, you can consider starting your own company right after your bachelor or master. The odds will be against you (as it is always the case when you start a company) but you will learn a lot and in the long term you will more likely to succeed (and you just need to succeed once in this game).
• If you don't have all the above, an alternative good path would be to complete your bachelor (and master if needed) and to work in a top consulting firm or for a startup/top tech company for the time needed to ensure you have a proven concept, team, funding and are ok with the idea you could fail. Then move to your company. The more you wait though, the higher will be your opportunity cost, thus I would recommend not to stick to that too much.

As final remark, the place where you start your company is critical. Be sure you research in advance the best geography where to start your business, and be willing to relocate if needed (not necessarily in Silicon Valley).

Best,

Francesco

Hi Anonymous,

As for your first and third question: there are several criteria to define which is the best business school; Marco provided a good analysis here:

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/what-are-the-best-mba-programs-341#a698

MBB will usually have recruiting events in all the top 15 best programs. Generally speaking, the top business schools in the US are considered to be the following:

Harvard, Stanford. Wharton, Booth, Kellogg, Columbia, Sloan, Tuck, Hass

They are not in particular order, although the first three are usually always considered the best. You may change order or add or drop names on the basis of specific criteria, but the previous mentioned are almost always in the top 10.

As for your second question, they would also depend by the specific university, however in general terms you would need:

• 750+ GMAT
• Top GPA from previous universities
• Leadership roles
• Great extracurricular activities
• Good stories for essays
• Clear goal on what to do post MBA
• Great communication skills
• International experience
• Prize and recognition from previous activities

Hope this helps,

Francesco

Hi there,

to assess whether an MBA is the right choice in terms of your goal, I would recommend to first check the current alumni of the target MBAs you are considering on LinkedIn and see where they are working now. I would then select those MBAs with the highest number of people in your target firms. Finally, I would try to organize a call with some alumni to ask information on how they found the application process given the brand of the MBA.

Hope this helps,
Francesco

INSEAD and LBS remain my top 2, just like Harvard, Stanford and Wharton are the perennial top 3 in the US.

Hi Pedro,

if you manage to spend some time in MBB before your MBA application, this will increase the chances to be accepted in a top MBA. Your options are not mutual exclusive though, you may try 1 (apply to MBB) and if doesn’t work go for 2 (stick to SK).

In terms of timing: recruiting is slowing down globally, including in the Middle East – I would try to connect with someone in MBB in your target geographies to understand the status there and if it makes sense to apply now or to wait few months.

As a side note: an MBA is not the best path to entrepreneurship – you would learn far more saving 1-2 years and 100k-150k required for the MBA unless sponsored and investing them in a new company. Even if you fail you will learn a lot more for your following venture.

Best,

Francesco

Hi Anonymous,

generally speaking an MBA is good for three things:

1. Building a network – you will be able to easily get in touch with people who attended the same MBA in the past
2. Allow to switch career – after an MBA you will be qualified for industries not available before
3. Business knowledge – the actual classes you will take

The most useful long-term is usually the network. An MBA also gives credibility for a corporate career.

If your reasons are not included in the ones above, I would not recommend investing the time and money for an MBA.

Best,

Francesco

Hi,

Based on what I've seen at Harvard, the programs are completely different:

• MBA usually has a required curriculum (finance, marketing, accounting, etc) and elective classes
• EMBA usually has multiple programs (e.g. for entrepreneurs, for corporates, etc). They don't have the required These courses are usually standardized and are less about technical skills and more about soft skills (leadership, negotiations) but are more advanced than traditional MBA courses. There can be specific EMBA programs that cover a particular topic - e.g. venture entrepreneurship

The major difference is networking. At EMBA the people around you will be more qualified. However, you will spend less time together (that will limit your opportunities for networking)

Best

Hello,

That program seems to be good and ESCP is a good business school, but studying those topics is something far from being able to build a start up alone. I would rather read something on my own and ask for someone's help at least in the first period.

Hope it helps,
Luca

Hi,

It depends also on your academical background: if you have technical studies (e.g. engineering) every business course is appreciated.

This program is really a good one, but It can not be compared to a full-time MBA

Hi,
meanwhile, I recommend starting to read "the personal MBA", a brilliant book that covers all the business fundamentals of top MBA programs.

Hope it helps,
Antonello

Anonymous,

Your perception of MBAs is biased. Your focus on academics is narrow-minded and not strategic. Think about where the future is headed. We will have robots doing most of the technical/objective skills within the next few decades. Unless you plan on doing a PhD in a highly specialized STEM subject that very few others have mastered (Statistics/ML/AI), soft skills and problem-solving in ambiguous environments are the way of the future. This skillset (leadership, creativity, critical thinking, sound judgement) is what is taught at top MBA programs. This is the glue that holds together MBBs and will provide value for future businesses.

The MBA goes well beyond academics and into more important contexts, such as leading teams, building relationship currency, and driving impact. The importance of these soft skills is substantially greater than an individual course selections and how smart you can be. When you graduate with an MBA, it opens doors to not just MBB, but product management at top tech companies (Amazon, Google, Microsoft, facebook), investment banking, and management roles at startups. Your impact is exponentially multipled. You will have learned how to communicate with diverse people. You will stop discriminating against liberal arts majors and learn from them. You will value different perspectives. You will build a network of the next generation of future leaders. These will be your closest friends and peers, and people you can trust to support in your career you well beyond the 1-2 year MBA program.

Side Note: MBB actually pays very little compared to post-MBA roles in investment banking and the tech industry.

Final Note: I disagree with the notion that you need to go to a Top 3 business school. You need to go to a decent business school (measured by the corporate partnerships at the firms/companies you want to work).

Meaning, unless you're on scholarship, don't go to Harvard for $150K in tuition and 800+ class size when you can go to University of Michigan for $50K and get the exact same interviews at McKinsey.

Think critically about what you want, and then decide on an action plan to get there. If it's the textbook knowledge you're looking for, you're better served by coursera.

Anonymous B

Hi,

The best way of learning entrepreneurship is basically failing a couple of times. Solving the cases will help you learn how to approach complex problems (consulting at MBB will help you much more btw), however, I believe that you can spend your time in a better way, trying to realize different ideas.

Best,

From a pure strat perspective, I'd go with RB. Huge caveat however, they are both Tier 2 and with significant geographical differences. Ultimately, I doubt it'd matter much so chose based on local strength in your area of predilection, and based on the people you meet.

Another thing to keep in mind is the value of staying in current company (strengthen existing network) vs. adding another company's (developing new one + getting access to that new company's resources). No wrong answer, just make sure to include in your calculus