I have wanted to do this for a while.
For context: nearly 2 years of experience, previously went to Oxbridge and work in the London office. Have worked in PEPI, Consumer, TMT, public sector and financial services.
Happy to answer any questions on interviews/ prep to get in, the nature of the work and navigating consulting, differences between McKinsey and BB (based on conversations with my friends who work there) and McKinsey vs. banking/ buyside (again based on conversations with friends). Also happy to discuss exits and the promo timeline and salaries at McKinsey - I can speak for the London office.
What was the case preparation process like and how would you have approached it differently if you had to do it all over again?
I spent around 3 months casing with a friend from university. We probably cased 5 times a week. For PEIs, I wrote 6 stories down in a ton of detail and memorised them.
Would do exactly the same again, I felt very comfortable when it came to the interviews. I know people who got in with a lot less prep, but I’m glad I did what I did.
any particular tips or methods you reccomend to get better at case interviews?
Thanks for doing this. Could you give some insight into the background of BAs e.g. what internship and uni experiences did they have? For context I’m doing an EB summer but thinking about consulting FT.
Lots of ex- bankers, although mostly BB backgrounds. In general I’d recommend to intern at an MBB client; in practice this means any large company.
EBs are a bit dicey - someone working in e.g., industrials may not know it, while everyone knows GS/ MS/ JP.
For uni experiences, I was an exec at two large and well known university society. Don’t worry about consulting society experiences, McKinsey love to see evidence of leadership at large and prominent uni societies.
I can speak for Oxbridge because I know it: Oxford/ Cambridge Union, JCR leadership roles, captains of sports societies, etc are most common. In practice not everyone has this, some people are more ‘nerdy’.
what do your exit ops look like? whats your exit timeframe?
People who joined around me are leaving for chief of staff roles in startups, PE associate roles, senior manager roles at FTSE100 and some NGOs too. A fair few are heading to B school.
I don’t have a fixed timeframe, also not sure what I want to do long term. I’ll probably stay here and just continue doing what I like doing
People with 2 years of experience are leaving for SM Strat roles at FTSE100s? I call bs, especially in this market.
Have you seen negative effects to your health since starting the job
Some- I’ve mentioned in previous posts I tend to work very long hours on very intense studies (by McKinsey standards)
Bad things happen when you stare at screens a lot, barely eat 2 meals a day and don’t get to do any exercise - who knew.
Most of it is reversible and I’ve started being more health conscious
What’s biggest difference between bain and bcg
I don’t have good context on either, so can give my anecdotal impression - very happy for more informed posters to jump in.
- Bainies have much better wlb
- BCG does a wider variety of pieces. Bain has a clear strength in PE.
- More travel at BCG (similar to McK somewhat). A lot of friends flying out to Saudi.
- More staffing flexibility at BCG. Also more ruthless job cuts.
- BCG is more commercial and less collegial at the MDP/ middle management level.
- Bain has excellent perks (e.g., can order Deliveroo at home)
My personal impression (shared by my university friends at different MBBs) is that McK is stronger overall, Bain is stronger at PE, BCG is competing with McK like for like, and so doesn’t yet have a clear value proposition over McK.
Salary range?
~50k across MBB for new grads. It’s probably a few k here or there
MBB pays 112k base, not 50k that’s absurdly low…
How have you liked the day-to-day working in consulting? What would say the biggest takeaway is as far as skills from a junior standpoint?
Also, how would you say you add value to the client and do you see the value add play out in the real world?
I love it.
The first year is mostly feeling like you’re drowning and learning basic skills, etiquette, etc.
The second year is owning a work stream end to end. I’ve elaborated on this in other posts, but essentially it means ultimate responsibility for getting a problem solved. E.g., how can we improve performance for business unit X? You’d build out a skeleton document (e.g., market section, competitive landscape and relative performance, current initiatives and expected outcomes and recommendations), find time with and meet experts and get input, run ENS calls potentially, organise the customer survey teams if needed, etc etc. All the while aligning on process and next steps with the EM and your hypothesis and the answer with the Partner. In a couple of weeks you present it to the client with the Partner and EM supporting where needed.
Value to the real world varies a lot.
Most of my studies are for senior stakeholders who find their company in edgy situations - they always take our advice (in my experience). Plenty of examples of studies McKinsey and other consulting firms do that don’t go anywhere because of corporate politics or something else.
The types of studies I do makes the lifestyle tough and stressful, but also very fun to switch on the news or hear friends/ family talk about current events and know what is happening behind the scenes. A few of my studies have led to material change in the business landscape in the UK and I find that playing a small part in this is very fulfilling.
Thanks for the great answers- follow up question. What sort of ‘edge’ do yall bring to the table? Is it just work that the company could do but doesn’t want to? Or is there a real reason to hire yall over doing the work internally? Or is more like yall are just more efficient doing the projects since yall do them all the time?
Only ask because a lot of PE guys say they bring value beyond just being an investor but what’s some associate gonna tell a CEO to do that he doesn’t already know? Just curious since I don’t know any consultants IRL and not really sure what the types or engagements yall are hired to do.
Any need for python/coding? Or scope of these in future in MBB consulting?
Not really. If we ever need people who can code, McKinsey has teams of actual software engineers we’ve hired from big tech.
Generalist consultants are not hired for subject matter expertise or technical skills.
What is the salary progression like?
BA: ~50, ~60
Senior associate: ~105
EM: ~120, ~135
Beyond this I’m less clear, but think a long term career at McK entails on average 20% pay rises every year. A bit of a pay bump for Partner and a huge pay bump for SP
Thank you for doing this! Just had a couple quick questions:
1. How ruthless is the 'up-or-out' culture at the junior levels? Can people get unlucky and be staffed on a tough project with a tough manager and have that impact their future at The Firm? What % of BAs do you see counselled-out? Bit nervous about joining a firm where the expectations are so high and job security is very low.
2. How much work do McKinsey do in the public sector in the UK? Would a Civil Service internship in addition to some corporate internships be useful in building an all-rounded CV for MBB?
3. Would you say UCL/LSE/Imperial are targets for MBB? Or is it only really Oxbridge with those London unis being 'semi-targets'? Lot of conflicting advice on here about those unis.
4. Is a First Class essential for MBB? Or would a high 2:1 be sufficient?
Ah okay - thank you for clarifying! I was just worried if I apply after graduating I ofc won't be able to put 'Expected First Class' on my CV if I've received a 2:1 so was worried that would be an issue. Between a Civil Service internship and a Commercial Affairs internship at a FTSE 100, which would you say is better for MBB applications? I'm inclined to go for civil service as the role is a lot more interesting and this'll probably be the only chance I get to try a Civil Service role out, but FTSE 100 work might be closer to strategy consulting so might be more relevant for MBB
could you provide some insight on what you actually do day-to-day. Like, what is something specific your boss would say for you to go do
I understand where it’s coming from, but it’s a bit of a non- question. Any decent BA should not have to be told what to do by their EM - you are not a child. I’ll give a really basic example - ignore the actual content because it’s made up.
I have a problem solving session with my Partner, who gives me a download of his meeting with the client. Client wants to know what to do about an underperforming subsidiary - they have a meeting with a few equity research analysts in a couple of days. I suggest I put together a few pages based on what makes sense and send something to Partner and EM in an hour.
P1/2: a couple of instructive slides from the market section we made at the start of the study plus anything I can get from experts at the Firm showing the market for the subsidiary is under pressure and margins are falling.
P3: MECE set of options (sell, reinvest to make competitive, pivot to better performing adjacent sector, operational jmprovements, etc)
P4-10: couple of deep dive pages per option outlining what this would mean and ghost pages on potential impact (to be filled out later)
I send this over to Partner and EM. Both like the structure and have a few additional thoughts. EM wants to emphasise the fact that the market is dying and the client has a burning platform and Partner wants to remove the reinvest option because client definition don’t want to sink more money here. Cool.
I reach out to 4 Firm experts to get input on what the projections would look like and give them a deadline for tomorrow morning. I make the adjustments suggested and add more meat to the document after checkout using some interesting pages I got from experts and the internal knowledge repository. Before I log off, I send the latest deck to EM and Partner and tell them I’ll incorporate the projections first thing tomorrow and have the final version in their inbox by 10:30am . Etc etc
You’d probably also schedule another problem solving session in the afternoon to go over your argument in the document and make sure there’s alignment over which option the client should do.
Do you see many people with an MSc in Finance? I am considering doing one but I'd like the option between both finance roles and consulting
McKinsey BA here too. MSc Finance will have no impact on your application (definitely not positive but could be negative if it's from a lower ranked uni than your undergrad). Your academics will be judged based on your undergrad uni
I've made a post regarding this and would appreciate your insight on that.
Would going to a decent Master's university be useless then if you went to a non-target undergraduate university and got bad A-Levels?
What about for tier 2/3 consulting firms or boutique consulting/corporate finance firms?
Have my bad A-Levels ruined my life no matter what I do? Will they always hold me back?
Is Exeter a target at all? What if I did a masters at Imperial - would Exeter still drag me down?
Don’t know of anyone who has done it. Don’t see why it would reflect poorly on you. Do it for banking/ personal interest, not for consulting applications
1) What is the most underrated factor / piece of advice when interviewing?
2) Compared to the folk at T2/Big 4, how do you think your work and exit opportunities vary?
.
Given McKinsey puts a lot more emphasis on BA responsibility right out of the gate and expects you to "own" a workstream within a year compared to the slower approaches at BB, would you recommend doing any specific preparation before starting FT? Or is it fine to come in fresh and expect the training from EMs and Partners would be fine to bring a BA up to level?
The vast majority come in fresh and get trained up, if you know the basics of excel that would be a plus. I’d argue that coming in fresh is actually helpful because it means you don’t have to relearn ways of working.
Imagine seeing a GS analyst 2 doing an AMA. Consultants are a joke lmao. A McKinsey London BA doing this is even more laughable considering recent news...
https://www.ft.com/content/89e8de5c-7a98-4033-a757-14c703139cfb
Though I guess being on the beach for months allows you to have the time to do this so kudos to you for making the most of corporate inefficiencies. Meanwhile, I think the apollo associate is still yet to answer more than 2 of the 30 or so questions posed to him last week for his AMA:https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forum/private-equity/ex-apollo-associat…
How long since your MBB rejection?
Pretty damn long since it never happened. Why would I bother recruiting for a role that pays less than half for marginally less hours and inferior finance exits. Sure if I wanted to do corp dev at some random f500 company and work my way up until im 50 to get on the executive board and start making a relatively high amount then I would give mbb a go. However, I would much prefer having the option to either make that comp at 28 at a hf and retire early or make that comp at a umm/mf pe shop once ive realised my carry at 38-45 and then retire. And dont give me that stupid talk about 'oh we work less'. Ok buddy let's decompose that. Im at a top paying eb and as an analyst 1 I left with 120k tc, which would take my mbb peers 2 years to make. Pretty significant pay delta for an extra 2-3 hours of work per day and some weekend work eh? Nobody gets rejected from MBB and goes to bb/eb ib, whereas I know plenty of bb/eb rejects that went to mbb. Ofcourse this argument differs from MBB in nyc where they actually pay a relatively respectable wage. No shame in the game, just know your place.
Also, if we weren't in europe where strategy and corp dev exits pay absolutely terribly then maybe id give MBB more creds.
Just saying, there have been countless BB IB AMAs… yes many from the top BBs like JPM, GS, and MS so your entire comment is already invalidated by this fact alone lmao.
Be bitter elsewhere.
Rarely by 2nd year analysts, so shut up and go back to your LMM hole
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50k pound ? Jesus that’s less than what an assistant manager at any car wash makes in America, or any entry level tech sales role. How do you even survive living in London?
For real that’s criminal. I have friends who didn’t even go to college and are making more than 50k; one is an air traffic controller making 110k, another is a dog groomer making 65k, etc
I’m EM at McK in London and this thread makes me cringe. Nothing else to add.
why? is it the pompous sentiments that some individuals have?
It’s just cringe.
Damn OP, even your boss isn't happy with you
Jokes Aside though, I was just hating for the fun of it (banker tendencies). OP's actually being really helpful and it's wholesome he's taking the time to do this at a point in his career where he will be the most busy with work. You should be backing OP as he is quite literally your colleague lol. You kinda sound like a miserable EM which checks out, considering middle managers are receiving the brunt of the McKinsey London Culling.
Any decent EM knows criticism should be constructive - happy to hear thoughts on better ways to collate information and advice but this isn’t helpful.
On the recent re-enforcement of up or out: my view is that fewer opportunities since I’ve joined have resulted in the better performers getting all the opportunities, while the weaker performers have just been sat on the beach - a lot of people are happy we are now going back to applying our performance standards.
Love how there’s clearly one hater who’s posting as Anon to derail the thread.
How easy are internal transfers to America? U.S McK are paid 120k out of school, you would be essentially doubling your income.
Have only made 1 comment, but good idea let me leave some more!
Are corporate strategy exits common in London? From my understanding, a lot of F500 firms centralise their strategy work in their HQs which is usually America. If it is common, how well do they pay? Is it similar pay to the equivalent level at MBB?
Why the MS lmao
More common at EM levels and above. This is probably true at the group/ board level, but almost all modern F500 firms delegate strategy to P&L owners as much as possible.
We also obviously serve FTSE100 companies that are HQed in London.
Wow thanks for doing this, really appreciate it.
I'm a current third-year (out of 6) MBBS/MD medical student at a top university in Asia (NUS/SNU/University of Tokyo/HKU etc). I also hold an offer for University of Cambridge's BA Land Economy programme. With both programs, I would graduate in 2027.
If, theoretically, my sole goal is strategy consulting at an MBB firm, which path would increase my chances of employment in the London office specifically? Is the "prestige & pedigree" of the Cambridge BA degree more than the value of the solid medical knowledge from the MBBS/MD from a good medical university for healthcare strategy consulting? Also - would the London office consider a non-UK MBBS as an entry-level hire?
And if you would be open to PMing me that would be great!
For the London office, Cambridge Land Economy would probably be better - I don't recognise the universities you mentioned in Asia (they may be targets schools for the Asian offices though). Having said this, I believe medical doctors tend to come in as Junior Associates, not BAs - this may be a factor in your calcs.
I think your options really are: 1) finish your medical degree, apply to an Asian office and then transfer in or 2) transfer to Cambridge and then apply to the London office.
I’ve a strong preference to keep chats in the public realm so they can help other applicants - part of my rationale for the AMA was I get a lot of PMs that I think would be more useful as public comments.
Incoming McKinsey BA here. How hard is it to transition to a PE MF?
If you’re set on it, it’s doable.
A lot of what enables success at McK more than most places is knowing what you want to do and being vocal about it. If you know you want DD reps and MF exposure when you join, it’s quite easy to optimise for.
More recently, exits here have been muted due to macro factors and there is absolutely an element of luck.
Thank you for doing this! I also had two follow-up questions.
1. What‘s the time frame for promotions/ how long do people stay in each role. Interested to have a time frame but also because the 50k compensation seems low given the long hours, but you mentioned it basically doubles at the Senior Consultant level.
2. Is an MBA necessary to work in strategy/ can you only work management consulting roles without one? I know that this is a general way of doing things in T2.
Varies depending on performance. Obviously longer if you do a secondment/ MBA. Different timelines for different countries, the below is for London.
Target/ average performer:
BA 2 years
Senior Associate 1.5 years
EM 2-3 years
AP 2-3 years
Partner 6+ years
High performer (I.e., top rating at all levels):
BA 1.5 years
Senior Associate 1 year
EM 1.5- 2 years
AP 1.5-2 years
Partner 3-6 years
An MBA has no bearing on your actual progression in consulting. It may be helpful for a) time to reflect and relax, b) network, c) explore other career options
What was working in public sector like? Was it very politics-related work? Thank you for your time.
There are very strict controls on what work McKinsey can and cannot do - I won’t get into what type of work we do for public sector organisations because I think it actually may be proprietary.
If you’re interested in this, some governments make public disclosures about what they have hired consultants for. The consulting firms are generally named.
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Congrats on getting designated!
There’s been a misunderstanding, I didn’t exit to PE.
If you know you’re leaving and have signed the offer, do you care about not being on an engagement?
Thanks for doing this and feel free to respond at your own pace, I'll mark out the main questions to make it easier. (1) Initially, I wanted to know your process in deciding on consulting versus other fields.
I'm currently torn between Consulting & IB if I were to have the choice. I find consulting more engaging, and the potential to be more rewarding but the salary difference with IB over the longer-term (i.e. if they stay in IB long-term or decide to exit to HF) is really of concern to me. I'm aware the PE exit is there with consulting also but my Maths/Stats reading makes me interested in HF. Potentially, anyway - this is so far off.
It makes me feel as though I'd be forgoing a really good salary by going towards consulting over IB - which is a feeling exacerbated by the fact that hours can get poor in both industries, so why not just go where you get paid more?
But on the same note I'm aware that McK especially offer an incredibly fluid structure and ability to rise up the ranks if you can prove your worth. (2) I was wondering if you could comment on the frequency of grads making huge leaps at the firm straight out of undergrad, to see how feasible it is to be a 'rockstar'. And based off speaking to people at the firm, I was wondering if you'd be able to comment on where the average person at McK expects to be 3 years out of undergrad in terms of position and the variance of a given cohort - as a means of comparison to someone who took the IB path.
Final ones, but given the fluid structure I'd assume that there'd be younger Partners in Consulting compared to their senior counterparts in IB, and perhaps have a larger opportunity to both make a career out of it and reach such a senior role for a longer period of time. (3) I wanted to know if you could confirm that, and (4) if you may have any insight into what their responsibilities consist of (ideally the difference between Associate Partners vs Partners).
Sure thing.
1. I found the work more interesting, liked the idea of having more responsibility and control over what advice we gave and what I spent time prioritising, liked the idea of speaking with senior clients. Also I thought consulting won out from a career longevity point of view. The way I think of it, a difference of a few hundred K a year is trivial if e.g., I can last longer as a SP making a few M vs. in banking.
2. Have answered this in a previous comment. For BAs, there are probably 1 or 2 rockstars every cohort. Very few rockstars remain rockstars as they progress through the Firm.
3. There are quite a few Partners who are late 20s/ early 30s and some SPs who are mid- late 30s.
4. I was once told by a SP that he thought I’d only really enjoy being a SP and nothing until then, because of my personality. I responded by saying it was true I didn’t enjoy parts of being a BA, but I think I’d enjoy EM and AP and P more and more. He just laughed and said that APs are BAs for SPs and Partners are BAs for the most senior SPs. In short, the only thing that truly changes is the seniority of the people who you need to get the green light from for you to do your thing.
Do you know any examples of analysts who join MBB consulting after working a year or two in an unrelated industry? I’m trying to break into consulting from a project management grad job and want to know if it’s possible without getting an MBA first
In the UK at least its very possible. From looking at Linkedin I actually think more people get MBB grad roles after 0-2 years of experience rather than straight from uni
Definitely possible, you’d join as a new grad and any previous experience would be discounted.
Wouldn’t say it’s more common than straight from uni but definitely a few people like this around. Also know a few banking analysts who left 1-2 years in and joined McK after this.
Thanks for the insight! Do you think there is anything that I can do to give me an edge towards getting an interview as a graduate over the students applying from target schools? Do you know of any courses or certificates that I could get that would help show commitment to this career transition?
whats sentiment like in terms of projects and the bench? has activity improved since the start of the year? do you think recruitment for grads in september will be similar levels to what 2022 and 2023 was like?
There’s a pretty sharp divide between BA/ ASCs who get staffed consistently and frankly are very good and well regarded and those who do not have a network and as a result don’t really get studies consistently. The former are generally happy and the latter are not.
I imagine recruiting will normalise to 2023 levels and probably stay that way for the foreseeable future. We’re currently getting people without a strong value proposition to leave, which will likely result in a more sustainable org structure in a year’s time.
different poster. thanks for this
can you define what 2023 recruitment levels? i also am asking as an UG? i assume grad recruitment is normal every year and the peaks / troughs of recruitment are more to do with lateral hires / MBA hires?
Is Exeter not competitive enough to get in? And would a masters at Warwick + internships in well known tech companies be enough to get pushed past CV screens?
I think Exeter would be quite tough, Warwick makes it easier (still not that many Warwick BAs).
Yes, FAANG would make it much easier.
Thanks so much for the advice!
I’m a medical student at a semi-target, also doing a Masters at a top target and have completed an internship in M&A at a BB. Felt like banking is not really for me and keen on consulting.
I plan on applying for the McKinsey medical elective for 2026, as I have 2 years left at uni. Do you have any other advice to maximise my chances of getting in?
Much appreciated :)
Don’t know much about this specifically. My previous comments on leadership/ entrepreneurial activities still holds true. Get published or do whatever will make you stand out
Thanks for sharing OP! I'm am wondering what is the travelling like at the London office now. I have heard that European travel is rare nowadays lengthy visa application process after Brexit. Do you mainly travel within the UK now and how often do you wfh/ travel?
It's still a global firm so if you network well you can go places. I know once recent joiner who's first study was in Asia, another BA who's been in the London office for 2 years and never did a single project in the UK despite being consistently staffed. Depends on your priorities and how active you are with your own staffing.
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