The following message is from a reader that I’ve been giving some advice to about his b-school choices. In his email, he asks about the important things that the firms look for in a candidate. My response is a short one, but I think it covers the question. If he sends me a follow-up message, I’ll post that response, as well.
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Morrow wrote:
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My response:
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Morrow wrote:
Marquis,
The more I read, the more I think I would be interested in consulting. Ultimately I would like to be back at my “family business” here in Memphis, but the broad, unstructured nature of consulting is very appealing to me in the short term. What are the important things McKinsey, Bain, etc look for in a candidate? I have a masters of accounting and am a CPA already, would I neccesarily have to get an MBA to be considered? Thanks so much.
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My response:
Morrow,
It’s difficult to make a general statement about what the McK/Bain/etc firms are looking for because they each have their own evaluation criteria, but there are some common traits that an applicant should have, including:
- STRONG problem solving skills
- good general understanding of business
- leadership experience/potential
- communication/teamwork skills
If you’re going to be starting business school in the Fall, now would be a perfect time for you to start developing these traits in preparation for summer internship recruiting. If you plan on waiting to jump back into the application pool, then you’ve got a LOT of time to work on the above.
With a Master’s in Accounting and a CPA, you could be considered for a spot at a consulting firm, but it is much easier to get in if you’re coming out straight out of school. I’ve heard that it’s tough to get in as an experienced hire, so keep that in mind as you think about when you woudl apply. If you’re coming out of business school, your prior accounting education will help to distinguish you from the other bschool applicants you’ll be competing with.
-M
