mbb cover letter

Consulting cover letter guide (for McKinsey, BCG, Bain, etc.)

Today we’re going to explain everything you need to know about writing consulting cover letters.

We’ll start by reviewing an example cover letter that got interview invitations from ALL the MBB firms (McKinsey, BCG, and Bain). 

And then we’ll explain exactly how you should write your own cover letter to land consulting interviews. Here’s a full list of the topics in this guide:

• Example cover letter

How to write your consulting cover letter

Consulting cover letter tips.

• The skills consulting firms look for

Consulting cover letter screening process

• Get help with your cover letter

Let’s get to it! 

Click here for a consulting letter/resume review with an ex-MBB consultant

Example cover letter (which got interviews at mckinsey, bcg, and bain).

Below is an anonymised cover letter from a candidate who got interviews at McKinsey, BCG and Bain. So you can trust that this template works.

The image here highlights the different sections of the cover letter, but we’ll dive deeper into the text later, and you can also get a downloadable copy below.

Free download of the consulting cover letter example, here. 

In the next section, we’ll go step-by-step through each part of the cover letter and explain how to go about writing it. But before we dive in, please note the following points about the above template:

• A lot of people use this template. Get inspiration from it, but every sentence in your letter should be written from scratch.
• This cover letter might sound impressive. It's one of the best ones we’ve seen. But even if you have not achieved as much as this person, you can still get an interview.

With that said, let’s dig into the cover letter writing process!

As a starting point, this video provides a nice overview of the full writing process for a consulting cover letter. 

Now let’s break things down further.

1. Introduction

Example - Introduction

Mary Taylor - [email protected]

DD / MM / YYYY

Dear Sir / Madam,

I would like to apply for an Associate position at McKinsey in London.

This section is a formality. It should simply state the following information:

• Your name and email address. You can replace your email address with a postal address although those are not commonly used anymore.
• The date on which you are sending your letter
• The position, company, and office to which you are applying

Keep it short and sweet.

2. Why you? 

Example - Why you?

I started working as an Analyst at Big Finance in New York in September 2020 and was quickly promoted to Associate in a year and a half instead of the average four years. While at Big Finance, I advised a broad range of clients who constantly gave me positive feedback and regularly asked to work with me again. Before joining Big Finance, I graduated as the top student of my MEng in Chemical Engineering at Prestigious University in the UK. While studying, I received two competitive scholarships and awards. In addition, I developed my leadership skills as the President of the Prestigious University Consulting Club. High energy was essential to lead a team of 5 managing the club and growing the number of members by 20%.

This is your "GOLD MEDALS" section. It is the first section of your cover letter and therefore the most important one.

It should state the TOP 3 achievements of your life to date that are relevant to consulting. These achievements should be as unique and as memorable as possible. When your reviewer reads them they should think "Wow, that's impressive. I want to know more about this person."

To write this section you need to step back and ask yourself "What are the most impressive things I've done with my life so far?" This is not an easy question to answer. 

In our experience discussing this with a close friend can help. It's sometimes easier for them to quickly point out the impressive things you have done as they are an external observer.

In addition, notice how achievements are QUANTIFIED in the example above. Saying you have been promoted "in a year and a half instead of the average four years" is much more powerful than saying you have been promoted "quickly." You should quantify your achievements whenever possible.

This section is your chance to grab the reader's attention. If there's nothing impressive in it, they will stop reading and just scan the paragraphs. So don't miss your opportunity!

3. Why consulting?

Example - Why consulting?

There are several reasons why I want to pursue a consulting career. To start with, I know I will enjoy being a strategy consultant because I have already worked in a strategy team in the past. This was in summer 2019 when I was a Strategy Intern at Big Grocery Retailer in London. In addition, I think consulting is a unique opportunity to comprehensively learn about business management by working on a variety of company situations. Over the past two years, I have started building my business skills while advising clients on financial matters at Big Finance. I now look forward to learning more about companies’ management at McKinsey. Finally, I want to work in consulting because I truly enjoy interacting with clients. Throughout my work experiences I have built a successful track record of developing and maintaining relationships with clients including, for instance, the senior strategy team at Big Grocery Retailer.

Once you have convinced your reviewer that you have impressive achievements under your belt they'll be thinking: "Ok, this person is impressive. But do they REALLY want to be a consultant? Or are they just applying because they're not sure what to do with their career."

The third section of your letter should therefore answer the  "Why consulting?" question . But here is the thing about this question: There are some reasons to go into consulting that you should tell your reviewer about. And some reasons that you should really keep to yourself.

For instance, one of the mistakes candidates commonly make in their cover letter is to write something along the lines of "I'd like to spend 2 or 3 years in consulting to learn more about business in general and then decide what I want to do." This is a HUGE mistake. 

Consulting firms want to hire FUTURE PARTNERS. Not employees who will stay for a couple of years. You can watch the video below for more details about this.

The best approach for your "Why consulting?" section is to write about past experiences that really show you know what you are getting into. The perfect situation is if you have done an internship in consulting or in corporate strategy and have enjoyed it. If that's the case, this is the perfect section to write about it.

But even if you haven't done related internships, there are plenty of angles you can use to connect your past experiences to what you will do as a consultant. For instance:

• You might have enjoyed working with clients when you were in M&A or in Sales
• You might have enjoyed structuring and solving tough problems as an engineer

You should use these experiences to say that "working with clients" or "solving tough problems" is something you KNOW you enjoy doing; and you look forward to spending more time doing this as a consultant.

When they read this section, your reviewer should think: "Ok, this person is impressive AND they know what they are getting into."

4. Why McKinsey / BCG / Bain / Other?

Example - Why McKinsey?

McKinsey appeals to me for three reasons. To start with, the different people from the company I have met and worked with all told me they had truly enjoyed their time there. For the past two years, I have worked for Michael Smith, a former Engagement Manager from the London office, who now works for Big Finance. Additionally, I regularly read McKinsey’s reports on financial services and think the insights delivered by Sarah James and others in the Finance practice are truly superior to that of other consultancies. By joining McKinsey, I therefore think I would have an opportunity to work with and learn from the best consultants in the industry. Finally, the fact that McKinsey was selected by Finance Supercorp to shape its digital strategy also played an important role in my decision to apply. This was a first-of-its-kind contract in finance and it shows that while at McKinsey I could get the opportunity to work on truly unique projects.

If you have managed to convince your reviewer that you have an impressive background and that you really want to be a consultant, you have a VERY HIGH chance of getting an interview. 

The only question that's left for you to answer is: " Why McKinsey  / Why BCG? / Why Bain? "

Top consulting firms  have a lot in common. In most regions, they cover the same industries and work for similar clients. They also pay similar salaries, and the career path is more or less the same from firm to firm. So what should you write about in this section?

In our experience, the most efficient way to set yourself apart in this section is to write about three specific elements:

When you write "I've met with Michael Smith," or "I've read report X," or "I've heard about project Y," you are making an argument that's SPECIFIC enough for your reviewer to think: "Ok they've done their homework."

If you stay too GENERIC, your argument will be much less credible. For instance, writing something like "While at McKinsey, I'll be exposed to a broad range of industries which I'm excited about" is a weak argument because you could swap McKinsey for BCG or Bain in that sentence.

In fact, this is the ultimate test. If you can swap McKinsey with another name in your "Why McKinsey?" section you are not being specific enough. You need to work on your paragraph again and mention SPECIFIC people, reports, or projects that you find interesting.

5. Conclusion

Example - Conclusion

For all these reasons, I am very enthusiastic about the chance to work at McKinsey. I am available for an interview at any time and look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

Mary Taylor

The last section of the cover letter is a formality again. It should include the following elements:

• A sentence or two saying that you are enthusiastic and available for interviews at any time
• Your final signature

So how do you make it easy for your reviewer to put your cover letter on the "Accept" pile? We have put together the 10 tips below to make sure you can achieve this and avoid common mistakes.

Tip #1 Don't use a template letter

Writing cover letters is painful. But trust us, reading hundreds of them can be at least as painful. That's why you should make every effort to make your letter interesting and genuine. 

It's ok to get inspiration from templates such as the one we provide in this guide. But every sentence in your letter should be written from scratch.

Tip #2 Keep it to one page

One of the unwritten rules of consulting cover letters is that they should not be longer than one page. The trick to achieve this is to only select the MOST RELEVANT experiences from your  resume  and to summarise them. 

The points you decide to highlight should clearly demonstrate that you would make a great consultant.

Tip #3 Standard format and font

It's tempting to use an eye-catching font and format. But that's actually a bad idea. You only risk your interviewer thinking: "I've never seen this font, it looks really weird. Who is this person?" Your cover letter should stand out because of its content, NOT because of its format.

Tip #4 Not the time to be shy

Your cover letter is not the time to be shy. If you went to Harvard and have three Olympic medals, now is the time to say it! Most of us don't, and that's fine. But the point is that you should really push yourself to bring your most impressive accomplishments forward.

Tip #5 Network, network, network

This might sound surprising, but a big part of the cover letter is  how much networking you have done . Having networked with people from the firm you are applying for pays dividends for multiple reasons. 

First, they might recommend you to the HR team. But most importantly, these people will give you insight into what makes their firm UNIQUE. Then you can quote what you've heard in your cover letter (and name drop the person you heard it from) to show that you really understand the firm you are applying for.

Tip #6 Read, read, read

Unfortunately, networking is not always easy or possible. In these cases, your second best option is to read as much as you can on the firms you are applying for. You should read about the firm's projects, reports, and partners and find pieces of information you are really interested in. 

For instance, if you did your master thesis on electric vehicles, try to find who works in this area at the firm and what they have to say about it. And then mention what you have found in your cover letter.

Tip #7 One letter per firm

One question we often get is: "Should I write one letter per firm?" The answer is YES. But it's not as hard as it might sound. 

Every cover letter needs to answer three questions: Why you? Why consulting? And why this firm? The only paragraph you will need to change in every letter is the one about "Why this firm?" For each firm, you will have to do the networking and reading mentioned above.

Tip #8 Start writing early

Writing an outstanding cover letter is VERY HARD. Most candidates underestimate how much time it takes and start this process too late. You'll need to take a step back and reflect on everything you have done to date to highlight your most relevant experiences. 

This takes multiple iterations. Start early.

Tip #9 Get feedback

In our experience, great candidates all look for feedback and iterate on their cover letter until it's truly as good as it can get. It's a lot of work, but it's worth it.

It’s best to get feedback from peers or consultants. These people will be able to point out which parts of your letter they don't get or don't find impactful enough. If you’d like to have an expert review your cover letter, check out our team of  ex-consultant coaches .

Tip #10 Proofread multiple times

Finally, you should check and double check your letter for typos and grammar mistakes - multiple times. A cover letter is (not so secretly) a writing test and you should really treat it like one.

What consulting firms look for

To get multiple interviews at  top consulting firms , it’s extremely important to understand what those firms are actually looking for. 

The good news is that most of the leading consultancies are looking for basically the same skills. 

To illustrate this point, here’s what  McKinsey  and  Bain  say that they’re looking for in candidates, along with our own translation of what they mean:

There are also a few unofficial items that consulting firms will look for on your resume, and you can read about those in our  consulting resume guide .

Next, let’s talk about the typical cover letter screening process.

Screening process

Now let's talk about HOW your cover letter will be handled once you send it. Here's how it works.

Your application will be sent to a JUNIOR CONSULTANT who recently graduated from your University. They will score your documents based on a grid provided by the HR team. 

Consultants usually have to score 200 to 400 applications in about 2 weeks. And this is sometimes on TOP of their normal project. It's not uncommon for them to leave the job to the last minute and to have to do it on a Friday night just before the deadline.

Why is this important? The point we are trying to make is your application is part of 100 other applications. And the person who will review it will be tired by the time they get to your cover letter. If they don't understand something, they won't Google it. It's your job to make their job easy.

Why consultancies ask for a cover letter

There are two main reasons why consulting firms ask for cover letters.

First, partners bill several thousand dollars per day to their clients. The opportunity cost of interviewing you is HUGE for the firm. Put yourself in the shoes of a consultancy for a second. What are the top 3 questions you want to answer before investing money in interviewing a candidate?

• Have they demonstrated the skills needed to be a consultant?
• Do they know what consulting is and what they are getting into?
• Are they genuinely interested in working for our firm?

If you don't answer these three questions in a structured and impactful way, your chances of getting past the screening process are very low. This is why every cover letter should be structured as follows:

• Why consulting?
• Why this firm?

The second reason consulting firms ask for a cover letter is to test your writing skills. Consultants write all the time: emails, PowerPoints, Word documents, etc. They spend about 50% of their day writing. And a lot of the time their job is to summarise very large quantities of information in a succinct way.

This is exactly what you have to do in your cover letter. You have to a) look back on all your past experiences, b) select the relevant experiences to convince the reviewer that you are the right person for the job and c) summarise all these experiences in a way that's easy to read and digest.

Cover letters are a disguised writing test. Candidates who end up getting invited for interviews recognise this early on. Making a good impression on paper is way harder than making a good impression in person.

Are many candidates ready to invest HOURS in writing the perfect cover letter? No. That's the whole point. That's how you can set yourself apart. If you spend enough time making sure that your letter is as impactful as it can be, you stand very high chances of getting invited for interviews.

Another reason that it can help to have a cover letter is to explain anything on your resume that may look unusual to a reviewer, such as a time gap or a non-traditional background for consulting. 

Whatever your unique situation is, if you’re not confident in how your cover letter looks today, then we can help you. 

Get an Ex-MBB consultant to review your cover letter

The guide above, in addition to our guide on  consulting resumes , should go a long way in helping you craft documents that will get you interviews. 

But if you still feel you need additional help, we have a team of ex-MBB recruiters and interviewers who would be happy to provide feedback on your cover letter.

You’ll get feedback on how to immediately improve your cover letter, including what experience to focus on, how to optimise your phrasing, formatting, etc.

Start by browsing profiles for available coaches.

Consulting Cover Letter: What You Actually Need to Know

The key to effective cover-letters is story-telling. Most people write cover letters like resumes, with cold, hard facts, and that’s the problem.

Cover letters are much more effective if they contain stories capturing the burning spirits of candidates. In this article, I’ll tell you how to install such stories seamlessly into your consulting cover letters, and land a case interview yourself.

Consulting cover letters – The basics

What are cover letters for.

Cover letters are documents accompanying resumes, to provide further insights into the qualities and motivations of a candidate, as well as portray who he/she is as a person .

In consulting cover letters, there are three essential qualities you must always display:

• Leadership skills:  the ability to influence people’s decisions.
• Achieving mindset : the continuous, relentless push for the best results.
• Analytical problem-solving:  the ability to solve problems in a structured, methodical manner.

Regarding motivations, there are two questions you need to answer:

• “Why consulting?”:  Do you really understand the consulting world, and how it fits with your long-term plans? Is there something unique in the consulting track to explain your choice?
• “Why this firm?”:  Out of all the consulting firms, why ours? There should be something uniquely attractive about this firm to you, isn’t there?

And last but not least, don’t forget to show that you have an interesting personality that fits with the firm’s culture.

Cover letters vs Resumes – What’s the difference?

Because so many candidates confuse between the two, then end up writing boring cover letters resembling “paragraph versions” of their resumes, I feed the need to differentiate.

There are four marked differences:

Cover letters go deep, resumes go wide

In cover letters, you should select one or a few most notable achievements, and describe them in detail to reflect your three defining aspects (values, competencies, motivations).

This stands in contrast with resumes, where you cram as many relevant achievements as possible into the space of one or two A4 pages.

Cover letters are “soft” stories, resumes are “hard” bullet lists

The content format of cover letters is much less defined, leaving room for a lot of creativity, unlike resumes which are almost always bullet lists of cold, hard facts.

Your goal as the candidate is to fully utilize that loosely-defined format and make your cover letter as attractive and memorable as possible.

Cover letters describe personality, resumes do not

A crucial role of the cover letter is to portray who you are as a person. Resumes don’t do that, they focus on your achievements.

Your personality does not only come directly through the contents, but also reflected in the style of the letter – so take time to make your cover letter more attractive, and you’ll make a better impression with the screener.

Cover letters touch on future plans, resume concerns mostly the past

In cover letters, you have to answer the motivation questions (why consulting, why this firm). In resumes, that aspect is barely mentioned.

The most credible answers to those questions connect the job with your future plans – as such, the cover letter is not confined to the past like resumes.

Understanding your audience

The vibe inside the screening room.

Busy, tiring, and boring – that’s the vibe inside the screening room.”

Picture this in your mind:

A junior consultant is in the office on a Friday night, going through hundreds of applications. He has to do this as a form of goodwill for the company, on top of his ongoing project.

Everyone’s application looks the same, following one set format; a somewhat extraordinary resume catches his attention, so he checks the cover letter to see if there’s anything interesting, only to be disappointed because the letter is an exact recital of the resume.

If you want to grab the screener’s attention and make memorable impressions, you have to break that negative vibe, using an unordinary cover letter.

Most cover letters are just listings of achievement and cliched motivation statements – they feel like unoriginal walls-of-text that offer nothing new – and that’s the exact reason why many screeners don’t like cover letters. Write an exciting story instead – the screener will love it.

Why they read your cover letter

There are two main reasons why the screener reads your consulting cover letter:

• He wants to know more about your motivations and personality because your resume is both impressive and interesting/unordinary at the same time.
• He wants to clarify some ambiguous points in your resume – this happens if you appear highly competent, but your writing is not clear enough.

In both cases, there’s no excuse to repeat your resume in a paragraph format and disappoint the screener. You have all the reasons in the world to present an attractive, detailed, focused narrative – tell a story and get your interview.

Both the background and the purpose of cover-letter-screening suggest that an innovative story-telling approach is much more beneficial than the common, formulaic, overly-formal cover letters.

Such an approach will definitely make your cover letter stand out from the heap of some 200 other applications. It helps you grab the screener’s attention, and impress him in a memorable way.

Additionally, it makes reading the cover letter easier and more enjoyable. The screener is already tired, so there’s no point in making his life harder.

Whatever the reason, as the cover letter is opened AFTER the resume, the implication is that you need to perfect your consulting resume first!

If you haven’t read it, here’s an A-to-Z guide to writing the perfect consulting resume , from a former McKinsey consultant and resume screener!

Consulting cover letter – Step-by-step guide

All these elements must be presented in a coherent storyline and concise language.

Keep in mind this is a consulting cover letter – as such, your story should be backed up by impactful, specific, verifiable results.

To write impressive, fact-based stories that demonstrate all three necessary aspects of the candidate, I advise you to follow these four steps:

Step 1 – Self-reflect for storylines

Search your memory for events, experiences, ideas… that can serve as a basic storyline – the backbone of your cover letter. For each storyline, consider the following six criteria :

• Uniqueness: The base story should be something unique to you. If it’s something common or universal, you won’t have the screener’s attention.
• Attractiveness: Your story should be attractive and entertaining – only then can you trigger the screener’s curiosity. Usually, it’s something “big” and impactful, but not controversial
• Positiveness: The story should have a positive “vibe” to it. If it’s something sad or negative, don’t include it in your cover letter.
• Qualities: All three consulting qualities (leadership, achieving, analytical problem-solving) should be illustrated in your story. Otherwise, consider that story irrelevant.
• Motivations: Your story should at least help explain why you’re applying, if not providing direct answers to that question. Firms don’t like to hire candidates without clear motivations.
• Personality: Make sure you exhibit a likable personality. On the other hand, if that story suggests negative traits (pessimism, short temper, cynicism, etc.) you have to modify it.

Let’s see if these storylines of my own could match the requirements:

“I escaped from a near-death experience during a paragliding session using my gliding skills.”

This is not something you hear every day, and near-death stories are often quite attractive, so you have those two boxes checked; and for now, there’s no sign of “bad” personality traits.

However, it’s a near-death experience, so it does have a negative vibe. Additionally, it shows neither consulting qualities nor relevant motivations.

=> This story only meets 3 out of 6 criteria. Out!

“I founded an entertainment business which attracted lots of attention, but ultimately failed.”

Not everyone is a startup entrepreneur, so this story does meet the “uniqueness” criterion. It’s relatively easy to draw attention with startup stories, and it’s easy to explain a consulting career choice from a former entrepreneur perspective, too. No negative personality trait is visible.

While being a business owner suggests some leadership and problem-solving experience, as well as an achieving mindset, a failure story like this might raise some questions on the “qualities” aspect; it also creates a negative vibe.

=> Overall, 4.5 to 5 out of 6. Not really the best storyline for a consulting cover letter, but usable with some modifications.

“I broke McKinsey’s code of conduct, convinced a client to pay their long-overdue service fees, and was celebrated for it.”

Is there anyone who doesn’t like those “breaking rules” stories? I’m quite confident this experience is quite unique and attractive. Because this is actual consulting work, it’s undoubtedly easy to point out all the important consulting qualities, as well as to provide a basis for my motivations.

However, this “breaking the rules” story may suggest rebellious tendencies, so if I’m going to use it I’ll again need some modifications.

=> This story scores 5.5 / 6. Quite good but I do need to be careful with it.

Step 2 - Add and classify details

Rack your memory and jot down everything related to your storyline; don’t worry about having too many details, you will be trimming the story later.

Pay special attention to the details best illustrating relevant qualities , motivations , and personality , because you will need to emphasize them.

Step 3 – Structure and enhance

Arrange the details of your story in a logical, intuitive structure; the most common method is:

1. Describe a notable, relevant experience using the problem-action-result structure to impress the interviewer with your qualities first.

2. Try to link it up with the present/future parts of your story (ideas, philosophies, plans) to explain your motivations.

Trim all non-essential and technical details, they do nothing but confuse the reader and bore them to death. Your story should be told in a way even your grandmother can understand.

Then, arrange and enhance the remaining details so that the story feels more dramatic, i.e the uniqueness and difficulty of the problem should be emphasized.

On a related note, consultants dislike lengthy cover letters – in fact, one A4 page is the maximum length – so there’s one more reason to start trimming.

Step 4 – Amplify consulting features

First, make all three key consulting traits stand out from your story – leadership, achieving mindset, and analytical problem-solving.

Then, make subtle references to consulting work using the industry’s terminology and concepts. Most screeners, being consultants themselves, will subconsciously appreciate this. However, avoid buzzwords and slangs found on the Internet, or you’ll appear superficial and unprofessional.

Consulting cover letter – Tips

To write the best cover letter, you must thoroughly understand the industry, its major firms, and even the very office you’re applying into.

To achieve such an understanding, there is quite a bit of research to do – and here are three tips for you to ease that process!

Tip 1: Networking

Successful networking goes a long way in the consulting recruitment process and in cover letters.

Firstly, management consulting firms are relatively publicity-shy, so having a connection within these firms allow you to gain very specific and authentic insights about the firm, the job, as well as the consulting world in general, helping you make better choices and deliver more convincing reasons.

Secondly, you may earn a referral ! The screening stage is harsh – it’s where most candidates are filtered out, both in absolute and proportional terms – and referrals help a great deal with that.

Remember to show your networking efforts by mentioning the names of consultants at the office you’re applying into, as well as their projects. The screener will know you really do care about the job, and you’ve done your homework.

Tip 2: Read consulting news

The websites of major consulting firms all have countless articles on current affairs as well as their own projects – read them frequently and regularly .

For one thing, those articles will deepen your understanding of management consultants and their work, helping you make better choices and explain them more effectively to the screener.

Additionally, reading consulting articles regularly will help you know more about the specific projects of each firm, which you can bring up in cover letters.

Tip 3: Build “cheat sheets”

A few ready-to-use “cheat sheets” containing all the important details on the consulting industry and major firms will significantly ease the writing process.

I recommend making three different groups of sheets – one for the consulting world in general, one for the firms, and the last one about the specific offices you’re applying into.

Be implicit and “smooth” when using these sheets. Make sure to sound as natural and seamless as possible when mentioning your references; avoid putting them at the focus of your sentences, but to use them as supplements to the main idea (e.g: I was awed by the network of experts supporting our project with McKinsey back in 2016).

Consulting cover letter – Visual format

Consulting cover letters are not the place for creative, colorful designs. Format your letters in a conservative, text-dense, black-and-white fashion – that’s how actual consultants do it.

One A4 page is the maximum length for consulting cover letters.

Inside the busy screening room, nobody has the time and energy to read a two-page worth of story, no matter how attractive it is.

If your cover letter exceeds that maximum length, trim away the less important details and shorten your expressions; you can also tweak your font size, spacing, and margins to squeeze the most content into one page.

Use formal, conservative fonts, such as Times New Roman, Calibri, Cambria, Garamond, etc.

Keep your font size at 10-12. Larger text tends to feel somewhat “messy”, and they’re space-consuming. Smaller text, on the other hand, feels difficult and tiring to read.

Additionally, the typeface in your cover letter should match that on the resume.

Spacing, margins, and alignment

Use spacings of 1.15 between lines and 1.50-2.00 between paragraphs. Consulting cover letters are quite text-dense, so it’s important to use these white spaces to ease the visual strain.

Always align your text on the left side. Left-aligning is the standard in the United States, where most major consulting firms are based; additionally, left-aligning keeps the horizontal spacing between words even, unlike justified where that spacing varies considerably between each line.

All four margins should be equal at 1 inch. That should keep your letter neat and tidy while maximizing the amount of text on one page.

Other reminders

If you know who’s screening, address them by name. Otherwise, generic salutations are fine.

I’ve come across pages claiming it’s no longer acceptable to write generic salutations (“ To whom it may concern ”); however, in consulting firms where the screening process is assigned to junior consultants on an availability basis, you don’t always know who’s reading your letter, so such salutations are okay.

On the other hand, if you happen to be applying into a small, new office, and your networking efforts are successful, you may know your screener. In that case, refer them by name for a greater impact.

Replacement test

If you can replace the industry and the firm in your letter with something similar and it still makes sense, your tailoring is not enough.

Your motivations should be based on unique and defining descriptions – for example, McKinsey having the largest support network for consultants, or Bain being the frattiest among MBB consulting firms.

Non-unique reasons, such as “prestigious brand name” or “interesting projects” can apply to basically every major consulting firm out there, so they’re not strong bases for your choices.

Maintain formality

Use formal language throughout, and keep standard your heading and salutation.

Show your uniqueness and creativity only through the main content sections. Other “procedural” parts of the cover letter should always remain formulaic – see the sample section.

The language in the main paragraph should also remain formal, i.e no slang, no contraction, no overuse of exclamations.

Avoid short-term motivations

Don’t say you’re in for a 2-year learning experience, or your application will be heading for the bin very, very quickly.

It’s costly to turn fresh graduates into effective consultants, so firms don’t want candidates who will bail out just after they’ve become useful. They want people who will stay in the firm for as long as they can – they want future partners.

You might include long-term plans concerning other industries, but don’t give the impression that you’re bailing out in a few years. If that’s your plan, don’t even mention it.

Proofread and edit

Writing cover letters should be a long process of continuous proofreading, feedback, and editing.

It’s best to find a former/working consultant or at least someone who’s knowledgeable about the industry to help you out. Consulting cover letters differ from normal ones quite considerably, so generic guidelines won’t be of much use.

It’s also very helpful to allow intervals of at least a few days between writing and proofreading sessions; you will find it easier to spot errors if you proofread with a “fresh” mind.

Try to avoid format, spelling, and grammar mistakes at all costs. In consulting cover letters, such mistakes are much less tolerated.

Cover letter file format

Always send your cover letters in the PDF format (most screeners expect you to do so).

This file format will make sure your cover letter appears the same on every computer, and it minimizes the damage that may occur in the file transfer process (by contrast, DOC files are vulnerable to numerous errors).

Depending on the computer, PDFs may look cleaner than DOCs – one possible bonus point for appearance.

Still not sure whether your cover letter is good enough? Book a meeting with former consultants. Our coaches will show you how to make your resume stand out among thousands of candidates. 

Cover letter example

Now that you’ve learned the secrets to the best story-telling cover letter, let’s have a little exercise and help the First President write one to McKinsey, shall we?

(The content in this sample letter is largely fictional for illustration purposes)

George Washington [email protected] Mount Vernon Plantation, Fairfax County, Virginia, U.S.A July 4, 1789

To whom it may concern,

My purpose in life is to liberate the American people and lead them to prosperity. The revolution of the Thirteen Colonies was up against the largest military force in the world – the British Empire – at a four-to-one disadvantage – few if any country had come up against such odds victoriously. And that was the situation I was in, as the leader of the revolution.

Under my lead, the revolutionaries mobilized internal support from 2.4 million soon-to-be American citizens and external support from allies in France. This support allowed us to remain operational even after severe defeats, which would otherwise put an end to the revolution. After six years, the Colonies came out victorious and was recognized as the new United States of America. War is over, so my new task is to steer the newfound States towards economic prosperity – and consulting experience at McKinsey will help a great deal with that.

I happen to also run a plantation business – Mount Vernon by name – which was McKinsey’s client during our expansion project in 1785. I was extremely impressed by the highly structured and data-based approach that McKinsey consultants took to deliver their solutions, and even more impressed by the incredible network of experts that was backing our project.

Through Ms. E.M – the Engagement Manager for our project from McKinsey’s DC Office – I came to be aware of the firm’s expertise in the public sector – which was recognized as being the overall best among major consulting firms.

And for that reason, I realized a consultant position at McKinsey DC will give me invaluable exposure in the public sector, both from its projects and its vicinity to the country’s capital.

I will be looking forward to speaking with you in person, about how I can put my experience as a former head-of-state and an entrepreneur to work at McKinsey.

Sincerely yours, George Washington

Scoring in the McKinsey PSG/Digital Assessment

The scoring mechanism in the McKinsey Digital Assessment

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Consulting Resume Toolkit

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You can refer on guides, tips, examples & templates in this article to build a excellent resume rely on the necessary criteria of a Management Consulting Firms

In this article, we'll look into several ways to tailor a consulting resume to stand out among thousands of competitors and win your screener’s heart.

Great consulting resumes have 4 main sections: Education, Work Experience, Extracurricular Activities, & Others. All should be result-oriented and data-driven

Consulting Cover Letter: a comprehensive guide

• Understanding Consulting Cover Letters
• Practicalities of Writing Your Cover Letter
• Section-by-Section Breakdown
• Quality Control

A stellar cover letter is going to be a basic pre-requisite if you want to land a top-tier consulting job at the likes of the MBB’s, Kearney, LEK, Deloitte etc.

More than half of consulting candidates are rejected based on their applications alone , before they ever make it to interview. This means that, for all the emphasis on case interview prep, your resume and cover letter between them are the single greatest determinant as to whether you land your dream MBB job or not .

Candidates typically have some realisation of the importance of applications, but make the mistake of devoting all their time to the resume alone as they assume it is the "important one". They assume that the accompanying cover letters are always fairly generic and/or are merely a formality that don't actually get read.

However, the idea that your cover letter is any less important than your resume is a hugely damaging misconception.

In fact, speaking to consultants currently involved with recruitment at MBB firms, we are told that cover letters have been becoming more and more important recently. This is for a couple of reasons:

• More and more resumes are coming in basically perfect (the proliferation of material like our excellent free resume guide has a part to play here). This means that cover letters are increasingly being focussed on as a way to differentiate top candidates.
• Cover letters are more indicative of your soft skills and personal fit with the office culture than a resume. Since firms are having particular difficulty finding candidates with the right social skills (especially post-Covid), cover letters become more and more salient in the filtering process.

To up the ante even more, add to this the fact that applications are increasingly read by AI tools as well. Whilst a human reader working in a hurry and skimming a document in a hurry might have simply missed an error, you can be sure the computer will pick up on any mistakes you make.

So, how do you get things right?

Putting together a decent consulting cover letter can be tricky and will probably take longer than you think. The demands are different and quite a bit more rigorous than for cover letters you might have written for other industries.

Luckily though, the strict demands on consulting cover letters mean that there is an equally strict set of rules to follow when writing them - as long as you follow these and put the time in to do things properly, you can reliably turn out an excellent document.

This guide will help you understand what it is recruiters want to see in a good cover letter and take you through the steps to draft your best possible offering. To make things as clear as possible, we discuss a template cover letter section-by-section.

Help is at hand!

Writing applications can be pretty daunting, especially with a dream job on the line.

Before we dive into all the complex nitty-gritty of how to turn out your cover letter, we should let you know that we have an editing service where a 5+ year experienced MBB consultant helps you draft your best possible resume and/or cover letter. You can read more here:

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This isn't obligatory, but is a great option for those who feel overwhelmed and want some help to get things right, as well as for those who want the inside track in terms of optimising something that is already close to the mark.

This application editing can also be done as part of a broader mentoring package, where that same experienced mentor helps you through the whole consulting selection process, from networking, through to case interview prep. You can find out more here:

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1. Understanding Consulting Cover Letters

To write a good one we will first need to understand the demands it must meet. That is to say, we need to understand the function of the cover letter and precisely how it will be assessed.

Let's start by going through some important points:

1.1. Function of a Consulting Cover Letter

The basic function of a consulting cover letter is to tell recruiters three things:

• Why you are worth employing
• Why consulting is a perfect fit for you
• Why you are interested in the target firm in particular

As we will see later, a standard management consulting cover letter is broken down into three paragraphs, addressing each of these issues more-or-less separately.

In many ways, the demands of your cover letter sit between your resume ) and your fit interview (which you will be invited to only if your resume and cover letter make the cut).

A consulting cover letter helps demonstrate the same skillset as your resume and you will effectively be selecting a few of the key points from your resume to amplify in the cover letter.

However, the objective of this document is not simply restating the facts on your resume, but rather creating a persuasive link between your personal story and the job you are applying for. In effect, the main purpose of your cover letter is to show that you are a great fit for the job you are applying for across the board. As such, you need to convey your personality and your motivation to do the job - things that are not readily assessed via your resume alone.

These are exactly the qualities that are also assessed in your fit interview. Indeed, just as with the Additional Information section of your resume, the information in your cover letter is very likely to form the basis of questions in your fit interview - where your personality and motivation are assessed again. Thus, just as with the Additional Information section of your resume, when you are drafting your cover letter you should be keeping half an eye on how you would be able to work the items you select into compelling fit interview answers.

All this means that our article on the fit interview is especially worth a read as you get started on cover letter writing!

1.2. Motivation

Consulting is a tough life and the average consulting recruit only stays in the industry for around two years - which means that many of those applicants who are lucky enough to land jobs will have left within 12 months.

Beyond this, many of those entering consulting only ever intend to stay for a couple of years before bailing out into roles in private equity or internal strategy, becoming a start-up founder, or any of the other typical roles where consulting experience will enhance their career chances.

This constant loss of talent is a big problem for consulting firms, who don't want employees to disappear as soon as they have accrued the training and experience required to be genuinely useful to the company. In effect, firms want to ensure they get a positive return on investment on training you.

As such, recruiters will be trying to identify candidates who are genuinely in it for the long haul - who want to make partner someday and who have the necessary motivation to push them through the years of long hours and tight deadlines en route.

Of course, we realise that you the reader might well be one of the candidates who only really plan to stick with consulting for two years before parachuting out into another industry. Realistically, this is a perfectly sensible career trajectory and we're certainly not going to tell you not to do so.

However , if this is the case, your application and subsequent interview are really not the time to discuss it. If you have ever had any inkling that you might consider sticking around and making a long-term career in consulting, then this is the inclination to channel during the selection process.

We return to discuss your rationale for entering consulting in our section-by-section breakdown of the letter itself.

1.3. A Test in Itself

Your target firm uses your cover letter to learn more about you in a couple of ways. Obviously, they receive all the information you communicate explicitly - all the achievements and experience and positive character traits you tell them about. However, your cover letter is also used by the target firm as an implicit (but very real) test of your writing skills and other qualities. It is important to realise this dual function and keep it in mind during drafting.

At a basic level, using correct, industry standard formatting etc shows that you have the professionalism and diligence to find out and follow the rules. As we will discuss later, writing a letter specific to the firm you are applying to also demonstrates your commitment to that employer.

More directly, though, your cover letter is used by consulting firms as a test of your writing skills. Writing consulting cover letters is not an easy business - if it were, you wouldn't be reading this guide! Composing a good cover letter requires you to assemble a body of information, synthesise it and present it in a compelling form.

Importantly, this is a set of skills - summarising complex information into compelling prose and extracting key points in data - that consultants use every day. Your cover letter is one of the main ways firms check for your competence here.

Similarly, readers will be very interested in your ability to use your cover letter to market yourself. In effect, consultants must constantly sell themselves, their firm, and their recommendations to clients. Indeed, this is becoming a larger and larger part of the job as more of the analytic side of consulting work is automated. As such, the ability to communicate persuasively is a key management consulting skill.

1.4. The Reader

With any piece of writing, the first thing you need to consider is who the intended reader is. This is especially important for consulting cover letters.

During the application screen, as well as filtering by AI tools and HR staff, your cover letter will be placed with one or two hundred others and passed to a junior consultant (often a recent alum from your university) to assess. Generally, this will be piled on top of that consultant's normal workload and often they will end up with very little time to get through this mound of applications. As such, your reader will be tired, possibly slightly grumpy and in a hurry - probably only skimming what you have written.

Keep this reader in mind at all times and write in a way that makes their life easier. This means making everything as clear, easy to read and precise as possible!

2. PRACTICALITIES OF WRITING A CONSULTING COVER LETTER

So, we have a good idea of the basic job of a cover letter needs to do, what ground it needs to cover, and how it will be assessed. Now it's time to get down to business and actually get the thing written!

To this end, we'll look at a few practical points about how to meet the requirements mentioned above, before focusing one-by-one on the five main segments of a management consulting cover letter.

2.1. FORMAT - DOING THE SAME AS EVERYONE ELSE

Just as with your resume, formatting a consulting cover letter is really not the time to embrace your creative side. Failing to stick to the standard rules of formatting risks being rejected immediately, without your letter even being read.

The tired junior consultant tasked with plowing through a pile of cover letters is unlikely to be in the mood for a strange font or weird layout and will simply send your application directly to the bin.

As noted above, standard formatting shows that you are professional enough to take the application seriously and that you have bothered to find out what is expected from your cover letter. The best way to understand how you should format this document is simply to take a look at our examples below, which are formatted in a standard "safe" manner.

In particular, though, you should make sure your letter conforms to the following basic standard:

• Standard typeface at a normal size
• No longer than one printable page
• Normal size margins etc - no extreme formatting to pack more words on the page!
• Name, contact information, and date at the top, in the manner of a traditional letter - you can include a postal address if you like, but an email address is perfectly sufficient nowadays - and will save space
• Standard structure explained below - opening, three main paragraphs, closing

2.2. Content - Being Unique!

You might have to keep the format strictly in line with everyone else, but it is absolutely crucial that the actual content of your letter is unique!

Always remember that your cover letter will be part of a stack of 1-200 deep. The content needs to really impress the reader if you are going to stand out from the pack and earn yourself an invitation to interview.

To achieve this, you are going to have to draw on your most impressive achievements and experiences and then portray them in the best possible fashion, to really make your reader pause and take note, rather than toss your letter towards the bin with the others.

Content that is unusual is also helpful in making your application memorable and might prompt interview questions where you can be well prepared to shine. During an application process with so many competitors, it pays to have something unique to you - a USP - to differentiate you from your peers.

However, this will only add value if it is relevant to management consulting!

In our discussion below on how to introduce yourself and your abilities, we'll discuss how you can emphasize your personal "spikes" - which help make your cover letter more unique.

2.3. Be Specific!

Your letter needs not only to be unique, but also highly specific .

Many candidates think that they can save a bit of time by just writing a one really "good" cover letter and using that for all their applications without any modifications. This might be true (or almost true) of a good resume. However, if you think that the cover letter you wrote for McKinsey will be able to be used without any changes to for Bain and BCG as well, we can tell you now that that letter wasn't good enough to get you a job with any of those firms!

As noted previously, a major function of your cover letter is to gauge your motivation to stick with the company if you are lucky enough to be hired. Your recruiter wants to make sure that you are genuinely keen to work for their specific firm for the foreseeable future. Any suggestion that your cover letter is just a generic chunk of text sent out to everyone in scattergun fashion obviously makes this idea pretty difficult to maintain - and will see your application heading towards that bin in short order.

To avoid this, then, take the time to write a separate letter for each firm you apply to. In these letters, you should include content that is specific to your particular target firm. What is more, this specific content should not be something generic or some kind of empty platitude.

If the best you can come up with is an obvious truth - or even worse, a common misconception - you will betray only a very shallow level of engagement, and will only succeed in vexing your reader.

Instead, you should be able to make specific remarks which show genuine insight. This will clearly demonstrate both your commitment to and knowledge of the firm.

These points will be particularly relevant to the section of the cover letter where you explain your decision to apply to your target firm, and we will pick up this discussion again later in this guide. However, there is room for material specific to your target firm in all sections of your cover letter.

3. Section-by-Section Breakdown

Let's go through the different sections of a standard management consulting cover letter one-by-one.

We will give examples as to how you might approach each section - however, it is imperative that you don't simply copy from specimens that we or anyone else have written. The examples here are only a guide as to how you should approach the different elements of a cover letter, not components to be lifted as-is.

Your own cover letter needs to stand out from a very strong field. Think about it - how can you possibly stand out by copying others? Beyond this, though, any hint that you are just copying from another source will see your whole application rejected immediately.

On a similar note here, we strongly advise against using an AI chatbot like ChatGPT to write your cover letter. Aside from that tool not knowing enough about your own life experiences, interests etc to say something with the correct degree of specificity, you run the risk of sending in a cover with the same writing style - or possibly even the same turns of phrase - as everyone else who did the same thing. Indeed, recruiters across many industries are already getting used to spotting AI-generated applications .

As we noted earlier, there are three main questions your cover letter must answer - why you, why consulting and why that firm in particular. The three main paragraphs of your cover letter will answer these three questions in sequence.

Provided you are careful to link everything together properly, there is actually some flexibility to vary the ordering of these paragraphs. You will always introduce yourself first, of course, but you can then state why you are interested in the specific firm before you explain what drew you to consulting, or deal with these in the reverse order.

In the interests of simplicity here, though, we will just deal with why-consulting-in-general first, followed by why-that-firm-in-particular.

The following examples are taken from an entry-level cover letter from an applicant to Bain London - and the detailed content is obviously tailored to that office.

In contrast to the relative ease with which a resume can be repurposed, you will have to significantly change the specifics of your cover letter as you apply for different offices and firms. Obviously, our candidate below can't just send this off to Bain New York without changing quite a lot of content. Similarly, this won't work as a cover letter for the London offices of McKinsey, BCG or Deloitte a wholesale rewrite.

With all this said, what is crucial is that the overall structure and format is maintained. This will be the case whether you are a recent graduate, Ph.D. or MBA. Even experienced hire cover letters will maintain the same fundamental format - though there will be (even) more expectation on the quality of the content.

3.1. OPENING YOUR CONSULTING COVER LETTER

The opening to your cover letter is very straightforward and is pretty much impossible to mess up if you follow basic rules.

First, you should record your name, email address, and the date of sending. You can include a postal address if you like, though this is no longer a strict requirement and takes up a lot of space. Your first sentence should state the specific position to which you are applying at the relevant office and firm.

The only issue that should give you any cause for concern here is to Whom the letter is addressed. Where possible, you should be addressing the letter to a named person - usually the recruiting manager of the office to which you are applying. However, where you cannot find a name to address your cover letter to, it is perfectly acceptable to begin "To whom it may concern" or "Dear Sir or Madam".

Jane Wu [email protected] 05/05/2019

Dear Ms Douglas,

I am writing to apply for the Associate Consultant position at Bain and Company's London office.

3.2. Introducing Yourself

After this brief opening, proceed straight to introducing yourself. Don't be shy - this is not the time for understatement or modesty! Top consulting firms are looking for exceptional individuals. Here, you need to leave the reader in no doubt that you are just such an exceptional individual!

To do this, looking at all the information you assembled for your resume, ideally, you should recount the three most impressive achievements in your life so far.

Of course, do this with an eye to achievements that are particularly relevant to consulting (your golf handicap might be good, but nobody in the workplace cares). Also, realise that the things we are most proud of personally might not actually be the ones that are most impressive to others (your golfing probably isn't great anyway). Try to look at your resume as if you are reading one from someone else. Alternatively, ask a friend what stands out to them.

It's your resume's job to paint a balanced picture of you as a well-rounded candidate with all the skills required to excel in consulting. However, in your cover letter, it can be beneficial to emphasise one or two particular strong suits, where you are exceptionally gifted. These are what consultants call "spikes". What recruiters are really looking for is well-rounded, generally capable candidates with a few "spikes" that might be especially useful.

I have recently graduated from the University of Cambridge with a first-class BA/MSci in Physics. At Cambridge, I was consistently near the top of my year academically and won a number of competitive scholarships and prizes; including the award for the best final year research project. During my third year, I was selected as the best of a very large field of applicants to take part in a prestigious summer research project at MIT. I was also elected as a Student Representative for two consecutive years.

3.3. Why Consulting is a Good Fit

Your job here is to provide a strong narrative demonstrating why consulting is a good fit for you and why it makes sense at this point in your career as a natural progression from what you have done before.

This is much the same as what is required from your answers in any subsequent fit interviews you receive. As such, our article on the fit interview , as well as our more comprehensive fit interview course and/or lessons in the MCC Academy , are highly relevant here.

Now, as we noted above, it is important to remember that there are some reasons to get into consulting that your target firm will be happy to hear about and others that will very definitely not impress.

We're not here to judge your reasons, whatever they are, for wanting a consulting job. However, there are certain reasons that you should probably not highlight if you would like to actually get that job.

Some candidates are not sure what career they actually want yet and think consulting would make a good first step, exposing them to different industries and keeping their options open for the future. The worry, from a firm's point of view, is that these individuals will not be sufficiently motivated to actually stick with consulting when they come up against the stress and high workload that come with the job.

Alternatively, some applicants are fully intent, right from the start, on bailing out into another industry after two years - when a sufficiently long stint in consulting has given them transferable skills and boosted their opportunities elsewhere.

Many candidates actually state these kinds of intentions - though they will certainly not be hired! As we noted above, firms want to retain staff and are looking for candidates who are committed to consulting for the long term.

3.3.1. Proving You Know What You are Getting Into

Given how many recruits drop out, firms want to be sure that you know exactly what you are getting into when you apply . When you explain why you have decided that consulting is a great fit for you, you obviously need it to be clear that you are doing so with a real understanding of what the job entails.

Ideally, you will have done an internship in consulting or a closely related industry. Alternatively, you might be moving sideways from a parallel sector, such as finance or tech, having worked alongside consultants in past roles and observed what they do first hand. In either such case, it is clear that you understand the demands of the job.

However, many of you will fall into neither of these camps and won't yet have any first hand experience of the consulting world. If this describes you, be aware that there is a particular onus on you to demonstrate that you know what is required of a working consultant - and that you have what it takes to meet those requirements.

Don't dismay, though, as this is definitely possible - it just requires a bit more thought from you. Really, you are limited to a strategy of identifying key consulting skills and showing that you have already had significant past experience (and ideally achievements) demonstrating that you are capable and comfortable in these areas - and, importantly, that you enjoy this kind of work!

This is similar in principle to some of what you should have already done in bullet point form in your resume. Our resume guide is useful here in listing the relevant consulting skills and giving examples that demonstrate them. However, your cover letter differs from the resume here in that the focus will be less on technical skills and more on personal character. You also can't be so schematic as in your resume, but must weave everything into a compelling narrative that leaves your reader in no doubt that you are well suited to, and prepared for, the job.

3.3.2. Finding Things to Say

Some candidates feel the need to embroider their accounts when they explain why they want to be a consultant. Maybe they genuinely think that the only reason they have chosen consulting is for the high salary and exit opportunities. Since they can't include either of these (as discussed below), they then cobble together an insincere-sounding road-to-Damascus story about how they had an epiphany that they should work at BCG or Bain.

However, introspection on the reasons that informed your own decision making can actually be a great source of material here. You might not be able to explicitly state them just now, but there are probably better reasons than you think for your choices.

Think about what exactly it was that led you to believe that you could do a consulting job and why have chosen to apply to jobs in that sector, rather than going into something else. If you want to be totally pragmatic, remember - it's a lot easier to answer interview questions on something approximating the truth than a tissue of lies!

I believe that I would be particularly well suited to the Associate Consultant position as consulting would provide real intellectual challenges, but placed within contexts allowing me to make use of my strong interpersonal skills. As a student representative, I instigated "Student Week" in the Physics department. This was a week where time was given over so that students could organise their own conferences and workshops. In order to make this initiative a success, I faced two main challenges: creating a committed team and getting the academic staff's support. I began by offering all students a stake in shaping the week and created teams in charge of all aspects of an organisation, delegating responsibilities to team leaders. Most of all, this experience taught me how to motivate people, leveraging their potential impact and the rewards to be gained from positive results. In the end, the teams were able to invite an outstanding line-up of speakers. Presenting the week as a chance to promote the school in the media enabled us to gain the final approval of academic staff. Understanding the perspectives of multiple stakeholders and identifying what they really cared about enabled me to transform an ambitious plan into reality. I loved this experience and would look forward to employing a similar skillset as an Associate Consultant.

3.4. Why that Firm?

Now finally, you need to show that you are committed to the particular firm to which you are applying . This is a crucial part of demonstrating your motivation as well as a way of showing your diligence in doing your research before applying. Needing to address why you want to work at your target firm in particular is why you fundamentally can't just re-use the same letter for all your consulting applications.

So, how should you do this?

In practice, there are three main ways to generate firm-specific content:

3.4.1. Contacts and networking

Whilst you might not have seen consultants at work first hand, there is nothing to prevent you from meeting them at career fairs, networking events, and the like.

You can also reach out to consultants in your target office via LinkedIn and potentially even schedule calls with them. You can do this from anywhere in the world. An experienced consultant can also guide you in this process within one of our mentoring programmes

The very best cover letters will grow out of substantial networking with current or former employees from your target firm - ideally from the specific office to which you are applying.

The individuals you speak to might be in a position to recommend you to recruiters. Otherwise, though, they will definitely be very well placed to tell you what is really unique about the company in general or your target office in particular. This is a surefire way for you to be able to make your cover letter specific in a way that actually rings true to those who read it.#

Also, don't be afraid to drop in the names of your contacts where they are relevant (and where this is appropriate, of course). The recruiter might know the people in question and they will lend credence to your application.

3.4.2. Reading

Of course, this kind of networking will not always be feasible, and certainly not at short notice. If you don't have access to anyone who has worked for your target firm, you should be able to get access to some of their output in the form of reports and similar material. Being able to comment on these demonstrates your enthusiasm to work at the target firm, as well as your diligence and intelligence. Indeed, mentioning report authors is a good way to shoehorn in the names of company employees whom you have not actually met in real life.

3.4.3. Observations

Of course, you would ideally be able to write about the first hand experience of working alongside consultants at a company that was a client of your target firm. Otherwise, if you have done your research, you will be able to discuss a successful project in which you have not been involved, but have taken a particular interest (possibly in an industry in which you have experience). This should convey genuine interest and, at the very least, shows you really have done your homework.

An example of how to approach this paragraph is as follows:

Bain specifically appeals to me for a few reasons. At a more personal level, all of the individuals I have spoken to who have worked at Bain have loved their jobs and seemed like people I would relish working with. Recently, I spoke to Sarah McKinney and Benedict Philips from the London office at a networking event. Both were very helpful and encouraging of my application. In particular, I was very excited to be able to talk to Sarah about Bain's recent work with capacitor technology firm NuCell. This was a project I had become aware of via my physics background and was very impressed with the sophisticated but wonderfully elegant solutions that Bain implemented. This was a significant influence in my decision to move towards consulting in general and Bain in particular.

3.5. Closing You Cover Letter

As with the opening, it is easy to get your cover letter's closing right simply by following a few standard rules.

Closing a consulting cover letter really just follows the same rules as a standard formal letter. Note that technically the form of your sign off depends on whether the letter was addressed to a named recipient or not. If you did manage to address your cover letter to a specific individual at the target firm, you should sign off your letter "Yours Sincerely". However, if you addressed the letter "Dear Sir or Madam" or "To Whom it May Concern", then you should sign off "Yours faithfully".

Not everyone will pick up on this, but some certainly will!

I very much hope that I can be considered for an interview. If you have any questions about my application or would like to know more, please do not hesitate to be in contact by email or on +44 7933023234. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely, Jane Wu

3.6. An Aside - Blurring Boundaries

For the sake of clarity, we have given quite a schematic picture of how a cover letter is structured. In practice, the separation between the content of the three main paragraphs is often not quite as clear as has been shown so far.

This is something to bear in mind as you are writing. Certainly, it is not a problem that the content of the three main paragraphs somewhat bleed into one another. Indeed, it might well be that the optimal version of your letter gives you more bang for your buck in including points with more than one positive function.

For example, you might make mention of people or reports from your specific target firm in explaining why you chose to enter consulting in general. Simultaneously you will likely be able to include some impressive achievements, relevant to your initial description of yourself, in that same explanation as to why consulting was for you.

4. Quality Control

By now, you should have a completed document in front of you. However, this doesn't mean that you're finished!

Just as with the resume, quality control should be taken very seriously when you are writing your cover letter, and will almost certainly take longer than did writing your initial draft.

First, you should make sure you have followed all the rules we set out for formatting and structuring a consulting cover letter. This is the easy bit, after all, and you shouldn't be making mistakes here when it's something you can easily control for yourself.

The following checklist is useful to make sure that the major elements are in order. Thus, you must make sure that any management consulting cover letter:

• Does not exceed one page
• Is formatted sensibly
• Contains no spelling mistakes (double check names of the company, position, HR manager and your contact information)
• Mentions skills that are relevant to the job
• Has relevant examples to back up those skills
• Reinforces skills that are not adequately explained in your resume
• Explains how your skill set relates to the job you are applying for
• Is tailored to the target firm

Of course, to hammer the point home, it should go without saying that spelling, punctuation, and grammar should be perfect throughout - especially these days, where AIs will be reading applications thoroughly, besides harried humans skimming them.

In particular, though, you should triple-check spelling around the opening where you list your own contact information and state the name of the target firm and specific role. Imagine making the cut to for interview only to have your invitation dispatched to the wrong email address!

You wouldn't believe how many candidates we see making mistakes here - indeed, outside consulting, the former Graduate Recruitment Manager at City law firm Mayer Brown found that 20% of applicants got the firm’s name wrong. If so many high-end, detail-oriented lawyers can make that kind of mistake, so can you - check!

4.2. Feedback

As with any important piece of writing, you will want another set of eyes on your cover letter. However, a consulting cover letter is not quite the same as for a more "normal" job, and there is only so much that your classmate, your buddy or your mum is going to be able to tell you . These people might be able to help you with spelling, punctuation, and grammar, but not a great deal else.

If you have access to a careers adviser, they will certainly be more knowledgeable and be able to give you more specific feedback. That said, the very particular demands of consulting and how cover letters are assessed means there is no real replacement for someone with actual consulting experience .

As always though, real consultants are incredibly busy people and their time has a high price tag. You might be lucky enough to have access to a consultant who will help you out - perhaps a friend or relative or maybe one of your networking contacts who likes you enough to take the time to look at your application.

However, for those who aren't so lucky, there are still ways to get top quality feedback. MyConsultingCoach offers cover letter review and feedback , both alone on its own and in a package with resume review.

With this service, a deeply experienced MBB consultant mentor, with a minimum of five years at McKinsey, Bain or BCG, will provide the kind of granular, nuanced feedback you simply can't find elsewhere. You can read more here:

Explore Application Review

You can also have the same kind of 5+ year experienced MBB consultant do this kind of editing for you as part of a wider personal mentoring programme. Find out more here:

Mentoring Programmes

Of course, none of these services are strictly necessary, and this guide is here to help everyone. However, professional editing will help you close the gap with your competitors who have the advantage of pre-existing inside contacts.

4.3. Iterate

It is easy to become attached to what you have written. Especially after pouring time and energy into a document, constructive criticism can end up being taken personally and ignored. However, if you actually want to get a job in consulting, you need to swallow your pride and be prepared to make substantial changes if they are advised .

Once you have re-drafted the document, you need to cycle through the same stages of quality control again, always making sure that everything is formatted correctly with no typos and then getting decent feedback on what you have produced. To get the whole thing just right will likely take at least a couple of these iterations. Indeed, this is precisely why MyConsultingCoach's review packages all include three rounds of feedback as standard .

Finally, then, you will have completed your cover letter and be ready to submit your application. You can give yourself a pat on the back for getting everything so far done. However, you still have a lot more work ahead of you if you are serious about making it into consulting!

If you are interested in getting an interview at the likes of the MBBs, Kearney, LEK, Deloitte, or any high-end consulting firm, it is absolutely crucial that your cover letter is the very best that it can be .

To this end, we have given a detailed guide on how to optimise a cover letter, breaking down all the relevant sections. Examples were provided from a sample cover letter for a Bain London application, though it was explained that you should never simply copy from such example cover letters.

We encourage you to read further - starting with our resume guide - and to consider editing from one of our ex-MBB consultant coaches. However, what we have given you here is a very good starting point for you to carve out a great draft cover letter.

If you have followed this guide and ideally found someone to provide decent feedback, you should have every chance of being invited to interview. However, nobody is going to do well if they prepare for a consulting interview the way they would for a more "normal" job.

Management consulting interviews area very different beast to what you might be accustomed to elsewhere. You can read more about the characteristic consulting case interviews here here . Suffice to say, though, that a large volume of preparation is both necessary to so well and explicitly expected by the firms themselves . Putting together your consulting resume or cover letter might have seemed arduous or time-consuming, but what was just the tip of the iceberg!

In particular, you will need to learn how to solve case studies. You can start with our intro to case interviews , which links to other useful resources.

It's important to learn to tackle case studies the right way if you want to perform in the more demanding interviews at higher-end firms. The old-fashioned frameworks you will often find promoted online can be dysfunctional in more complex case studies. By contrast, we recommend the slightly more demanding, but much more capable, from-first-principles method used in real consulting work. You can find out more in the followng video:

To make your preparation as effective and time efficient as possible MyConsultingCoach has developed a comprehensive consulting interview prep course . This teaches everything you need to give your best possible showing in an interview. Included are all the mental maths, business and finance theory and logical principles needed not only to solve cases but to do so in a way that will impress the interviewer - the way a real consultant would . Also included is a set of lessons on how to address "fit" questions about your character and motivation to enter consulting.

Find out about our resume editing services

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Consulting Cover Letter Tips, Hacks, Requirements & Examples

By: Author Will Bennett

Posted on Last updated: February 22, 2023

If you’re applying for consulting positions at prestigious firms like McKinsey, Bain & BCG, then you may be wondering how to write a consulting cover letter.

The best consulting cover letters connect your past experiences with the values of the company you’re applying to. The general format is to have an opening, 3 or 4 key paragraphs where you connect the company’s values to your own experience and a close.

But the devil is in the details. So let’s dive in.

Table of Contents

How To Write A Cover Letter For Consulting

A surefire way to write your consulting cover letter is to Google the values of your target firm and then use those values to show that your personality and past experience make you a perfect fit.

To do this, you’ll need to:

1. Google the name of the company you’re applying to (Example: Bain) and the word “values”. The top result will normally be a page on that company’s website where they list out their company values.

2. Jot down their top 3 to 4 company values.

3. Add each value to your cover letter as a bolded bullet point and, right after (or under) it, tell a to-the-point story of how you delivered on exactly that value.

4. Add an opening paragraph that expresses your interest in the company. Include one specific thing you like about that company. Be specific.

5. Add a closing that reiterates your interest.

And that’s it. This formula has helped consultants across the world land that coveted interview.

Tip: If you don’t find a “values” page in your initial Google search, try clicking around the company’s website until you find their recruitment page . There’s a good chance that they’ll list what they’re looking for on this page. Use those to craft your bullet-points.

Do Cover Letters Matter For Consulting?

MBB (McKinsey, Bain, BCG) companies have made cover letters optional. If you have a great GPA and graduated from an Ivy League school, and your resume doesn’t have any “red flags”, then you might get away with not having a cover letter.

As a general rule, cover letters help consultants get interviews. Your cover letter is your opportunity to tell the story that your resume can’t. A good cover letter can turn a mediocre application into an interview.

Keep in mind that, every day, consultants turn boring facts into convincing stories. It’s not enough to have the facts (your resume). You have to know how to turn the bland into the compelling. And if you can’t do that in your resume, then a consultancy might wonder if you can do it at all.

How Long Should My Consulting Cover Letter Be?

Recruiters for top consulting firms sift through hundreds of applications every day . So how long should your cover letter be?

Your consulting cover letter should be about a page long. You’ll want to write it to be long enough to be compelling but short enough to skim in a few seconds.

Your ability to sell yourself in a single page will be an important deciding factor on your suitability for the position you’re applying for.

Do McKinsey, Bain & BCG Require A Cover Letter?

McKinsey, Bain & BCG all state on their websites that they don’t require a cover letter but, keep in mind, a good cover letter could strengthen your application.

This is particularly important if you have any work gaps in your resume, or any red flags (like a low GPA).

How Do I Write A Cover Letter For McKinsey, Bain & BCG?

Writing a cover letter for McKinsey, Bain & BCG is pretty much the same across all 3 firms.

In all cases, you want to have a short opening paragraph, 3-5 paragraphs highlighting your strengths and how they’re linked to the company’s values, and a short closing paragraph. Focus on good, succinct storytelling while delivering specific numbers on the outcomes you’ve achieved.

What Should A Cover Letter For McKinsey, Bain & BCG Include?

According to Victor Cheng (author, ex-consultant & ex-recruiter for multiple top consulting firms), these are the 5 things recruiters look for:

1. Well-known employers or schools.

2. academic performance., 3. high test results in math., 4. proof of leadership and people skills., 5. notable achievements in your career (relative to the length of your career)..

Let’s look at each.

The company you end up working for has to sell you to their clients. If you’ve graduated from a top school, that’s an easy sell. If you’ve worked for a top firm, that’s an easy sell.

If you haven’t worked for a top firm, then you have to focus that much more on the other 4 criteria. (Or you need to get on an unpaid internship ASAP!)

Always put your GPA in your CV. If you don’t, they’ll ask for it anyway and write it in. A 3.5 GPA is like the bare minimum and recruiters and firms won’t really bother with you if you don’t seem smart.

Being good at Math is strongly linked to doing well at logical and analytics tasks. You don’t need a perfect score but higher is definitely better.

Being smart isn’t enough. You need to know how to work with people who may or may not dislike you. Your personality can’t get in the way of a client getting the results they want or need.

So you have to demonstrate times in the past where you were faced with a difficult situation and your people skills are what saved the day.

Focus on outcomes, not just responsibilities. Use numbers where possible. And focus on what’s relevant.

And balance it all against the time you spent working or studying. You don’t want to be the person who spent a few years at a firm or studying and did nothing outside of the ordinary. Every candidate studied. Every candidate worked. Focus on what you achieved that few (or no) other people achieved.

If you follow these tips, you’ll be miles ahead of your fellow candidates.

For more consulting career advice , click here.

Will Bennett is a Cambridge graduate. He worked as a Consultant and Senior Consultant at Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in London. Will is the Founder of The Cambridge Consultant.

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How To Write A Consulting Cover Letter That Gets You An Interview

Table of contents.

As the recruiting season comes thick and fast, applicants worry about the ideal way to structure their resume and cover letter.

And for good reason. Employers look for personalized and thoughtfully written cover letters as one of the ways of screening applicants for positions that they are hiring for.

A bad cover letter can be a deal breaker, so it is one of the most essential things recruiters from top-tier consulting firms consider.

In this article, we will cover how to write the perfect cover letter for you to secure a role at a management consulting firm – from the Big 4 to MBB.

What is a consulting cover letter?

A consulting cover letter accompanies your resume and documents your personal motivation for applying for the role, why you’d be a good consultant, and your desire for joining the firm you’re applying to.

When is a consulting cover letter required?

A consulting cover letter is required by most consulting firms, including McKinsey, BCG, Bain, the Big 4, and boutiques. It is generally required for both full-time and intern positions.

The best way to confirm whether a cover letter is required is to speak to the recruiter or check the firm’s website. In most cases, the firm will require you to submit both a resume and a cover letter.

Why do firms ask for a consulting cover letter?

There are a number of reasons that firms require applicants to submit a cover letter, including:

• It gives an insight into the unique attributes of the applicant. Since a cover letter is a personalized essay of sorts, it gives firms a richer understanding of the candidate, compared to just the resume.
• Allows the applicants to describe their motivation to join the firm. The cover letter offers the candidate some free-form space to share their story and motivations.
• Separating the extraordinary from the rest. A resume constrains what a candidate can talk about. The cover letter, on the other hand, allows the candidate to focus on the parts of their experience and motivations that make them unique.
• It’s a sneak peek into your communication skills. As a consultant, you will need to convince and persuade your clients. Firms are looking to see whether you can use your cover letter to convince them to give you an interview.

How to structure a consulting cover letter

Paragraph 1. a simple opening.

The opening to your letter is the most basic and straightforward paragraph. Simply introduce yourself and state the role that you are applying for. Keep it short, sweet, and simple.

Paragraph 2. Why you are a promising candidate

This is where you get the chance to open up and show why you are the ideal fit. Don’t be shy, this is no time for understatement or modesty.

Start by researching the firm that you’re applying to, and the skills and attributes that they are looking for. For example, the McKinsey website talks about how they value leadership abilities.

Next, think about the most compelling personal or professional demonstration of that attribute. In the case of McKinsey, you want to find an example where you demonstrated strong leadership.

The most important thing about your examples is that they show outcomes and results. It’s not enough to show that you are a leader; you need to show that your leadership achieved something amazing.

If possible, you want to demonstrate 2-3 skills and attributes that you firm is looking for. Given that there is limited space on a one-page cover letter, it’s fine to show multiple attributes in one example.

Paragraph 3. Why you want to be a consultant

Now is your chance to demonstrate why you chose consulting as your career path.

All the top consulting firms want to recruit candidates who show a desire to work in high-stakes world of consulting. You need to show that you know what you are getting into, that you are ready for the challenge, and most importantly, that you are excited to work in consulting .

Although firms understand that most consultants exit to industry after a few years, don’t mention that in your cover letter.

Paragraph 4. Why the position and firm is for you

Now that you have covered why consulting is a good fit for you, it’s time to narrow down on the specific role and position that you are applying for.

Research the firm thoroughly and identify a few exciting projects, people, or reports that caught your attention. Talk about why those things impressed or interested you, and led you to want to work at the firm.

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Common mistakes while writing a cover letter

There are a number of common mistakes to avoid when writing a cover letter:

• Not being specific enough.  Firms can sniff a generic cover letter a mile away. Ensure that your cover letter is tailored to the firm you’re applying to.
• Not demonstrating the right skills. Although firms can be similar, there are small differences in the type of candidates they are looking for. Make sure that you demonstrate the right skills and abilities for the specific firm you’re applying to.
• Attention to detail . Ensure that your cover letter is clear and there are no spelling or grammatical mistakes. That would be a good demonstration of what they are not looking for!

A Comprehensive Guide to MBB: McKinsey & Co., Boston Consulting Group, and Bain & Co.

A guide to get you started on your MBB applications, including what makes each consulting firm unique, interview tips, sample questions, and other expert resources.

Posted March 12, 2024

Featuring Taylor H.

Consulting Resume and Cover Letter Intensive

Tuesday, april 16.

11:00 PM UTC · 45 minutes

Table of Contents

Consulting has become an increasingly competitive industry due to its vast exit opportunities, incomparable work experience, and high entry-level salaries. The application process is complex and requires significant preparation.

Nowadays, there are many global management consulting firms and each has its unique advantages, values, and interview quirks. One of the most important questions that each consulting firm will want its applicants to answer is “Why us?” For this reason, we’ve put together a guide to help you stand out during your McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, and Bain & Company (MBB) consulting recruiting.

MBB Similarities

At the high level, all of the MBB firms are essentially doing the same thing: helping solve clients’ most pressing problems and answering their most strategic questions. There are several other things that these three firms also have in common. First, the industries that they operate in are relatively similar. Second, historically, all firms required a substantial amount of travel; typically, a consultant would be at a job site Monday through Thursday and then back at the home office on Friday. Since 2020, the demanding travel schedule has changed significantly; right now, most consultants have a hybrid travel model, but we will see how things continue to evolve in the next few years. Third, the salaries for specific positions are roughly the same. And lastly, consultants at McKinsey, Bain, and BCG will all interact with high-profile companies and have access to very good exit opportunities.

The real specificities come at the regional level. Different offices will have different specializations and it’s important to understand what they are, and which one you want to work for so you can articulate it in your interview. Below you will find a breakdown of each firm, including what makes each different, company-specific interview advice, and general tips.

McKinsey & Company

Quick facts.

Founded: 1926

Revenue: $10.6 Billion

Employees: 30,000

Headquarters: New York, NY

Global Presence: 133 cities in 67 countries

What Makes McKinsey & Co. Unique?

McKinsey & Co. is a strategy consulting firm, meaning it helps clients with high-level initiatives like deals and acquisitions, market expansion, revenue optimization, cost minimization, and more. From early on, McKinsey emphasized the importance of functional expertise in specific industries. They hired individuals with deep knowledge and experience in a specific area in order to provide the best solution to the client. This mindset continues today and the firm continues to stress that regardless of location, McKinsey employees should reach out to one another to tap into expertise in order to best solve the intense problems they are hired to tackle.

Compared to the other firms, McKinsey spends much more time training its employees. Instead of trying to teach people what to do, it attempts to provide a set of fundamental skills that can be used to improve ways of thinking and problem-solving.

The feedback culture at McKinsey is another differentiator that is highly encouraged and used to help employees constantly elevate their work quality and professional development. At least 20 minutes will be put aside every two weeks for a feedback session, but informal feedback may be given at any point. Also, this is expected to go both ways, from head managers to entry-level business analysts and back up.

McKinsey is also committed to a national staffing model, meaning that employees out of any regional office can be assigned to work on a case in any city. So, while the regional concentration might affect which industry the projects are in, it does not necessarily impact where those projects will be located.

McKinsey Values

There are three main values that remain at the core of McKinsey & Co.'s processes: first, a culture that is “values-driven”; second, strategies that are built around long-term success; and last, an environment that brings in exceptional employees. The values that McKinsey remains committed to were in large part established by Marvin Bower, the Managing Director from 1950 to 1967. They include professionalism and putting the client’s interests first, improving clients’ performance significantly, and fostering a non-hierarchical, inclusive, and diverse meritocracy. McKinsey places a lot of importance on sustaining these values and has even demarcated an entire day—known as “Values Day”—for its employees to honor in June.

McKinsey Industries

• Advanced Electronics
• Aerospace & Defense
• Agriculture
• Automotive & Assembly
• Consumer Packaged Goods
• Electric Power & Natural Gas
• Engineering, Construction, and Building Materials
• Healthcare Systems and Services
• Financial Services
• Life Sciences
• Metals and Mining
• Oil & Gas
• Paper, Forest Products, and Packaging
• Private Equity and Principal Investors
• Public and Social Sector
• Real Estate
• Semiconductors
• Technology, Media, and Telecommunications
• Travel, Logistics, & Infrastructure

McKinsey Office Locations

• Washington DC
• Johannesburg
• San Francisco

Expert Advice

“I can't think of a better place to start your career than McKinsey. One of the biggest benefits is being surrounded by such a high caliber of talent from day one. I was blown away by how consistently impressive my colleagues and managers were: these people weren't just smart, but also incredibly kind, thoughtful, and professional. In addition to the hands-on training and mentorship you receive from your manager, you will also "learn through osmosis" by being exposed to sharp minds and creative thinkers day in and day out.

Comparing McKinsey to other top consulting firms, two big differences stand out. The first is McKinsey's size and scale. With thousands more employees than BCG or Bain, that also means McKinsey serves more clients in more industries across a wider range of topics than any other top strategy consulting firm. While some practices are comparatively deeper than others, you'd be hard-pressed to find a major company or organization globally that McKinsey hasn't served in some way, shape, or form.

The second key difference is the level of ownership you're given as an entry-level analyst. The team structure at McKinsey has four layers compared to BCG and Bain's five, meaning you're one level closer to your manager and the partner on your project. From a staffing perspective, a post-undergrad Business Analyst is treated exactly the same as a post-MBA Associate at McKinsey. That means that from day one, you'll have greater ownership, higher expectations, and more opportunity for impact, leading to a faster development trajectory than you'd get anywhere else.”

- Camden R. , HBS MBA, McKinsey Consultant and Recruiter

Interviewing at McKinsey & Co.

Anyone interviewing at McKinsey will have to pass several levels of screenings and interviews. It does not require a cover letter, so dedicate time to making sure your resume is in the condition to pass the first filter and land you an interview. If it is found satisfactory, you’ll move ahead to the Problem Solving Test (“PST”). If you pass that, you’ll have two rounds of interviews, both of which will consist of a case interview and a personal experience interview. Then, you will hear if you have received the offer or not.

The different things that McKinsey is looking for in its interviewees are quantitative and problem-solving skills, creativity, and communication. In the PST, you’ll be expected to outline and solve the problem in a structured and formulaic way, and you’ll likely be required to do mental math. The case interviews will test how you can brainstorm creative and strategic solutions to real-world problems. While you aren’t expected to have industry-specific knowledge, you are expected to understand basic business concepts. Finally, the experience and behavioral interviews will help determine your ability to communicate effectively. Because consultants must constantly interact with clients, communication and interpersonal skills are very important.

McKinsey’s Personal Experience Interview (PEI)

The PEI is McKinsey’s spin on the behavioral interview portion of the consulting application. The biggest difference is that rather than asking several different fit questions, McKinsey likes to dive deep into one question. For example, take one of the sample interview questions, “Talk about a time when you achieved something out of your comfort zone.” After you initially answer, instead of moving on to a different topic, the interviewer will ask a series of follow-up questions like:

• What impact did your achievement have?
• What did you learn from the experience?
• How will it benefit you in the future?
• How did your comfort zone change as a direct result of the achievement?

In the last few years, McKinsey has also begun to include questions on embracing change in the PEI interviews. Have personal experiences and talking points prepared on how you have successfully navigated change in order to do well on this topic. There are two other things to be aware of as you prepare for your PEI interview. First, be careful of repeating the same stories with multiple interviewers. Second, occasionally the interviewer will ask the applicant to give a different story/example about the same topic.

Tips for Success

1. Have talking points ready for each of McKinsey’s main interview topics: personal impact, leadership abilities, entrepreneurial drive, and problem-solving skills.   The first three will mainly be relevant for the PEI interview while the last one is mostly present in the case interview.

On its website , McKinsey makes it clear what attributes they want applicants to demonstrate. Rather than analyzing the entire persona, the firm cares about several specific things. Use this to your advantage by making sure you have excellent examples and talking points for these areas.

2. Prepare examples from personal experiences that demonstrate your skills.

In asking about personal experiences, McKinsey is looking to understand the accomplishments that go beyond what is listed on a resume. This also gives you an opportunity to demonstrate how you will thrive in the McKinsey workplace. McKinsey interviews will often ask follow-up questions in response to the experiences you discuss, so make sure you are prepared to speak deeply about the stories you are telling.

3. Don’t discount the importance of emotional intelligence.

During your case and behavioral interview portions, focus on your emotional intelligence, namely, how you understand why and how other people felt, along with how you used your EQ to make a positive impact.

4. McKinsey case and PEI interviews are interviewer-led; know this going in.

Rather than the candidate leading the interviewer through the case in an interview, the interviewer leads the candidate. The interviewer will choose which part of the case they want the candidate to focus on. In the PEI interview, this means that the interviewer is trying to help you say the right thing, without explicitly telling you what you need to say. Pay close attention to what they’re asking because it’s the best indicator of whether you’re on the right track.

Example Interview Questions

• Explain a challenging situation you encountered when working with someone with an opposing opinion.
• Tell me about a time when you worked to achieve something that was outside of your comfort zone.
• Share an example where you effectively worked with people from different backgrounds.
• Discuss a hypothetical situation with a client to help us understand how you structure tough and ambiguous challenges, identify important issues, deal with implications of facts and data, formulate conclusions and recommendations, and articulate your thoughts.

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Boston Consulting Group

Founded: 1963

Revenue: $8.6 Billion

Employees: 22,000 (2020)

Headquarters: Boston, MA

Global Presence: 90 cities in over 50 countries

What Makes BCG Unique?

More so than the other top consulting firms, BCG is known for its emphasis on giving back to the community and it is very involved in social justice, community service, and other similar initiatives. Several times a year, BCG designates a day for community service days on which it asks its employees to serve their local communities.

Mentorship and leadership development are also very important. Associates will receive a lot of support and resources from higher-level employees, and this starts before they even join the firm. Employees are encouraged to interact with others from all levels and offices of the firm, for personal support, mentorship, help with a case, and anything else. BCG is well-known for cultivating this collaborative atmosphere.

BCG Industries

• Aerospace and Defense
• Building Materials Industry
• Consumer Products Industry
• Financial Institutions
• Industrial Goods
• Infrastructure
• Media Industry
• Medical Devices and Technology
• Metals and Mining Industry
• Oil and Gas
• Power and Utilities
• Principal Investors and Private Equity
• Public Sector
• Transportation and Logistics
• Travel and Tourism

BCG Office Locations

Expert Insight

“BCG values individualism. There is a TON of diversity at BCG, in terms of race and gender but also in terms of geographic/educational/socioeconomic background, working style, personality type, and more. BCG does this extremely intentionally and really tries to emphasize that diversity and steer into it, pushing for people to bring their full self to work and to design the job in a way that will work for them (which manifests itself in things like project choice.

For example, my case gives me a couple of hours every night blocked off for bedtime with my kids. There is also a wide presence of strong, active affinity groups. Furthermore, BCG has a big system in place, known as PTO (predictability, teaming, and open communication), to improve project life with things like weekly surveys and anonymous interviews with a third-party “coach” where every team member can provide feedback on project sustainability, team norms, or anything else that could help improve a project. Obviously, consulting can be demanding and so I really wanted a place that actively sought to make case life sustainable.”

- David O. , BCG Consultant, Ex-LEK, Kellogg MBA

Interviewing at BCG

According to a new hire at BCG, here is what the recruiting process consists of:

• Pre-interview: Application (resume and cover letter) + Pymetrics ( AI assessment tool) test
• Round 1 interview: Online case (case robot) and 30/45-minute behavioral interview (usually live on Zoom)
• Round 2 interview: Two live interviews (usually on Zoom) — the first 30 minutes being a case and the last 15 minutes being behavioral

As an FYI, BCG tends to put a greater emphasis on charts and graphs, so make sure your quantitative and data analysis skills are polished.

Here are a few other tips for nailing your BCG interviews:

1. Don’t reiterate your resume.

As part of the behavioral portion, the interviewer will ask you about your background, ambitions, and motivations for trying to get into consulting. As you explain your previous experience, don’t simply restate what the recruiter can already see. Instead, use it as an opportunity to share more experiences that demonstrate your skills and capabilities.

2. Get to know the office that you want to work at.

More so than some of the other firms, BCG tries to build a cohesive office culture. As such, an applicant’s fit with BCG will depend heavily on the office they’re applying to. Take time to understand what makes the offices different by doing coffee chats with the people that work there, conducting your own research, and thinking about which one is best for you.

3. Own your unique skills and strengths.

As mentioned above, BCG prides itself on actively building a diverse environment. This doesn’t mean that you need to come from an unconventional background; it does, however, mean that you need to understand what you bring to the table and be able to articulate it to the interviewer.

4. Learn to thrive in uncertainty.

In the final rounds of interviews at BCG, it’s not uncommon to be given a brain teaser or twist to measure your ability to think creatively. In doing so, the interviewer is trying to see how you do in uncertainty. Expect this so that when it happens, you’ll know how to navigate it based on the frameworks and cases that you’ve practiced.

5. Be creative .

BCG deeply values creativity — both in terms of solving each case in a creative way and in how candidates approach cases.

Interview Tips from a Top Leland Coach

Also, make sure to check out these essential interview tips directly from Leland Coach Nick V. : "As BCG has implemented technology into its application process over the last two years, including the Pymetrics behavioral test and the online case with a chatbot, many candidates have been unsure how to prepare. After my personal experience in the first year of these post-COVID interviews and subsequent experience mentoring a dozen BCG interviewees in 2021, a few best practices have emerged:

• Don’t stress too hard about preparing for this — it’s a simple, logic-based, adaptive test of your responses in timed situations. Just get a good night’s sleep and be ready with good wifi.
• Don’t take too many risks on the test. Just keep that in mind going into your Pymetrics. A couple applicants who got offers at McKinsey and Bain didn’t get BCG interviews because their results showed they were too willing to take risks.

Online Case

• Practice all the “live” case interview skills — they are directly transferable. For example, choosing the 3 most important buckets to consider for a case becomes a multiple-choice question.
• Practice case interview algebra (esp. profitability) WITHOUT a case interviewer. Get used to typing in an answer to a black box and not knowing if it is correct.
• Record yourself summarizing recommendations in 1 minute or less (you’ll be videoed at the end of the case for this) and watch how you speak and sound."

- Nick V. , Expert Consultant for Aspiring Consultants

• Why do you want to pursue a career in consulting?
• Tell me about a time when you led your team to an extraordinary achievement.
• Tell me about a time that you worked on a team.
• Tell me about a failure and what you learned from it.

“One thing I like to share with prospective candidates is that as compared to other firms, BCG has a unique organizational structure. They like to take an academic approach to problem-solving, which is reflected in their hiring - they often hire PhDs and have relatively few Associates (post-college entry-level positions). This leads to a really interesting culture and is a great opportunity for Associates. Since there are fewer of them compared to other firms, they are given outsized responsibility. There is also less pressure around getting promoted from Associate to Consultant, and there are many great resources for business school applications.”

- Neha S. , BCG Consultant, Facebook/Meta PM, HBS MBA

Applying to BCG? Read this next: How to Get a Job at BCG--Interviewing and Networking Tips

Bain & Company

Founded: 1973

Revenue: $4.5 Billion

Employees: 10,500

Global Presence: 65 offices in 40 countries

What Makes Bain & Co. Unique?

Bain & Co. is the youngest and smallest of the MBB firms, but it makes up for this with innovative processes, high-risk and high-impact initiatives, and an emphasis on results rather than reports. Bain has implemented its clients’ results into its fee structure in order to make sure that delivering success is prioritized.

Bain runs on a local staffing model unlike BCG (regional model) and McKinsey (global model). It does so for several reasons, including minimizing unnecessary travel, promoting mentorship and apprenticeship programs, and fostering office cultures unique to each location.

There are more associate consultants (ACs) than consultants at Bain (a “triangle model”) which is different from BCG and McKinsey which operate more on a diamond model (fewer ACs, more consultants). Bain emphasizes that hiring and promotions are based on a meritocracy; in fact, ACs at Bain & Company often have the opportunity to be directly promoted to consultant after three years, without needing to get an MBA.

Mentorship is taken very seriously at Bain. Instead of being assigned a mentor, new associates are allowed to choose who they’d like to coach them. In addition, Bain provides a budget for building the mentor relationship with activities.

Finally, Bain has non-profit consulting and private equity branches that attract many applicants. The Private Equity Group (PEG) is a designated team that does due diligence services for big funds. Bainies can rotate in and out, getting exposure to private equity and setting themselves up for more competitive exit opportunities. Pro tip: make sure you write a strong cover letter when applying to Bain! A recruiter there let us know that they are essential to landing the interview.

Bain & Company Office Locations

• Los Angeles
• Rio de Janeiro
• Washington, DC

Bain & Company Industries

• Advanced Manufacturing & Services
• Aerospace, Defense, and Government Services
• Agribusiness
• Automotive and Mobility
• Consumer Products
• Energy and Natural Resources
• Forest Products, Paper, and Packaging
• Infrastructure, Construction, and Building Products
• Machinery and Equipment
• Media and Entertainment
• Private Equity
• Social and Public Sector
• Telecommunications
• Transportation
• Utilities and Renewables

Interviewing at Bain & Company

The Bain Head of Consultant Recruiting outlined what the firm primarily looks for during interviews and it includes problem-solving skills, an ability to lead, delivery of results, and passion. When brainstorming personal experiences to share, think through how they fit into these characteristics. Like the other firms, Bain requires a behavioral/fit interview, case interview, and potentially a written case interview. Written case interviews are mainly used in the US, UK, and Russia and are longer cases in which the applicant is given 90 minutes to do an analysis on a 20-page document and will then present five slides to the interviewer.

Opposite of Mckinsey, Bain & Company case interviews are primarily candidate-led, meaning the applicant is expected to present their framework and walk the interviewer through what they believe to be the correct next steps. You should step into a leading role, taking the initiative and suggesting the next steps. Also, don’t be afraid to ask for data. If it isn’t available, the interviewer will simply tell you that. Interviews will ask a market sizing question and you will need to make several assumptions and estimates to solve it.

1. Network, network, network.

The recruiting team talks to each other and it’s important to make sure that the people who will be reviewing your application know who you are. Get a warm intro and do practice cases. However, don’t ping all the Bainies at once, especially with the same template letter.

2. Start early.

When recruiting season rolls around, the associate consultants will already have the cohort of students/recruits that they’re working with and probably won’t have much time to meet and get to know new people. For this reason, start reaching out, doing practice cases, and building relationships with Bainies early on–months before the recruiting kicks into high gear.

3. Practice the most common types of Bain & Company cases and use frameworks.

Bain uses three kinds of case interviews much more than others: profitability, market-entry, and merger and acquisition cases. So, before interviewing for Bain, make sure you have a deep understanding of how to succeed in these types of cases. Frameworks can help with this by providing a structure that can break down more complex problems into digestible components. Also, it will make sure that you are organized at a high level before you dive into the details.

4. Treat the case interview as a real-life scenario.

Many of the cases used in Bain & Company's interviews are actual cases that past consultants have faced. When going through the case, don’t be afraid to make real-life connections. Maybe you saw an article about the industry you’re working in, or read a report on a recent related trend. Doing this shows the interviewer that you are cognizant of the effect that these cases have and their relevance to everyday life.

Advice from a Coach: Bain Networking and Recruiting

At Bain, it’s not about how good you look on paper. It’s about Bain placing bets on the most likely candidates to crush the interviews and accept the offer. What does this mean for you? Well, start networking and casing with employees BEFORE the gamut of students begins reaching out to the Associate Consultants. That means you should start at the beginning of May or June and have a cadence of cases every three or four weeks or so. Focus on improving your case interview skills and ask deeper and deeper questions about Bain. If you’re staggering case interviews with ACs, then you may be able to get one every week.

Also, don’t underestimate the importance of networking. Though everyone may tell you that a networking call or practice case interview is non-evaluative, from June on, that is a bald-faced lie. ACs are absolutely rating candidates. For the first networking chat of the summer, it’s best if you have a warm lead. That can come from your consulting club presidency connecting you with Bainies in an email, from students on campus that have gotten offers, or from friends that are also recruiting.

Here are a few of the common pitfalls that I’ve seen applicants run into.

1. Pinging all the Bainies at once, asking for time

Look, we talk. ACs have a team chat. If we get the same template letter asking for time, we will probably still give it to you, but it’s not the best route. Better to get warm intros and stagger, ESPECIALLY if one AC refers you to another Bainie.

2. The airport test

Every Bainie knows this rule, and it is this: “If you are stuck in an airport for eight hours with this person, are you going to enjoy that time or go crazy?” So don’t be a goober. Social grace, proper grooming, being thankful, etc. are all super important in a client-facing job, and the decision-makers can tell. I’ve told the school team to exclude students (even “dude” friends) that wouldn’t pass the airport test.

3. Not beginning early enough

Every AC has their cohort of students they are working with, and when August rolls around, not only are we knee-deep in client work (as new Bainies have been coming on and we need to train them) but we also get a ton of in-bounds to practice cases with. If it truly is your first time hearing about consulting (and you’re a ringer) then you get a pass, but otherwise, we simply don’t have the time to case with you.

4. Not attending on-campus events

Odds are that all the interactions have been virtual so far in the summer. This is normal and fine. But when Bain is on campus, go to the events and introduce yourself in person! Make sure they see your face, smile, and banter a bit. That personal connection is helpful.

- John K. , Former Senior Associate Consultant at Bain & Co and Member of the Recruiting Team.,

• What is a difficult decision that you’ve made in the past year?
• Tell me about a time when you changed the direction of a team.
• What is an example of a time that you showed initiative and leadership?
• What experience are you most proud of?

“I loved working at Bain! Bain really embodies what people development means - and genuinely tries their best as a firm to help you reach your goals. During my time with Bain, I've done externships, office transfers, and an MBA - and the process each time has been as smooth as I can hope for. I've also always felt that everyone, from staffing to managers to mentors, cared about my needs and goals and was always there to provide guidance and support whenever I needed it.”

- Jaye Z. , Bain & Co. in Singapore, GSB MBA, VC and Startups

Applying to Bain & Company? Here are some other resources to help you as you navigate the application process, written by our expert management consulting coaches:

• How a Disneyland Churro Helped Me Land a Job at Bain (and 5 Pitfalls to Avoid in Market Sizing Problems)
• How to Get an Interview at Bain & Co.

Bonus: Writing a Compelling Consulting Resume

The first screening step that all firms take to filter out applicants is a resume (and for some companies, a cover letter) review. For this reason, it’s extremely important to have a polished resume that highlights your achievements, showcases strong skills, and makes a compelling case for your candidacy. As you edit your resume, keep these tips in mind:

Consulting Resume Tips

1. Minimize white space, but don’t go overboard.

Consulting resumes tend to have less white space than other corporate resumes. Consultants are used to seeing lots of data and they expect to see your impact on a resume. Don’t go overboard by filling every possible space, but also don’t be afraid to add details. Don’t use a font size smaller than 10 pt. and keep your resume to one page, full stop .

2. Organize your resume in a professional, clear structure.

If you are a university hire, your resume should be organized into the following buckets (in order): first, education; second, professional experience; third, leadership and/or service experience; and fourth, personal and/or any additional information. Generally, it’s logical to put the experiences in reverse chronological order. Then, add bullet points based on relevance and impressiveness. If you are an experienced hire, your experience section should come first (instead of education).

3. Quantify, quantify, quantify.

While having a recognizable company will definitely add some prestige and validation to your resume, the most important thing that you can do is to show how you made an impact by quantifying your experiences. Doing so will show both that you are results-oriented (very important for consulting) and that you made a difference. For example, did you “increase revenue by x amount” or “cut operations costs by x%”? Also, focus on the outcomes unique to you, instead of points that anyone at the company could have said.

These tips came from Leland Coach Camden R. , an HBS MBA Candidate, and former McKinsey Consultant:

1. Show lasting impact: Consulting is all about creating a lasting impact for clients. Consulting firms want to see how you have driven impact at your school, in your work, and in leadership positions.

2. Focus on unique outcomes: Don’t waste space describing what anyone in your role would have done. Focus instead on unique outcomes that you enabled. Talk about what you did, how you did it, and the impact you achieved.

3. Include who you are as a person: The resume should provide a view not just into what you’ve done, but also into who you are as a person, including your background, strengths, and interests.

4. Prioritize your experiences: Prioritize the experiences you include. Depth is more valuable than breadth, so do not include every job you have ever had.

5. Share unique experiences: In your Leadership, Skills & Interests section, share truly unique experiences about what you have done and/or enjoy.

Consulting Resume Template

Here is Leland’s resume template. Once you’ve got a draft, work with one of Leland’s expert resume coaches to polish and perfect it.

Example Consulting Resume

This resume was provided by one of our experts for his role as an Associate Consultant at Bain & Co. Notice how every point is quantified and the impact he specifically made is apparent. Also, from reading the resume you get a peak of not just who he is professionally, but also as a person. This is important because the firms are not hiring a robot; they’re hiring someone who will be client-facing and needs a personality, not just a brain.

Where Can I Start?

Applying to consulting jobs can be daunting, but Leland is here to support you every step of the way. Here are several other articles to get you started:

• Five Tips for Breaking Into Management Consulting
• A Day in the Life of a Management Consultant
• Best 30 Free Resources to Get Into Management Consulting
• Top MBA Programs for a Career in Consulting
• What to Major in for Consulting
• How to Network for Management Consulting

For one-on-one, personalized guidance, work with one of our expert coaches who can advise you on consulting firms, run mock interviews, review your resume, and much more. See them all here .

Leland provides you with the content, community, and coaching that you need to build your dream consulting career and accomplish other ambitious goals. Sign up today to gain access to additional free resources, community events, small group classes, world-class coaching, and more.

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MBB Consulting Firms: What’s Different About the Big 3

• Last Updated February, 2024

MBB is a shorthand way to refer to the “Big 3” strategy consulting firms, McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, and Bain & Company. These firms are the most prestigious consulting firms because they hire top graduates of highly competitive undergraduate and M.B.A. programs, solve the toughest business problems (industry disruption, mergers & acquisitions, new product development & launches), and serve industry-leading clients.

The MBB consulting firms are the toughest in the industry to land jobs with, hiring less than 1% of the people who apply each year. Is it worth the investment of time to apply?

In this article, we’ll discuss :

• What sets MBB consulting firms apart from the rest of the consulting world?
• How the Big Three consulting firms differ from each other: McKinsey, Bain, and BCG
• Top reasons for working at each MBB consulting firm

Let’s get started!

8 Factors that Make the MBB Consulting Firms Stand Out

Other Management Consulting Firms

MBB Comparison: McKinsey vs. Bain vs. BCG

Top 5 Reasons to Aspire for MBB Firms

What Sets MBB Consulting Firms Apart from Competitors

• History: The MBB consulting firms have a rich history of thought leadership and client impact. They have been in the business for a long time, with the oldest being McKinsey, founded in 1926. With their continuous contribution towards learning and impact, they have created an unbeatable and reputable relationship with their clients, usually top executives at Fortune 500 companies. For example, McKinsey Quarterly, started in 1964, has been helping senior management to understand business problems and assist with strategies to face them.
• Diversity of Projects & Clients: The MBB firms serve a diverse set of clients on challenging projects. They’ve helped companies step up their game and manage global disruptions, like the dot com or AI disruption. Their impact is everywhere, but not always seen. If you’ve ever used the Starbucks app to quench your caffeine thirst, you’ve already witnessed the impact created by an MBB firm. BCG has helped Starbucks create its app to improve customer experience, retention, and overall revenue.
• High-Quality Work: Each of the Big 3 have different organizational models, but they all seek to consistently deliver high-quality work. McKinsey feels that it delivers quality by working on-site with their client and solving problems together. BCG’s approach is to deliver unique, bottom-up solutions tailored to every client rather than leveraging solutions that have worked for other clients. Whatever the method, they seek to make a big impact on the client’s business.
• Focus on Individual Development: Strong focus on the personal and professional development of each and every individual is in the DNA of the MBB consulting firms. One can definitely expect to grow immensely while at the MBBs.
• Camaraderie: The MBB consulting firms all interview for strong teamwork skills. As they say at Bain, “a Bainie never lets another Bainie fail,” which shows the culture and the level of support you can expect.
• Competitive Salary: With great work and responsibilities, come higher paychecks. MBB consulting firms pay more than other consulting firms across levels, as they are in a talent war with Wall Street’s investment bank s, venture capitalists, tech firms, and others .
• Brand Value: High-quality work, long-standing client relationships, great work culture, and competitive salary, all come together to create a strong brand value for the MBB firms.
• Excellent Exit Opportunities: MBB consultants, with their diverse experiences, have a plethora of exit opportunities in operations, strategy, finance, sales, and leadership roles. Additionally, the alumni network is extremely strong, which can open doors to top firms across industries.

Nail the case & fit interview with strategies from former MBB Interviewers that have helped 89.6% of our clients pass the case interview.

Overview of Different Types of Consulting Firms

The global management consulting industry is huge, with annual global revenue almost reaching $1 trillion in 2022. It’s expected to continue to grow at ~10% annua lly . There are many more firms than the MBB in the industry. The “Big 4” and various boutique consulting firms play a vital role in driving strategic business decisions and creating a global impact.

Deloitte, EY, PwC, and KPMG, are collectively called the Big 4 of Accounting, and with their consulting arms, they play a major role in driving global consulting projects, especially around implementation and transformation.

Boutique firms are newer, specialized, or localized consulting firms dealing within a particular sector, function, or region. Usually, boutique consulting firms are smaller with a focus on specialized and customized offerings. With smaller team sizes, they usually work closely with their clients throughout the life cycle of the project.

MBB Firms vs. the Big 4 & Boutique Consulting Firms

Let’s dig into how the MBB firms compare with the Big 4 and other boutique firms. This will help you make a more informed decision when choosing between firms.

• Clientele: Consultants in the MBBs deal with upper management of Fortune 500 companies, while in Big 4, clients are usually from the middle-management and IT leadership. With boutique firms, this can vary.
• Projects: MBBs work more often on strategic projects with a lot of room for getting creative and crafting a unique solution. The Big 4 firms more frequently focus on operations and transformation. Among boutique firms, the type of projects might vary and can be strategic vs. operational, based on the firm and the client.
• Recruitment: As mentioned above, the bar for getting an offer from an MBB firm is quite high, and less than 1% of applicants get offers. Contrary to this, recruitment in the Big 4 or boutique firms is easier, though still not easy.
• Compensation: The MBB firms offer high salaries compared to the Big 4 and other boutique consulting firms. Though, it is worth noting that some boutique firms pay more than MBB. Read our Management Consulting Salary Report for more information.
• Prestige : Having an MBB consulting firm on your resume shows prospective recruiters that you have passed a rigorous selection process and a stamp of approval as top talent. It elevates your professional brand at first glance.
• Work-Life Balance: The life of a consultant at MBB firms involves long hours but with strongly unstructured work. On the flip side, work at Big 4 is more structured and balanced, which allows some breathing space and enough time to maintain a work-life balance.
• Training and Development: MBBs have specialized training sessions on problem-solving and execution which helps in driving strategy projects and translates to an intense learning experience for anyone working at MBB firms. In the Big 4 firms, the training, although extensive, is focused more on process and technology management which aligns more with the type of projects undertaken. Training at boutique firms varies, relying more on interaction with senior consultants and subject-matter experts.
• Working Culture: MBB firms have a flat hierarchy with the whole team responsible for problem-solving and delivery. Big 4 firms, on the other hand, have hierarchical structures with responsibilities divided among various team members. Boutique firms with their smaller size tend to have highly entrepreneurial and ownership-driven cultures.
• Exit Opportunities: The brand value and the diverse experience that one gets while working at MBBs provide an open field of opportunities when exiting the consulting industry. The jobs MBB consultants leave consulting for include private equity firms, venture funds, start-ups, and strategy or management positions in Fortune 500 companies. For anyone working in Big 4 or boutique consulting firms, the exit opportunities are still lucrative but may be more focused on the function or sector they worked in.

Now we understand why MBB consulting firms are considered the Big Three strategy consulting firms compared to the Big 4 and the boutique consulting firms. Let’s dive into how the MBB firms compare against each other and how to know which one is the best for you.

The MBB consulting firms can seem very similar to those new to the consulting industry, but the cultures and approaches to client work are different . Each firm looks for recruits who understand their firm’s uniqueness and fit their firm best.

Knowing what sets the Big Three consulting firms apart from each other will help you strengthen your chances of landing your dream job.

McKinsey & Company

McKinsey, the oldest and most prestigious of the Big 3, was founded in 1926 by James O. McKinsey, a professor at the University of Chicago.

McKinsey has evolved over time but it also has kept its culture intact. The obligation to dissent runs deep in McKinsey’s culture and was shaped under the leadership of Marvin Bower, managing partner from 1950 to 1967. He believed that each and every individual in the firm should actively analyze ideas that are different than their own and also iterate on others’ ideas, especially if they felt that their team’s problem-solving was flawed or the recommendation they were giving was not the best for the client.

McKinsey has been quick to adapt to changing times. They were early adopters of the concept of functional practices to deal with the increased complexity of the problems faced by their clients. They built with deep functional knowledge in sales & marketing, data analytics and coding, and operational excellence. More recently, McKinsey has gotten into the digital realm of technology and artificial intelligence-driven transformations.

McKinsey propagates the culture of collaboration and encourages knowledge sharing across geographies and functional practices. This helps the firm to “bring the best of McKinsey” to each client by utilizing its internal expertise to help solve customer problems in a quick and effective manner.

McKinsey’s recruitment follows the same process as that of BCG or Bain, with some nuances in the way initial screening or interviews are conducted, as discussed below.

• Interviewer-Led Cases: McKinsey case interviews are interviewer-led rather than candidate-led. This means that your interviewer will lead you through a series of problems to solve rather than letting you decide where and how to start solving the case. This format of the interview doesn’t change the difficulty level. If you follow the same 4-step process of opening -> structuring -> analyzing -> recommendation, you can ace the case.
• Fit Assessment: McKinsey assesses a candidate’s fit in all interviews. Bain and BCG conduct fit interviews separately from case interviews. McKinsey’s behavioral questions are asked either at the beginning or towards the end of the interview, with the rest of the interview focused on the case.
• Fit Traits Tests: Apart from the common traits of problem-solving and leadership, McKinsey tests the personal impact and entrepreneurial drive of the candidates.
• Use of Digital Assessments: McKinsey, for a long time, recruited on campus at core schools and hired most of its new analysts and associates from these schools. With a broadened focus on hiring the best talent irrespective of geography, McKinsey has started using online assessments, specifically the McKinsey Problem Solving Game, to effectively gauge the problem-solving skills of individuals.

Some notable McKinsey alumni are :

• Sheryl Sandberg, former COO of Facebook
• Andrew T. Kearney, Founder of A.T. Kearney
• Jonathan Schwartz, CEO of SunMicrosystems
• Jane Fraser, CEO of Citi
• Kevin Sharer, CEO of Amgen

Does McKinsey’s culture excite you? Learn more about the McKinsey Case Interview and “ Why McKinsey” to increase your chances of getting a McKinsey offer.

Boston Consulting Group

BCG was founded by Bruce Henderson in 1963 with a vision of being a pioneer in bold, new approaches to running a company and helping organizations become “ready to win.” Henderson always believed in breaking the status quo, and that has become a part of the BCG DNA.

BCG is all about its people, and it does everything possible to provide a great working experience. BCG invests a considerable amount of time and money on the development of people across levels. It is common to have senior partners mentoring associates from their start at the firm.

BCG is the forerunner of thought leadership in the consulting world. BCGers (as they call themselves) strive to break the status quo and are highly academically driven. BCG, like other top consulting firms, have functional groups, but they also believe in tailoring solutions to the client’s unique requirements. This leads to heavy brainstorming and requires thinking out of the box while crafting the recommendations.

To drive the never-ending innovation, people at BCG take pride in staying up to date with the changes in public policy, financial markets, and disruptions in global business. It is common to see people having a healthy debate about current affairs and business, and pushing others to broaden their perceptual horizons.

BCG believes in contributing back to society. Throughout the year, on various days, BCG runs community service drives where people come together and contribute to charities in their community. This brings BCGers together outside work and helps in building stronger bonds.

The BCG recruitment process has many similarities with that of McKinsey and Bain, but there are certain aspects that matter more for the BCG recruitment process when compared to the other two.

• Interviewee-led cases: BCG interviews are candidate-led. The ability to drive the case forward while letting the interviewer know the reasoning behind your steps is important to passing your interview.
• Tailored case structures and solutions: BCG is the “nerdy” MBB and that shows up as BCG tends to solve every client’s problem in a tailored way. When applying to BCG, your case structure must be tailored to the business problem at hand.
• Show your cultural fit throughout your interview: BCG is all about its people and culture. When interviewing at BCG, being personable, coachable, and having a go-getter mindset needs to be showcased.
• Fit traits tested: In the behavioral interview, BCG focuses on leadership skills, resilience, influence, and impact.

People from BCG continue to create an impact even after leaving the firm. Below are a few prominent examples.

• Bill Bain, Founder of Bain & Co
• Roland Berger, Founder of Roland Berger Strategy Consultants
• Indra Nooyi, CEO of Pepsi
• Enrique Ramirez, CFO of Pizza Hut, Inc.
• Sally Blount, Dean of Kellogg School of Management

Did BCG’s culture resonate with you? You can read more about how to crack the BCG Case Interview or learn more about “Why BCG” can be the right fit for you.

Bain & Company

Bain, the smallest and youngest of the MBB consulting firms, was founded by Bill Bain, after he left Boston Consulting Group in 1973.

Bain is all about their customers and the “results” their projects deliver. This is one key reason why Bain is among the Big 3.

Bain has its project’s financial incentives aligned with its client’s success. Thus, the overall objective is always to make the client “win.” This mindset is evident in the success rates of their publicly-listed clients, who outperform S&P 4:1.

Bainies live by the motto of “work hard, play hard” and they believe in developing strong professional and personal relationships. Bainies can be seen having a drink after a long workday or going out together on weekends.

“A Bainie Never Lets Another Bainie Fail” – explains a lot about what to expect at Bain.

The strong bonding helps in making the long work hours manageable. One can expect a Bainie just a text or phone call away. The culture takes pride in helping people out of the weeds, picking them up during their low times, and setting them up for success.

Almost all consulting firms have the same career progression with slight differences in position names. The MBB firms all have “up-or-out” policies where individuals must earn promotions within a certain time frame or they’ll be asked to leave the organization. But Bain has the highest retention rate among the MBB firms. Bainies have an edge in how they shape their progression. They get an opportunity to customize their professional journey. At Bain, it is called “choose-your-own-adventure” and gives them a chance to move across global offices, take an externship, attend business school, or take up social impact work. The input Bainies get into their careers might be what helps them to be successful.

• Interviewee-Led Cases: Like BCG, Bain uses interviewee-led cases. Bain cases focus on understanding when the data is enough to make recommendations and not “boiling the ocean.” If you feel ready to make your recommendation on a Bain case, don’t hesitate. Walk your interviewer through why you think you are ready to make your recommendation and proceed with it. They will appreciate your confidence and ability to drive the problem-solving to its conclusion.
• Fit Traits Tested: Bain primarily focuses on the traits of entrepreneurship, the ability to lead, and teamwork.
• Bain Experience Interview: Bain’s behavioral interview is known as the Bain Experience Interview, which is similar to any fit interview with an emphasis on getting to know the interviewee in detail. The interviewer can sometimes ask follow-up questions to better understand the examples and how well you fit into the Bain culture.

Bain is the youngest of the MBB consulting firms but still has notable alumni as below.

• Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube
• Scott Cook, Founder and CEO of Intuit
• Mark Pincus, Founder and CEO of Zynga
• John Donahoe, CEO of Nike
• Kevin Rollins, CEO of Dell

Do you think Bain is the right fit for you? Learn more about “Why Bain?” , the Bain Case Interview , and the Bain Experience Interview to improve your chances of joining Bain.

Top 5 Reasons to Aspire to Work for MBB Firms

Now you know what makes MBB firms stand out from other top consulting firms and how they stand against each other. Which one is the right fit for you? We’ve listed down the Top 5 reasons to join each of these firms.

Why join McKinsey & Company?

• Most prestigious among the MBB firms
• Values functional and industry expertise
• Collaborative & supportive environment
• Great exit opportunities
• Extensive travel

Why join Boston Consulting Group?

• Forerunner on thought leadership
• People-centric
• Effective mentoring
• Intellectually stimulating work environment
• Contributes back to society

Why join Bain & Company?

• Customer-centric
• Strong camaraderie
• Carving out your own professional journey
• Exposure to Private Equity
• Entrepreneurial drive

  – – – – –

In this article, we’ve covered:

• What makes the MBB consulting firms the Big 3?
• How do the Big 3 compare against each other?
• Top 5 reasons to join each of the MBB firms

Still have questions?

If you have more questions about the culture at MBB consulting firms and which one could be the best fit for you, leave them in the comments below. One of My Consulting Offer’s coaches will answer them.

Other people, like you, who are aspiring to land jobs at the top consulting firms found the following pages helpful:

• Our Ultimate Guide to Case Interview Prep
• Consulting Cover Letters
• Why McKinsey vs. Why BCG vs. Why Bain
• Big 4 Consulting Firms
• Boutique Consulting Firms

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Do you have any examples for a successful mbb cover letter.

Would like to know more about structure and content.

Overview of answers

• Date ascending
• Date descending

In terms of the structure I would use the following (in paragraphs):

• Intro of who you are
• Why you (several reasons)
• Why "The Company" (Usually 3 reasons)

In terms of the content:

Why you is about your career path and extracurricular activities. Depending on your experiences either start from the first or from the last role (the later you are in your career the more sense it is to start with last one). You can mention a couple of your unique selling point and structure your lifepath around it. Add memorable projects or experience with high impact / cool brands / etc. that will stay in the memory of the reader.

Why "The Company" question can include the following arguments:

• Brand / positioning / market share in the region
• More clients / projects / expertise in the industry you are interested in
• More well-known stories of success in your city
• Your friends working there
• Your interactions with the other consultants before the interview
• Your prior experience of working with the Firm on a client side
• Office traditions
• Work experience with firm alumni

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COVER LETTER

Perfecting your cover letter, use these tips to create an exceptional cover letter.

Your cover letter is the first 'work output' that a firm will have from you. A well-executed cover letter proves that you have strong written communication skills, that you are succinct, and that you clearly articulate ideas and thoughts. A quality cover letter often requires multiple rounds of edits. Luckily, as you write more of them, they become easier to do. While it is okay to leverage the structure and format of a cover letter, do not fall into the trap of copying and pasting them across applications. Not only is that trick easy to spot, but it also leads to embarrassing mistakes such as addressing the wrong person or company.

Here are some rules to make a strong cover letter template for use anywhere:

Always try and find out if there is a specific person you can address. Doing so not only proves you've done your research on the firm, but also that you are personable. 

A cover letter, like an essay, should follow a concrete structure. Consider the following:

First Paragraph  - The first paragraph should contain a brief introduction about yourself and your interest in the role you are applying for. The last sentence of this paragraph should highlight the three or four reasons that make you a strong candidate for the role​

Second Paragraph  - This paragraph is dedicated to highlighting your skills. Talk about the three abilities you listed in the previous paragraph. Give an example of how you used each skill, and highlight what you accomplished. End the second paragraph with how you are interested in applying these skills at MBB.

Third Paragraph  - The final paragraph highlights why you are interested in this specific firm. Treat this question seriously—do your research and discuss why being a BA or associate at the firm excites you. Do not be generic and talk about how you want to travel or work at a prestigious company, for example. Instead, be specific—for instance, you could talk about an interaction with a specific partner at your university's recruiting event and how their enthusiasm for the firm inspired you to apply.

Conclude politely and succinctly in a way that excites the hiring manager. Finish strong and promise something of real value to the firm at which you are applying. 

In total, aim for around 500 words at most. That is what makes writing a cover letter tricky—you have to communicate ample information in a succinct manner and do so while being both clear and engaging. Every word counts. 

For more detailed tips and suggestions, including a real world cover letter example - visit the shop to check out the cover letter guide that is right for you!

申请咨询公司cover letter写作建议？

1.Cover Letter的写作角度

2.cover letter 核心要素, 3.cover letter 结构, 4.cover letter的写作雷区.

求职过程中许多同学会花费大量精力修改简历以敲开咨询公司大门，但却忽视了自己的Cover Letter。实际上，最终拿到 MBB offer 的人，无一例外都有一份足够吸引HR 的 Cover Letter。

在准备 Cover Letter 前，首先要明白：写CL的时候，不要只考虑展示个人优势和特点，而是要从 企业 的角度，考虑 企业想要的什么样的人才 。

一般来说，咨询公司会非常偏向有以下三种优势的人才：

咨询行业非常看重申请者是否具备陡峭的学习曲线。因为在进入咨询后，常常需要咨询顾问要在短时间内对一个领域从外行成为内行，因此快速学习能力很重要。

咨询是在理想化情况下解决商业问题，但实际问题要更复杂，如xx品牌如何在中国开发一个新产品等，而这就需要很好的逻辑分析能力。

咨询公司都是和团队一起做项目，其中包括顾问同项目同事和客户的合作与沟通，这就需要顾问运用各种沟通方式来促使客户提供更多的信息。

无论是申请 MBB 或其他名企，以下这三个要素在 Cover Letter 中都是最核心的部分，CL中的措辞都要围绕着这些关键点进行匹配：

即申请者对自己的相关描述要与所申请公司/岗位的要求是匹配的，可以参考岗位 JD 中 requirements的关键词。

即申请者要了解所要申请的企业文化，并尽可能在CL中体现出来自身和企业文化的匹配度。如MBB 三家虽然都是 Tier 1 咨询，但其实每家的风格迥异，如果申请者只是以对咨询行业或是 Tier 1 咨询的宽泛理解来进行匹配，并没有足够的说服力。

区别于前两项，这项指的不仅涵盖岗位和文化，而是全方位的匹配，具体而言即 从自身的优势与过往的经历里面找到最匹配的几项。

MBB及其他顶尖咨询 Cover Letter 书写需要使用英文，采用如下 三段论 的结构即可。

• 开头：简单自我介绍+申请动机

自我介绍部分尽可能用简洁的语句讲清楚你是谁，目前在学习/工作，以及如何找到你正在申请的这家公司的职位，要素如下：

• 你工作/实习过的公司名称，以及你正在工作/实习的公司
• 你申请的具体职位（Analyst or Associate）

开头中真正重要的部分即申请的motivation，即先解释“ Why consulting ”再回答 “ Why this company ？”，同时建议解释 motivation 的时候，既要有深远的意义，又要注重落地。

以申请Bain为例，建议首先说明自身对管理咨询的看法，再表述自身对Bain的看法（不要只局限于强调bain是世界三大战略咨询公司之一，而是要有自己的看法）。

在说明“ Why consulting ”，可以说：我选择管理咨询是因为在职业规划中希望能够在进入职场头3年能快速地训练战略性、分析性思维，为以后的发展提供更大的可能性。同时，咨询能够提供多样化项目环境、接触不同行业的机会...

此外，在回答“ Why this company ”时，理由并非一定要说得很 fancy ，大可以这样说：我的校友在bain工作，我在和他的沟通中开始喜欢bain这样的企业文化风格...

• 主体 ：selling points

这部分主要介绍自身的“卖点”，尽可能展现自己的能力与岗位的匹配度，要注意很多HR只会浏览重点，因此， 建议可以先分条概括自己的特点，甚至加粗加黑， 以方便HR发现重点。同时，就每一点运用论据展开说明，且要说明自身优势在工作中可以起到什么作用。

即就对方给予的机会和时间表示感谢，并自然过渡到简历，提醒他们记得查看你的简历，同时再次提供你的联系信息，方便他们不必滚动到顶部来获得。

3.2 cover letter模板

以BCG的cover letter为例，我们给出了相应的模板：

• 证明每封Cover Letter是单独写的

• 公司LOGO切记用最新官网素材

• 认识/见过公司的人，参加过公司的活动

• 研究过公司的业务，读过公司的报告

• 最突出的能力、工作技能、行业经验

• 最显著的个人性格特质

• 工作以后可用的资源

• 优于其他人才强调，不超过3条

以上这些模板都仅供参考，不建议大家直接套用。因为针对不同的岗位，你必须针对性地撰写不同的Cover Letter！

CL中出现拼写、语法这种低级错误不仅会被质疑能力，还会被质疑态度有问题。如果英语水平不是非常好，建议可以多用 简单的句式 。同时，写完了一定要自己 先校对三遍以上，并给第三方如专业人士校对。

• 内容重复简历或写得过多

切记CL重复简历是大忌，要去升华、提升简历。同时，HR通常没有足够的时间仔细阅读每个候选人的CL，因此建议大家坚持 “一页”原则 ，并把关键信息写在开头最明显的位置。

• 没有最大化展现自己的优势

HR浏览CL最关键的一点就是时间非常短，因此一定要在有限的时间里尽量多地展现自己的优势。包括 实习经历、奖项 和 专业水平 等。如果在这个部分过于谦虚的话，会让HR觉得你太普通，没有什么过人之处。以我们学员的修改为例如下：

更多咨询求职干货分享，请关注微信公众号：TopCareer

❤创始人微信号：18601656025

❤纯手码字不易，希望能收到你的赞^_^

要写好Cover Letter，要遵从正式信件的格式，包括抬头、称呼、正文、署名、日期等等。

1.抬头，左对齐，包括收信人的地址和职位

2.称呼，左对齐，如果你知道对方的姓名，可以直接写上，如果你不知道可以使用Dear Human Resource Manager, To Anyone who concerns等等，但是我认为最保险的方式是写上Dear Sir/Madam，因为你并不知道你的申请材料会被谁看到，尤其是现在的应聘层层筛选，不同的阶段由不同的人来看你的求职材料，所以还是使用最传统的称呼吧。

3.正文，左对齐，每段首行空5个字母，正文应该包括简短的自我介绍，在哪里看到这个职位，为什么觉得自己适合这个职位等等，也就是用简短的语言说服读者你是符合条件的，让他继续看你的简历。这部分可以参考网上很多介绍求职信的内容。

4.署名、日期，右对齐，一般在打印出来的署名下面还要加上自己的手写签名，当然如果你是发送Word文档给别人，那么收到条件限制，这个手写签名也可以省略。最后还要右对齐加上自己的地址。

把握好以上的格式，你就完成了一份标准的Cover Letter了。

最后还有几个地方提醒大家主意：

1.选择好自己的CL中的字体和字号，我看到很多人的CL里面全篇使用的Word默认的5号字，Times New Roman，给眼神不好的人的感觉就是一堆很小的字母被强行塞入了一个大方块里，单词之间都快贴在一起了，很难阅读。

2.字体和字号大小要统一。有的人同一段里面的字体或者字号不同，弄得很难看。

3.检查拼写和语法错误，写完CL之后自己读一遍，看看有没有少写a，the或者有没有单词的拼写问题。

4.有可能你会海投简历，那么配合海投简历的就是同一版本的CL，对此暂不做评价，但是一定要记得把公司名字和职位名称改过来。

5.最后一点，如果对方让你提交的是Cover Letter，那么默认要求它是用英文写出来的。

写求职信是求职过程中的重要一步。一封求职信可以成就或毁掉一份工作申请。（千万不要犯把这家的cover letter寄到那家的低级错误）

求职信应简洁明了，并根据申请的职位量身定制。它应介绍你自己，突出你的资历并解释为什么你很适合这份工作。

写求职信时，有什么注意事项⚠️呢？

1️⃣首先，有条件的去领英搜索招聘经理，称呼招聘经理的名字。这表明你已经花时间做research。

2️⃣其次，你应该解释你的资格以及它们与工作的关系。突出你的技能和经验，使你非常适合这份工作。确保包括你过去如何展示这些技能的具体示例。

3️⃣最后，你应该感谢雇主抽出宝贵的时间，并表达对这份工作的热情。

‼️当然！切记花点时间确保你的求职信清晰、简洁和专业，不要出现语法错误。ರ_ರ

Cover letter template:

Dear Recruiting Team： I am writing to apply for the position of Data Analysis Consulting Analyst at Boston Consulting Group. My name is XXX, and I am currently a third year student majoring in computer science and mathematics from the University of XXX. I have a strong academic background and have achieved excellent results: a GPA of 3.8/4.0 and the honor of Dean's List for three consecutive years. I also have extensive experience in data analysis consulting. During my internship at XYZ data analysis consulting firm, I gained exposure to the entire process of data analysis consulting, from initial market analysis to final recommendations. In addition, I have led a team in developing an AI-based financial forecasting model, as well as conducting financial due diligence for a potential merger. I am confident that my combination of academic excellence and professional experience qualifies me to be an ideal candidate for Boston Consulting Group. I am passionate about the opportunity to join your renowned firm and contribute to your success. Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely, XXX

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Upcoming Consulting Recruiting Events

If you are interested in pursuing consulting opportunities, take advantage of these upcoming programs to learn about consulting recruiting and prepare for the case interview.

Consulting Recruiting: Job and Internship Success Series

Fri, Apr 26 at 1pm – 2pm Register Here Some consulting firms will be on campus as early as this spring to kick off the 2025 recruiting season. Sophomores, juniors, and first-semester seniors considering future opportunities in consulting are encouraged to attend to learn more about recruiting timelines, applications, and interviews, as well as the many types of opportunities available. MCS will present information about the changing consulting recruiting landscape and how to prepare. We will then open it up for questions (which can be asked anonymously). Please Note: Many other employers look to hire Harvard students but do not recruit this far in advance. To learn about these opportunities, visit the MCS Career Pathways pages and attend MCS creative careers, public service, tech and/or science, research, and innovation job and internship success programs. If you have accessibility needs or questions related to this event, please contact [email protected].

Case in Point Workshop with Marc Cosentino

Mon, Apr 29 at 3pm – 5pm Register Here Case in Point author Marc Cosentino speaks to undergraduate and MBA classes throughout the country on the topic of Case Interviews. If this is your first time attending a Case Workshop, you’ll learn why firms ask case questions and what they are looking for from students. If you have attended a workshop before, you can look forward to the drill-down session on several cases representing typical first and second round interviews. Case interviews are challenging and critical to your success in the hiring process. 

Check out a previous MCS blog for more information on consulting recruiting:

Consulting Application Deadlines :

• Consulting employers (particularly MBB – McKinsey & Company, Bain & Company, and The Boston Consulting Group) will begin recruiting this semester with application deadlines starting this summer for full-time and summer internship roles that begin in 2025. These details are subject to change, and we will continue to share updates when we have them.

For updates as well as tips to prepare for the recruiting process, be sure to update your  Email Preferences . Under “Build Career Skills”, select “Engage with Employers” to join the Recruiting and Employer email list.