Post McKinsey Final Round Vent

Question

I think I am not going to get it

1. The Partner seemed like it did not want to be there. Every interview until now I had a great dialogue and we were enjoying the interview throughout the whole process. He did not smile one time

2. I did the math perfect, but when presenting the structure of the math while everybody mentioned when I was doing something wrong he just ignored and let me get into errors because of missing data that I did not ask (growth rates)

3. This was the only MBB to give me an interview, it is so demoralizing knowing that I am capable and that I got unlucky with the interviewer

Sorry for the vent, but just wanna thank everybody here that helped me get into the final round at McKinsey, something I did not think it was possible.

Now I am gonna get my rest, at least I have tier 2 offers. Never thought I would be able to get to the last round at McKinsey. Maybe I re-recruit in the future and use preplounge again!

See you until then!

Answer 1

Congrats for your going into the last round at McKinsey and well done so far!

It sounds like the results are not yet out, so I would definitely not lose hope on this one.

Just to offer some perspective: I had the same experience with my final round at BCG. All interviews up that point went well, but the final one (with a senior partner) I felt went horribly: the guy was impatient, seemed to have a problem with my answers, like nothing I was saying was good enough. It was extra hard to keep my calm during the interview to be honest.

To my surprise, I actually passed that interview, and later learned that respective partner had a reputation for being … very direct and impatient and acting pretty much the same with all candidates. Over the years I have ended up working together with him quite a bit and we had a very good collaboration.

So you truly never know, but I hope it will turn out well for you - one way or another! Time to congratulate yourself getting so far in the journey and relax!

Best,

Ariadna

Answer 2

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the progress in the application process with McKinsey thus far!

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

First of all, I would highly advise you to wait for the outcome before throwing in the towel at McKinsey. Even though the interview may not have been great, your interviewer may have had a different impression.
Moreover, it's a good idea to go for one of the offers you have now and maybe reapply a year or more later if you still want to. Please remember that this is a success story - McKinsey is a consulting firm like any other, so please don't put them on a pedestal.

You can find more on this topic here: How to deal with a rejection from a consulting company.

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

Best,

Hagen

Answer 3

You may get all kind of interviewers in an interview. But don't mistake having a more harsh style with disliking you or lower chance of getting an offer.

The opposite is also true - you may get a super friendly interviewer that then rejects you. In some cases they are indeed super nice and helpful… because you already failed and they want to make sure you get to the end of the case.

What you really have to consider is… whether you want to work with that partner or not if you get the offer ;)

Answer 4

Hi there,

Sorry to hear!!

A few thoughts:

Could be on purpose or it's just the personality of the interviewer. I would not read too much into their demeanor.

As regards the rest, not sure how it went down without actually being present. Let's wait for the result and hope for the best.

If it does not work out, know that many people make it to McKinsey only on their second try and there will always be another opportunity. Moving to the final round demonstrates that you have all it takes!

All the best,

Florian