Referrals MBB Dubai

Hi there,

Referrals can help but are not essential for MBB Dubai, especially if you’re from a top target school, as your application will likely be reviewed on merit. While consultant-level referrals carry some weight, those from senior managers or partners are more influential. 

If your profile is strong, you can secure interviews without a referral, but having one can still be beneficial, particularly in a highly competitive cycle or if you have any weaknesses in your application. If you have connections, it’s worth leveraging them, but a well-crafted application from a target school is often sufficient.

Best,

Evelina

Hi,

Referrals can be quite important in the hiring process for MBB (McKinsey, BCG, and Bain), but they’re not the only factor. It would not make or break you application. I advice to have a referral, but focus even more on the CV, cover letter and the interview itself. The more senior the person who gives you a referral, the higher the credibility.

Let me know if you have further questions.

Mattijs

Hi there,

1) A couple of my friends at target schools landed MBB Dubai without referrals and told me it's not needed (I also go to a top target school). Is this true? 

You can land an offer without a referral. However, in general a referral is going to increase your chances to get an invitation, therefore if you have the option, I would leverage one.

2) I also have some connections at MBB, but mostly people at the consultant level (2nd level)-- does their referral carry weight or do I need to ask someone with a more senior position?

Everyone in the firm working as a consultant can refer you, however the higher the seniority, the stronger the referral. If you have the option to find a referral from someone more senior, I would go for it, otherwise you can ask your current connections.

Good luck!

Francesco

For BCG, a referral means you get your CV screened, which can be advantageous especially if you fall between the cracks/don't fit into traditional hiring routes and thus can be challenging to get your CV reviewed.

If you are already in a target school, then you will be part of Official Campus Recruitment (OCR), and that is a defined hiring cycle and process. So the marginal value of a referral here is less important and hence your friends told you its not needed.

W.r.t seniority... Lot's of people will tell you that seniority matters.. there's no hard and fast rule here and its of course very context dependent... but here's my take on it:

• Consultant referred your CV -> recruiting team will review your CV, but maybe they might slip on it and take longer than normal process
• A senior partner referring your CV -> recruiting team will review your CV and definitely not forget about it, they will probably do it faster than the CV that came from the Consultant
• In either scenario above, if your CV is not strong / up to the mark, the screeners are going to reject your profile anyway
• The only way that someone is going to let you through the process EVEN IF your profile is NOT strong/doesnt meet the requirements, is if you are a "relationship hire", and even then these are very rare in consulting versus say the heydays of banking

So unless you are the kid of a CEO that is a key client or potential client of the firm....my take is that getting a referral is better than not having one, if you can't get a senior one, its not the end of the world. 

Bottom line for you is you can't compromise on the strength of your application, whether you go through OCR or any route

I recommend my students to always get a referral. With the current situation of the market - I am seeing even some referrals not getting screened (let alone direct apps).

Getting a referral greatly increases the probability of your CV screening, while also reducing the time to reach interview stage.

Friend-of-friend connections are usually better, but attempting cold-calls can also work. Cold-call referrals could be stronger since the referree would be vetting you properly before they refer you (as opposed to a familiarity-based referral from a friend-of-friend).

In order to pitch for a referral, you need to be well-prepared on your CV and FIT answers. You need to be able to sell your profile well, and you need the right CV to back it up. If your profile is not interesting, your outreach will not be picked up.

Happy to discuss referral and application related preparation matters with you - feel free to drop me a message and we can connect.

hey!

In my experience, referrals for MBB Dubai aren't strictly necessary, particularly if you're from a top target school where many successful candidates have secured offers without them; having a referral can certainly add value by offering additional insight into your profile, and while a referral from someone at a more senior level might carry extra weight, a strong endorsement from a consultant-level connection can be just as effective if it genuinely highlights your strengths, so overall it's your academic record, professional accomplishments, and interview performance that are key, and if you have any further questions or need more guidance, feel free to get in touch—I'm always happy to help :) 

Alessa

Hi there,

The Middle East is generally big on networks and who you know.

• That being said, if your profile ticks all the boxes, you should be fine without a referral.
• If something is missing or not ideal (there are more criteria than just being from a target school), you will definitely benefit from it. A junior referral is better than no referral in that case.

All the best,

Florian

Hey there, 

Ultimately, your application screening will be successful based off the strength of your profile. If is also possible that you get referred, and still get rejected by recruiting screeners. We cannot understate the importance of having a strong profile to being successful in screening

Referrals can help, yes - and they can (in many instances) help tip the balance in your favour or help your process move more quickly. It is more advantageous to have it vs not have it - and for this reason you should seek to get one. However, if your profile meets the bar and expectations of MBB, you should be successful based off the merit of your profile. 

All the best

Hi there,

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

• First of all, while it is certainly possible to get invited to interviews without a referral, I wonder why you would want to intentionally forgo this (potentially) helpful part of your application.
• Moreover, in general, referrals from more senior people tend to carry more weight. If you already have consultants who are willing to refer you, that's good, but if you can get a more senior referral, even better.

You can find more on this topic here: How to succeed in the final interview round.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming applications, pre-interview assessments and/or interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen