Mckinsey Internships

You might have seen some of your senior peers rushing in the hallway to get an idea or thoughts on how they work on internships and others stuff that they boast will help in their future. You never really wondered what’s that thing. An internship is a short time position for a student or trainee to work for the organization, either paid or not, to gain work-related knowledge or satisfy the requirements needed for the same. In this article, let us see a complete insight into McKinsey internships and how to bang in through one.

Mckinsey started its firm in the 1960s and has been developing since the neutral age. It has been well known for its screening test and the assessment provided for the interview candidates. It is also well known for its internship and guidance throughout the process. Mckinsey is the only company that offers 1 to 1 assistance for each of its employees. Each employee has a monitor who can take out for the same. Mckinsey also provides numerous types of internships for college students and graduate trainees.

Mckinsey Internships Opportonities:

Some of the few internships provided by McKinsey are:

Data science intern
Business analyst intern
Associate intern
Strategy and consulting intern

These are the top positions open for free in McKinsey and the best thing is it has internships open in various locations like Atlanta, Seattle, Dallas, Boston, New York, and Waltham.

An internship most probably consists of applying to a company, being shortlisted, and taking a screening test which later helps you get into one job. This is the basic idea of how the internship goes. Let us start the complete guide on how to bang one of the positions here as the recruitment criteria have less than a 1% acceptance rate. Mckinsey provides internships in two tracks: one for undergraduate internships and another for MBA internships. This internship lasts about 10 weeks and the salary will be as high as a top tech company in New York. The salary usually starts in the range of around $ 17,000 to $ 32,000. Mckinsey internship has various steps to get into the company:

Work on your skills and get connections
Apply for a job in your desired location and skill area
Resume and Cover letter preparation
Pass the McKinsey PST test
Pass the McKinsey PEI interview
Pass the McKinsey case interview.

The PST test and the case interview are the toughest ones to clear and get a job in your dream company.

An undergraduate student applying for the same as to have the following minimum eligibility criteria should be an undergraduate student of a non-business program. Should have less than 2 years of work experience and excellent academic performance. Whereas an MBA student applying for the same as to have been currently enrolled in a master’s program and should have an excellent academic performance. As this is a summer program, an undergraduate student should enroll on or before mid-October and whereas an MBA program should enroll on or before mid-December. You should also keep in mind that an associate position is given to an MBA student and analyst roles are given to undergraduate students.

Let us see a brief idea of how to bang a position in McKinsey

Required set of skills and experience:

We all know that McKinsey is one of the top 3 largest consulting firms in the states and it isn’t easy to just apply over there and wait and watch. You need a lot of skillsets to bang one in and the competitors you are going to hit or no way less than you. As this is one of the top firms in the states, it will desperately look more towards the student’s position to be filled by an ivy league guy. Well, if you have worked hard in your school life and have gone into any of the prestigious institutions there is less to worry about such that you already work upon your skill to get into one. You just have to worry about the screening test conducted by the company which will need a lot of patience and other knowledgeable things. Whereas, if you are a normal university student you have to work on yourself a lot such that you focus on the better you. You will have to develop your skill set first and later, get connections that expand your community, and build a great profile.

This is all about an average university student who emphasizes himself getting into one of the positions in his dream consultancy company. To be very clear, you have to start yourself as early as possible to be competitive among other ivy league students. The important and small things you have to work on yourself to get on for this mini practical skill set are:

The basics about how a job consulting firm works and what are all the basic ideas behind it.
The basic math that is required for this job is mental math, chart reading, and kinds of stuff.
Take multiple trial tests online to work on your low-value skills.
Study upon interview-led or candidate-led case study questions. These are one of the typical cases in which most of them fail as they look complex to solve.
Trust in yourself – is the last option one can do to get to believe in his work.

Expanding your network:

One of the vital roles while applying to a large firm like McKinsey corp., the one thing you have to keep in mind is you should be having a very large connective circle. As the company is large and is at the top, obviously how they chose the employee is also very different as there is going to be numerous numbers of the applicant who fight for the same. As a result, from the previously interviewed interns, we came to know that they also select people based on their connection level. HRs tend to see their profile and ask the referring people on the list in the company and out of the company regarding the people they referred and tend to choose on the basis, this is one of the reasons why networking is important as their numerous numbers of candidates applied with the same level of the portfolio. You may think networking is easy and you can connect with any people you want but, the reality is quite opposite. You tend to connect with people that will enhance your future or could support you in your mere future. This is the main key behind connections. The more you get the more you succeed and connecting with everyone is not an easy job. The top 3 ways in which you can connect with people are:

Networking through acquittance: that is a mini-level consultancy where one of your colleagues or friends has some superior access, which you can extend to the further level.

Networking through events: there are a lot of events that will be connected by the consulting firm for their success or kinds of stuff, you can get an RSVP there and get in with the good opportunity to interact with all the guys at the event.

Through social media: there are various platforms in which you can connect with people in a company; one such good example is LinkedIn where only employed professional work to preserve their style and expand their community and knowledge. This is one of the best scalable options as it will make you interact with the member without any 3^rd member and can feel free regarding connecting.

Resume and Cover letter preparation:

Being one of the top consulting firms in the world, the firm will have different chances of different points to accept people. The resume you are preparing must be in a black-and-white format and should follow the verbal format of a consultancy firm I.e., your resume should be focusing more on details regarding the work and what type of work rather than enlisting the places you have worked. The resume should mainly emphasize three skills:

Leadership and focusing skill
Achievements and accolades
Problem-solving skills

In the case of a consulting firm, a colorful resume is always rejected as the firm only looks for a career-focused resume that has a normal format. Some tip that might help in your resume or cover letter preparation is boasting up with what you did. If you have done 50% try upskilling your level to 75% which is a good point in a resume and make all the points in a bullet-in format rather than writing each long paragraph.

Pass the Mckinsey PST Test:

This is one of the places where most of the candidates can fail as this test looks a lot difficult. The PST is a Problem-Solving paper-based test carried out for critical case interviews. The PST usually is considered upon clearing your resume screening test, where they officially check your verbal, numerical, and logical skill reasoning. It also majorly looks upon the mental calculating abilities and problem-solving skills that will enlighten your life majorly at working a herd full of intelligent people.

The major skill in breaking down the McKinsey test could be by simplifying the knowledge level. Based on our understanding, we have broken the test into 6 parts:

Reading facts
Fact-based calculation
Root cause reason
Word problem
Client interpretation
Formula based on rough calculation.

Once you mastered all these types of problems you can easily pass your test. The main reason behind the breakdown is to learn what are all the topics they are interested in disturbing you. Once, you have seen as many of the problems, the next step is to take as many mock tests as possible in the duration. The mock test can help you solve the places where you lack, and you know your weak spot and you are now able to work on yourself. Make sure you only work on mock tests that are very difficult than the normal average cases as solving the harder ones might make you clear your mind and get one idea about what and how you are doing the same.

Pass the Mckinsey PEI interview:

Once you have done your resume screening and cleared the PST, the next round is the Mckinsey PEI interview where the interview consists of 2 parts:

Mckinsey personal experience interview 1^st round.
Mckinsey personal experience interview 2^nd round.

Usually, the PEI interviews were not that important as they are easy to be passed and changed to the next level. As the competition rate is high and the position is less comparable the rage to make the correct one fixed in this place should be of righteous terms. Thus, PEI interviews are now severely considered for one to pass to the next level. The 2^nd round mostly consists of case-based interviews and each of the two rounds consists of about 10 mins.

The main motive behind the interview is the point of time when you have excelled in your skill in your life such that you can show them off proudly. These can give very minute and unnoticeable clues about you and how you would work and create upon the same. One of the main motives behind the same is drilling down the deep insights of your previous terms and checking whether you will be a fit or not for this job.

The most important types of questions that are being asked in the first round are:

Tell us about a time when you lead a team through extraordinary hardship and what are all the possible drawbacks you received on the same.
How did you feel to solve the problem between your team members in such a way that doesn’t disturb your teamwork?
There are many ups and downs you may have crossed through being in your previous job position. Tell me about a time when you went through one and you came over one significantly.
Tell me about the time when you went through the time convincing people to change their viewpoint to finish your job.
Why did you choose consultancy despite there being numerous jobs out there?
Why is McKinsey among these many companies?

These are some of how one can answer or manipulate the way they ask a question. But, whatsoever, your answer should be valid and should have an authentic reason behind the same and work towards the same. Should lie about the same. Whatever, you are going to tell up make sure you are knowledgeable about it and know about the same too. So, it is advisable to know everything and get on a clear thought about the same. The last point is to make sure you frame the same story and perfect details inch by inch. Make sure you trust yourself and briskness is the one that can make you go past this round.

Pass the Mckinsey Case Interview:

The main case interview which can lead you to the job or out is the one where you are given a business-related problem and asked to solve the same within 30 to 45 mins. You have to work on as many as mathematical problems and should have known or had an idea of how many problems you have solved regarding the same. There are around 4 to 5 business case problems and the time for each is around 45 mins. The main types of case interview questions are:

Framework tree questions
Market sizing
Brain teasers
Chart insight
Information questions
Math problems
Solution finding questions
Value propositions questions.

The main categories of questions are how to do the same and how to follow up the same keeping up the idea.

The most intuitive and perfect way to finish this skill is to work on yourself. To crack these case interview questions, one must get familiarized with interviewer-led case examples that is, examples such as small-term business analytics are the only key that will help you get away here. More complex ones could solve your understanding of the question easily and easy to break down the problem.

Furthermore, breaking down the questions, one should apply basic math or basic business math ideologies to the given information and work hard towards the same. Practice your math problem mentally rather than calculating using your calculator. Use written source works and don’t ever involve the use of first-hand experience as a trial. Make sure you know or learn about the same of the senior workers and work accordingly regarding it. This helps you get down to a narrow and perfect lane.

The other most important way in getting ready is to work on your mock tests. Take a greater number of mock tests as possible to get a way out of where you are lacking. The PEI interview-led case problems need a large number of time spent by you in analysis to tackle the answers of the same within a 30 to 45 mins duration. This is a sample case-led problem and one has to be very keen in doing the same as it involves alleged applications.

Conclusion

Being one of the top 3 consultancies in the world, McKinsey has stood all this way long like a century only because of its standards. Mckinsey has definite rules and regulations followed to secure a place. Mckinsey has 5 stage process of interviews in which every stage is difficult to proceed further. As there are numerous numbers of competitors and practitioners who come way along with you, you have to ready yourself regarding the same.

Practicing a greater number of problems, gaining up the level of skilling, and other such various kinds of stuff are needed to proceed further in each step. Taking the mock test and other such various things are also labeled on the same for preparation term. The process is wholly around you. Subtle, you have to work on yourself. Believing you and only you are the key which you can achieve some greater good. GOOD LUCK !!!!

Frequently Asked Questions ( FAQs )

Who is the founder and when was McKinsey founded?

ANS: Mckinsey was founded in 1926 by James O. Mckinsey. Almost around 38,000 employees are working as of 2021 and the company generates revenue of $ 15+ billion per year. Mckinsey is one of the top three top and largest management consultancies in the world and is a global management consulting firm that serves leading businesses, governments, and non-governmental organizations for better growth of their own.

Are there any offices in Mckinsey where it is easier to obtain an interview or position?

ANS: That’s a straight NO, mckinsey offers a worldwide same approach method. People who are being decided to work for this company have to work along this way to be selected for the position. Wherever the location or posting is, the salary ranges are almost similar to that location.

Does McKinsey offer internships?

ANS: Yes, they do offer an internship. Internships in the field of business. People who have bachelor’s, master’s, and MBA degrees can preferably work towards the same. People with master’s degrees or more are recruited compared to those with bachelor’s degrees. The pay scale is around the same ranging from 17k to 35k for all the interns selected for a 10-week duration.

What is the McKinsey forward program all about?

ANS: it is a free six-month online learning program where the young minds of the nation can work towards upskilling the knowledge level that would work for them in the future for work-related ideas. It focuses on critical leadership, business, and digital skills that are relevant to almost all the job industries right now and doesn’t focus on a specific scene. The digital world is the key to future abolition and is the key to which the program works.

Mckinsey Internships – Complete guide