Need help choosing between 3 internship offers

Question

Hi all. I am very lucky to have received three undergrad internship offers. None are MBB, and while I think that's totally fine, that is my end goal.

Background/Decision Criteria

- Not considering pay. Just want to know what gives me the best shot for breaking into MBB for full-time

- Coming from a Midwest semi-target school, aiming for an MBB Seattle office

- Made it to BCG Seattle final round (screwed up the case), "waitlisted" for Bain first-round (ultimately passed over), offered an opportunity to interview with McKinsey Seattle for full-time in the spring (not given an internship interview)

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Offer Descriptions

Written in no particular order

1. Capital One - Business Analyst Intern - McLean, VA or Plano, TX

- First Round: One 45-min case, Final Round: Two 45-min cases and one 45-min product interview (with some behavioral)

- Well-known and large internship program, mostly internal business analysis projects (ranges from product to credit modeling to data analysis etc.)

2. KPMG - State and Local Solutions Advisory Intern - Sacramento, CA

- First (and only) Round: Two 30-min behavioral interviews

- KPMG lists their SLS practice under Management Consulting > Customer and Operations Service Line, so while I think this is strategy, I'm a bit unsure (One example I heard was a digital transformation/modernization project for a state health services agency)

3. West Monroe Partners - Customer Solutions Consultant Intern - Seattle, WA

- First Round: Behavioral and skills interview, Final Round: One 45-min case and one 45-min behavioral/values interview

- My only offer in Seattle, where I want to work full-time

- Projects mostly in the realm of call center optimization, sales account strategy, process improvement, marketing operational strategy, etc. They are a digital-focused company and do a lot with Salesforce as well

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I am genuinely excited about all of these offers and the people I've met at the firms, but I want advice from people who are more familiar with the industry as to what is the best career move. Thank you!

*This post has been cross-posted to gather the most perspectives possible

Answer 1

Hi there,

I agree with the other coaches in their rankings, but I'm also drawn to KPMG's superior brand as well.

My suggestion is to really choose the role that best fits your interests and needs.

Ultimately, working at a place you hate for 2-3 years just to get to a job you think you'll like may not be the right value equation!

If you work at the place that actually fits your interests not only are you doing your future self a favor for the next 2-3 years (by not hating your job), but you're also going to perform much better, get promoted faster, build a better network, and ultimately set yourself up for success better!

I worked at a no-name company called Appian for 4 years but I loved it. I was promoted twice in 3.5 years and then got BCG (after bschool). Don't chase the brand/path as much as the job + people :)

Answer 2

Congrats! Cherish this position and be grateful.

I wont pick one over the other for you. That's for you to do. Good to get advice from people but make sure the final decision is yours. I made mistakes during early days of my career and what I learnt is this:

First establish what you want to be or would like to be. Its okay if this changes over time and your career. E.g. I would like become a fantastic engineer. Hope you get the point
After this, see what type of role you can “do” based on your competency, capability & skills
And finally enjoy what you get or would like to have i.e. lifestyle, $$ , fulfillment etc

Most people approach the above as 3→2→1 and not 1→2 →3. Misery is inevitable.

So, this is a great opportunity for you to think through the options carefully & choose one. Have a look at this article I wrote primarily to help candidates with such decisions- https://www.preplounge.com/en/how-do-i-know-which-career-is-right-for-me

All the best choosing.

Answer 3

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the offers!

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your question:

I would highly advise you to opt for the option that better aligns with your professional (and maybe even personal) mid- to long-term goals. In order to make an informed decision, I would advise you to do the following:

Weigh the different criteria that are meaningful to you independently of the current options (e.g., prestige, culture, international exposure, compensation, location). After that, score the two options based on your criteria and their weighting, resulting in two scores. This way, you have covered the left-brain perspective.
Critically assess your initial reaction to the outcome of the scores. For instance, if you feel the urge to tweak the numbers, this is a solid indicator that you do not want this decision to become reality. This way, you have covered the right-brain perspective.
By doing so, you will be able to integrate both parts of the brain into the decision-making, guaranteeing a higher chance that you will still be happy with it years later.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to address your specific situation, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Answer 4

This would be my priority:

1. Capital One. Seems to be the one closer to strategy. I believe the hire many former strategy consultants (they tried to hire me :)

2. West Monroe Partners. You will learn more digital, which is valued by MBB. And you stay in Seattle. Some of the things are not far away from strategic initiatives, others are a bit operational / process, though.

3. KPMG. I don't think KPMG has any strategy work, someone correct me if I am wrong. Moreover, from the description, this is may be heavy on systems implementation / process mapping and improvement.

Final note: I wrote the above before reading the information on the interview process. After reading the interview info, I felt this was spot on: Capital One was heavy on cases, West Monroe had cases but not so heavy, and KPMG no cases at all. If you don't do cases, you are not looking for strategists.

Answer 5

Considering that MBB is your final objective - you want to stay closer to strategy consulting. Based on that, I believe the order is:

C1 - typical projects are closer to strategy vs other 2
WestM - less of high-level strategy, but more focused topics
KPMG - seems further implementation-based and less strategy based

However, the final decision should be fully your own - I would recommend to not get influenced by answers.

Answer 6

Hi there, I have been in your exact shoes so will share my two cents. I have experienced a similar situation where yo... (read entire answer)

Hi there, I have been in your exact shoes so will share my two cents. I have experienced a similar situation where your best effort is not perceived as the best for the team. Yo... (read entire answer)