The top consulting companies – McKinsey, BCG and Bain – hire ~200 students each year from the top MBA schools in India. But the recruitment process is extremely competitive in these B-Schools, and you need a stellar resume to get shortlisted in consulting.
If you’re curious to know what consulting companies want in their shortlist, then read on.
Get the basics right.
To get shortlisted by McKinsey, BCG or Bain, you will need to work on your resume. This obviously involves building a strong profile pre-MBA and during your MBA. But, it also involves structuring your resume, adding strong data evidence and re-wording for maximum impact. Often, even well-written resumes undergo 10+ iterations before they are confidently submitted to the top consulting companies. In my own resume, I made 25+ versions before I was happy with the resume – And the final version was completely different from the first!
Some basic resume expectations from any candidate are listed below:
- Clear, easy to read and well-formatted resume (avoid jazzy fonts and colours)
- No grammatical or spelling mistakes (please proofread!)
- Plenty of numerical details to indicate the magnitude of acheivements
These ‘hygiene’ expectations will not improve your chances to be shortlisted. But failing to maintain these basic standards will certainly adversely impact your profile. Some students have submitted their resumes only to realise moments later that they shared a rough version or misspelt a common word in the first sentence itself – Don’t make that mistake!
A balanced Resume: Jack of all trades and master of some
The shortlisting process aims to select the candidates with versatility and consistent excellence. Hence, it would be best to have a well-balanced resume with strong points across academics, work experience, positions of responsibility, and extra-curriculars. Don’t deprioritise any section completely, and do not let anyone section completely dominate the real estate on the resume.
Apart from this, you also need to prove your excellence through 2-3 superlative resume points – These standout achievements are called resume ‘spikes’, and they are key in determining your presence on the shortlist. This spike could be in any resume area, but need to be an exceptional or singular point. Here are some examples:
So how should I build a great resume?
Your resume approach will vary depending on whether you’re targeting summer placements or final placements.
In summer placements, your pre-MBA profile will play a big role in your resume, along with some early wins at your B-School. Here, you must ensure that you have collected all the correct resume proofs, captured the details of every achievement and spent a lot of time with experienced mentors on your resume. Here, resume structuring and iterative improvements can be the difference between all shortlists and no shortlists.
In final placements, you have a chance to dramatically change your profile. Your B-School rank will take precedence over your undergrad rank. Your positions of responsibility at the institute will be valued more than any past leadership role. Your summer internship (where you interned, your internship exposure and performance) will matter more than your past work experience. And there are plenty of extra-curricular activities and scholarships available on campus to bolster your profile.
In conclusion…
Carefully evaluate your starting point, and then pick up more activities to ensure your final resume is strong enough for a couple of cool shortlists! It’s also important to focus on structuring and re-wording as much as profile building – They both go hand-in-hand!
Hope this helps! Please leave your thoughts, comments and questions in the comments section below! You can setup a mentorship session with me here.
Thank u ma’am, theses information really help me to build a stellar profile.
Thank you, Gaurav!
[…] How to get shortlisted by top consulting companies during MBA placements […]
[…] How to get shortlisted by top consulting companies during MBA placements […]