r/McKinsey_BCG_Bain

Is it like an informal promise to push a resume or is it a whole separate application?

Continuing the title, it’s always been on my mind that I’d move back to the US one day but will I be able to?

I’m Thai-American. I spent high school in Bangkok and didn’t want to go back to the US for college. I was a dumb, lazy, privileged kid that didn’t think about the after.

I’m finishing my second year of university in Bangkok and I feel like I made the worst decision possible everyday. I’m not incredibly worried about job prospects but the salary *significantly* lower here. MBB has the highest salary for new grads by a long shot and it’s like $60k USD *max*. I don’t know how relocation works and I’d assume that it’s difficult to transfer to the US (LA, where I grew up) from Thailand.

I thought about “what if I apply to US jobs straight up” but why would they hire me? They wouldn’t know the university I was at, and there’s tons of applicants there already. I don’t have ‘connections’ there either. I can’t go to anything that requires me to be there in-person as well.

As the title says, I’m applying to the MBBs for Summer 27 internships in Toronto coming from a target school but have a superrr low gpa (like 3.2-3.3 on a 4.3 kind of low). That being said, I’ve done a little bit of networking, know a lot of the Campus recruiters from a consulting club i’m on, super involved at school (varsity athletics, clubs, etc) and also have two internships at a big bank (current is in corporate strategy)

I’m worried none of that will even matter if my gpa is what it is. Networking i’ve done isn’t enough to have my name be pulled from the pile.

Anyone had similar credentials and at the very least secured an interview? Any advice or stories would be SO appreciated! I’ve heard cover letter can go a long way but not sure if I buy that…

U.S. undergrad

I have an offer from McKinsey, but really want to work at BCG. Would it be appropriate to send the BCG recruiter an email about if I can get an interview there? They haven’t opened applications yet and I’m on campus.

Thanks!

Non-target and 3.5 GPA, but strong resume experience

Has anyone with a similar profile gotten a partner referral that did or didn’t grant you an R1? And if so, was the partner in the same office?

Can I use the same STAR stories that I used in R1 in my R2 interviews? And similarly, in R2 I’ll have two interviews with two different people back to back… if they ask me a similar question can I use the same story?

I’m not sure if these interviews are being recorded or what communication is like between interviewers. Since each interview is isolated/with new people, I of course want to use my strongest stories but also want to demonstrate breadth IF they actually do share all this information between the 3 interviewers before making a final decision.

If there are any interviewers out there (BCG if possible) with insider information on this I would especially appreciate your comments!

So I submitted my application for the summer internship (2027) about a week ago. Did the CCA the day after. Was it a mistake for me to submit so early? I’m worried because I haven’t heard anything about Casey, would invites just come out after the June 2nd deadline?

Just finished my online assessment, anyone know what’s next. How long til I hear if I’m still alive (Chicago and DC)

I’m a sophomore 3.7 non target t50 school with decent experience more in school extracurriculars and political internships.
I applied to mck with a referral from someone pretty new I think they’re an associate, and to Bain without a referral and didn’t feel good at all about either assessment, felt reallyyy bad about McKinsey solve ik I messed that up. I did not get r1 invites to either firm.
I managed to get a partner referral to bcg and put their office as my number one choice which I’m not sure if that matters or not I just didn’t want to take any chances. I also felt decent about the assessment that goes out to all applicants right after you submit.
Just wanted to get thoughts on what my chances look like, because not getting r1 from either of the first two was really discouraging and now I’m just thinking really hard about bcg is my last shot at mbb.
Also Is there anything I could do in the next month to increase my chances like reach out to more people at that office for coffee chats or something?

Total YOE is a little over 4 years and came out from MBB after 2 years with the firm (no promo). Got an offer for an S&O position in Chicago for a subprime lending company. New role will be roughly 50 hours/week. Not sure if that is an average or good exit outcome from MBB - especially in the context of Chicago COL? Some perspective would be nice here.

Hey everyone, looking for some perspective. I’m a first-year international student at a target (non oxbrdige/lse) uni doing an Econ-based degree. I’ve realized late that I want to aim for consulting and feel like I'm already behind.

I spent my first two terms largely adjusting to the UK system and missed the timeline for Spring Weeks. My CV is currently thin: entry-level rep roles and a small-firm internship back home this summer. So i’m considering transferring to a 4-year degree (Study Abroad) which makes me officially penultimate in Year 3, giving me a shot at Spring Weeks next year and more time to secure "brand name" roles as well as solid positions of leadership and extracurricular activities.

My main concerns:

• I have a plan to populate my CV, but I'm terrified that even with the extra year, nothing will actually pan out.
• What if the pipeline becomes even more competitive by the time I actually apply for summers?

The 4th year is only 15% of standard tuition, and I feel like the extra time would give me much-needed clarity on life before a high-pressure career. Should I just grind for the August window now, or is the extra year the smarter option? Would love any help/insight. Thanks!

Got an experienced hire interview with BCG in two weeks and I have absolutely no casing experience. Anyone wants to help me out please ?

I’m going through some textbooks (Darren) right now but would love to get some real experience. Thanks!

Looking for some honest input here. I had a McKinsey second round interview date locked in about two weeks out, flights and travel already booked. This morning I got a call with an exploding offer from JPMorgan that expires at the end of this week.

Due to other scheduling constraints, there is genuinely no way for me to fly out and do the interview in person before the offer deadline passes. So I’m weighing whether it’s reasonable to ask my recruiter if I can do the final round virtually on shorter notice, so I can get the McKinsey process done before the JPM deadline.

For what it’s worth, I’m okay with letting the JPM offer expire and just interviewing on my original date if the optics of requesting a virtual superday are really that bad. I don’t want to torpedo my McKinsey chances over logistics. But if this is something people have successfully navigated before, I’d rather not leave a banking offer on the table for no reason.

A few specific questions:

1. Is an exploding offer from another firm generally seen as a legitimate reason to request a format change?
2. How do interviewers/recruiters typically view virtual final rounds vs. in person? Is there a real disadvantage?
3. Should I just reach out to my recruiter directly and explain the situation, or is there a better way to handle this?

Appreciate any advice. Thanks.

Would also be down to compare real-interview cases! Pls dm with your casing experience + background

Making a chain to discuss. Do we think we will hear from them today? I just want to know and end my misery

Attempting this again, mods pls

Most of the stuff on here is about recruiting, so I wanted to ask this for myself, as well as current or future interns who may have this same question:

How can I prepare for my MBB internship?

I've been blessed to receive an offer from Bain to join their ACI class next summer, and with nothing to do for the next year, I'm looking for ways to best prepare for the internship and maximize my chances at a return offer. I know there's a week-long training at the start, but I feel like that won't cover everything I need to know heading into the remaining 9 weeks, nor provide me enough time to practice those skills.

For former interns or current full-time employees, how would you recommend I best use this time? Are there topics or tools I should get familiar with? If so, in what context and what resources are the best for this? Is there something you wish you could've done in advance to make the transition easier? Even tips about non-work-related things would be helpful: summer housing, wardrobes, etc. Any advice would be much appreciated!

I am lucky to have gotten an internship offer to work at an MBB firm for this upcoming summer. I was wondering what kind of backpack I should get that is best for consulting? I want to use the same backpack for everything, including travel and daily work in the office. I want to make sure it is professional. I am willing to splurge as long as it lasts me for my life or as long as possible.

I saw briggs and riley, but are there any other suggestions?

I just had my first McKinsey R2 / final-round interview for the Taipei office with a Hong Kong partner. It was scheduled for 60 minutes but ended after around 30. There was no PEI; after intros, we went straight into the case.

The case was about an investment fund considering acquiring a U.S. toy manufacturer involved in traditional toys and video games. For the market-sizing portion, he asked me to size the U.S. traditional toy market.

Before the framework, I asked some clarifying questions. He said some of them were good, but also told me one question about the fund’s business model / portfolio was not relevant because the case was focused on the target company and market.

I built a framework around market attractiveness, target attractiveness, value creation, and client capabilities.

For the sizing, he gave me three customer groups — grandparents buying for kids, parents buying for kids, and adults buying toys for themselves — along with purchase frequency and price per toy. He told me to make my own assumptions.

I used age cohorts and calculated a total market size of around $163B. The arithmetic was correct, but in hindsight, I made a major assumption error: I implicitly assumed 100% penetration in each segment. Basically, I treated all relevant adults as active toy buyers, which probably inflated the market size a lot. I also did not sanity-check the number against the actual U.S. traditional toy market.

During the calculation, he said “good” or similar a few times. Near the end, his camera/mic seemed to cut out or mute for 5–10 seconds, but I kept going and finished.

After the sizing, I said it seemed like a large market and that I’d next want to understand the target’s current market share, positioning, projected share, and product segments. He then moved straight into Q&A.

At the end of Q&A, he said something like:

“Don’t be discouraged if I cut the case short, because I already have everything I needed.”

Am I cooked lol.

I am a current undergrad applying for BCG SA. I am from New Jersey but want to work in the NYC area, and am interested in consumer/retail sectors. I know for SA it's generalist so it probably doesn't matter... but for applying, I was unsure which offices I should rank as 1st. Some offices I am interested in are New Jersey, Brooklyn, NYC, and possibly Boston. I know the NYC and Boston offices are incredibly competitive which does deter me at bit.

Hey everyone, I’m looking for advice on navigating the Summer 2027 MBB internship recruiting cycle. I’m currently a rising senior at a non-target university, but I plan to pursue a one-year master’s program at a top university after graduation, which would make me eligible for next summer’s internship cycle.

I’m interested in applying now because I see it as an additional opportunity rather than relying solely on recruiting through my future master’s program. My question is: how should I indicate my intention to pursue a master’s degree on my resume or applications when the specific program details are still unknown?