All questions tagged MiddleEast - Consulting Q&A - PrepLounge.com

Hello Laura,

By healthcare practice do you mean hospitals? private or public? or do you mean health insurances?

Hi,

They can't screen you in 10 min, so don't worry, it's just an informational call

Best

Dear Anonymous,

Thanks for reaching out.

One thing is certain: a strong referral increases your rates of getting a positive screening outcome and geeting an interviews.

However, this is not a must at all!

If you have a strong CV with achievements and a great profile, you will get interviews, no matter what office you are applying too. Do not get disturbed by the noise on social media. I got all 90% of my interviews with 0 referrals and it went just fine.
The process is very standardized and the HR and consultants screen the CV based on your profile.

That being said, if you do not come from "a target school", getting a referral is the best way to get interviews. That's just the way it works, not necessary, but strongly recommended.

Also, it's great to network with people from the office you are applying to in order to get a sense of the job they are doing and the atmosphere and values they have.
Best of luck in your applications, and do not hesitate to reach out by PM if you have any questions,
Cheers,
Norah

Hi Michelle,

If your personal situation has changed such that moving to the Middle East is no longer a suitable option for you, I would definitely call the recruiter to let them know. Ultimately their job to help recruit the best people for their firm, and they should be understanding, especially given it relates to a family emergency (not just a change of mind).

Given your concerns about missing your chance, when you call her I would clearly communicate that: a) due to your circumstances, you would like to know if it would be possible to change your interviews for a role in your home country office, but that b) if this wasn't possible, you would still like to go ahead with your interviews in the Middle East. If you did start in the Middle East, you could try pretty quickly to get a transfer for personal reasons - typically, once you are in the system switching offices (especially for personal reasons) is relatively easy.

Good luck!

I was recruited in London, but chose to transfer in Dubai back in the day. Let me know if you have any questions about the Dubai office and best of luck!

As others have said, it is not formally required, but is certainly beneficial to an application.

From my perspective, if you do not speak arabic, you generally either need a strong referral or a clear link to the region to have a significant chance of receiving an offer.

However, my friends who spoke arabic all received multiple interviews, even though they had no link to Dubai/Middle East.