The Fine Art of MBA Application

The Fine Art of MBA Application With nine (9) fully-funded offers, 5 out of which also included monthly stipends, from fourteen (14) applications to top 10 – 50 MBA programs in the US and Canada, I have learned that business schools' MBA application is a fine art that should be honed. If you are not new to Firmsconsulting, you will have heard Michael talk about how networking isn't different from dating. The same is true here. Now, before you call me Casanova (I assure you I am not) who courted fourteen different ladies, let me tell you a story. A story that puts the above in context. MBA Application: my first attempt Late 2018, I had applied to six MBA programs – Harvard (HBS), MIT (Sloan), Michigan (Ross), Toronto (Rotman), Washington (Olin) and Maryland (Robert Smith). I applied to HBS and MIT because I didn’t want to live a life wondering if I could have gotten in (looking back now, I guess I applied for the honor of getting rejected. hahaha). It didn’t take long for me to get a response – NO. Maryland, I suspect, didn’t think I was going to accept their offer after I told them about…

Is a Harvard MBA Enough for McKinsey?

Okay, you got into Harvard, Wharton, INSEAD, and Oxford etc. In 2 years you will have a Harvard MBA. Don’t celebrate yet. The real battle is just beginning now. Many candidates slave away to get into elite schools, assuming that entry into the school alone is sufficient to get into McKinsey or BCG. A Harvard MBA comes close to guaranteeing an interview but it is far from an offer. And if all you wanted was the interview, then you just spent $150,000 for an interview. That is a sobering thought. So getting to a good school is just the start. Once you get in, you need to be organized to succeed. In a previous post, I talked about how the type of scholarship you get matters to your future success: it can be a significant career competitive advantage. This stemmed from an even earlier post which explained why we misunderstand the competitive advantages in our careers. But the competitive advantage occurs not for the reasons you may think. I plan to elaborate on that in this article. Finances and confidence It is important to understand that you need at least two assets to make it at competitive schools: finances and…

Client Testimonials

Harvard MBA helps Obama, despite missing BCG

My story is not a Michael Moment but a Michael Revelation. I was not successful with MBB while working with Michael. That said, I have no regrets taking the program and continue to refer friends and colleagues to Michael. I realized after the training ended that I was not ready for MBB. I had started my pursuit because everyone else was doing it. When Michael asked me why I wanted to work at McKinsey, I, sadly, had no good answer. I had never even thought about it until I was asked this question. I felt like a lemming. The training was excellent but the desire to be at MBB was missing and that was my weakness which the interviewers could easily see. They needed to have been blind to miss it. After my MBA I took 12 months off travelling around Central and Pacific Asia. The journey centered me and helped me realize what I wanted to do. I returned to the US and joined the Obama campaign. Everyday I used my consulting training to do things that matter. I am grateful for Michael giving me these skills. It is probably not the best story but it shows the power…

Client Testimonials

Harvard MBA on consulting women and modelling

Did you enjoy the program? If yes, how? I enjoyed all training sessions, the networking guidance and the general conversations with my coach. The discourse was always respectful, professional and tailored to my professional development. My coach made it very easy for me to share my concerns and ideas, and also discuss any challenges I was having. I believe the dual focus on communication and cases is unusual and was instrumental in gaining me an internship at McKinsey, which with FC’s guidance; I was able to convert into a full-time offer. Did the program meet your expectations? If yes, how? I did not have great expectations coming into this program. FC’s non-disclosure policy made it difficult for me to find former clients and I only met a handful of Harvard second-years who had been through the program. All but one had successfully placed at MBB: he had joined Deloitte S&O. Despite my low expectations, the program exceeded my expectations in several key ways: 1) Working with former McKinsey and BCG partners is an experience. The level of detail they could provide, explanations of the recruiting process and behind-the-scenes discussions on extending offers was extensive and right in 95% of the…

Client Testimonials

Harvard Baker Scholar’s McKinsey Corp. Fin. Prep

Did you enjoy the program? If yes, how? The program was a very pleasant experience. The FC team was polite, professional and very accommodating to my hectic IBanking schedule! They were also very honest and this honesty, more than anything else, made me want to work with them. I was one of their first CF clients back in 2010 and Michael was upfront  they could train me, but had never before trained someone targeting CF. He offered to reach out to an INSEAD professor whom he knew and had been a super-star at McKinsey Corporate Finance, and use his thoughts on building the program. Overall, my coach took the time to explain concepts in great detail and build an effective program around my limited weekend availability. I liked the constant availability of my coach. I could always reach him on Skype to get a response. This is a BIG advantage since not everything can be planned in the short 1-hour sessions we had to practice cases. I felt Michael was always willing to answer questions and take the time to find better explanations if I did not understand anything. Michael also never tried to dismiss or belittle a question when…

Client Testimonials

HBS graduate discusses path to McKinsey & BCG

Did you enjoy the program? If yes, how? Yes, I thoroughly enjoyed the program. Reflecting on the preceding months, I find that the enjoyment of the program, for myself, was based upon the multiple avenues of learning and training, the attitude and adaptability of my coach, and the techniques and intuition I developed over time. When I was accepted into the Firmsconsulting program, I had zero background in case or fit preparation, and this certainly showed in my first session with Michael. However, from there forward we established a schedule of sessions and topics. My preparation began early, about three months prior to interviews. This was a very good thing, as the wealth of material available in TCO I and the video library requires sufficient time to cover; nevertheless I found this to be a highly effective way of learning. I would prepare for sessions using the video library and TCO I, and then focus purely on cases with Michael, where I could practice what I had learned and gain feedback. This model worked well for me, as I was able to learn the material at my own pace and schedule, and then refine and tailor it with Michael, giving…