Apply now or Wait?

Question

Hi all,

I have just received an update from a recruiter that 1 of the MBB firms will delay hiring until October/November.

I have been preparing for the past 3 months while juggling my full-time job. I think I am about 70% ready. My original plan was to apply to MBB by July. Given the change in the timeline for 1 of the firms, should I wait until October to apply to all 3 firms? My concern is that the peak period at my job will start from October to December, and I am afraid that will impact my performance.

Would be great to get your input. Thanks!

Answer 1

Hi there,

First, my answer to your question would definitely to start applying for the following reasons

1. I wouldn't base my entire application process on one firm, there are several of them and recruitment can be volatile based on demand, so a firm might speed up hiring at any moment should it win more than expected projects

2. Unless you are applying via a target school recruitment, your application will usually take time to get processed, so the earlier you apply, the earlier you'll know the outcome, from there you can start setting your expectations

In the mean time, while applying, I would definitely keep practicing for the interview process.
Also, unless you ONLY see yourself at a Tier 1 firm in consulting, I would advise you not to limit yourself to MBBs, there are a dozen other reputable consulting firms through which you can enter the industry.

Hope this helps, and best of luck!

Fady

Answer 2

Hi there,

In my view I would not see why wait to apply for the others - in worst case scenario, they would be in a similar position and postpone anyways (or get back to you asking you to apply later).

But in a good case scenario, you get some interviews already coming up for which you have more time to prepare. Plus, if everything goes well you have already an offer banked it!

I think if you will get to 100% ready to interview in the next month, you just really need a refresher for October and not really ramping up everything again.

Hope this helps,

Ariadna

Answer 3

No, you shouldn't. You learn from the process, so the interviews you do now (if unfortunately you don't get the offer) will be valuable experience in order to prepare for the other consulting firm.

In any case, if you postpone… you risk that another firm changes their timelines and you face the same problem again. To be honest, it is quite difficult to align the process on all 3 firms even if you apply at the same time. And sometimes it is hard to manage your own schedule for the 3 at the same time…

Answer 4

Hi there,

If you are 70% ready, I would start applying now and see how it goes with the other 2 firms.

It's not bad to have a potential fallback option later during the year in case the first 2 do not work out.

Cheers,

Florian