Gaining entry into MC without relevant experience

[Rebecca Juang]

Hey there guys!

 

I am very delighted to find this great website (thank you Tom!) and happy to see good discussion from the members. 

 

I'm a recent grad with a Bach Business degree (economics major) and only a month ago I have decided to jump start my career via management consulting. I am the type of person who has a wide range of interest and find it difficult to settle on an area, this would probably explain my 'late bloomer' situation. As Business was a plan b for me I didn't graduate with a good gpa and without a precise career direction, I missed out on alot of intern/work experience opportunities during my uni years.

 

Fast forward to now, I've narrowed down on what I'm looking for in terms of career aspirations and decided to start/commit with mc. I have my Marc Cosentino, Victor Cheng, several big 3 interview practise cases and Sheryl Sandberg to keep me motivated. With the crappy gpa and utter lack of background, I've decided to widen my scope into boutique/smaller consulting firms. However as 95% of the grad career opportunities & entry roles are currently closed, I've taken some time out of application, into networking (mostly virtual as there aren't much mc related public seminars in Melbourne and most of my peers are economists or finance/bankers) and reading up case studies. But one of the biggest problem is I don't have sufficient relevant work experience to show hiring companies.

 

What would you reckon to be a good way to gain entry into the field given my situation? Am I on the right track? Is there anything I might have missed? What's a good way to find a mentor in this field without having a strong network?

 

Thanks in advance for your time : ) 

 

- Rebecca

 

ps. I'm keen on buddying up to practise interview cases via skype or in person (if you're in my area that is)!

[Sally McKenzie]

Hi Bec, 

 

Nice to meet you. 

 

Addressing your quesitons: 

1. What would you reckon to be a good way to gain entry into the field given my situation?  When it comes to breaking into the industry, there are two steps (1) get the interview, and (2) ace it. Both are difficult, and it sounds like you are still looking at step 1. Getting an interview does not require past experience, but firms do look at grades. If your GPA is low then this may present an obstacle. In broader terms, consulting firms are looking for are examples of success, or outstanding achievement e.g. president of a student club, Olympic gold medal, high grades, work experience at brand-name firm. If your grades are poor then you could try to structure your CV and cover letter in such a way that you downplay your education, and emphasise other activities you have been involved with. 
2. Am I on the right track? Yes, although it's not clear to me what you're planning as a next step.  If you have the option of taking a job at a lesser known firm in the next few months, or waiting a year to apply for your dream consulting firms, then you should probably take the first option.  You can't know whether your applications will be successful, and so while it's good to be idealistic you need to temper this with an element of pragmatism. If waiting creates a big gap in your CV then this may make consulting firms wonder if there's something wrong with you. 
3. Is there anything I might have missed? Not sure, but if you need more firms to apply to then there is a good list which Tom created here. 
4. What's a good way to find a mentor in this field without having a strong network? Not too sure about this one, but there is something known as "the reciprocation tendency" which you can make use of. Basically, if you help someone then this will usually generate in them a strong bias towards wanting to help you in return. And so, if you can identify a mentor then try to figure out how you can help that person. Maybe offering to do something for them e.g. work as an unpaid intern. What ever it takes.

Hope that helps. 

[Rebecca Juang]

Hey Sally!

Thanks for the the reply, it's reassuring and affirms what I have been up to for the past month.

 

From breaking into the industry from a lesser know firm to creating connections through favor returning. 

I am getting to know more about the industry through Tom's list, so it's all very helpful  

Thank you!