McKinsey & Company Interview Questions & Reviews

Interview Details Information sessions were held on campus where engagement managers, business analysts, principals, and partners educated students on the kinds of opportunities available to them. All representatives were incredibly welcoming and very helpful. We were all instructed to apply via the online application system. Within a few days, successful applicants were asked to be interviewed while unsuccessful applicants were emailed about a week later. The people were always friendly and supportive of all interested students.

Interview Details Pre-interview communication was excellent. I received a phone call from the recruiter in Toronto to go over some initial details about the process (e.g. number of interviews, expected dates, interview format, etc.) He also informed me that I would be assigned a 'buddy' who would help me with interview preparation. My buddy went above and beyond even delivering a case to me in the middle of night (for him) as 8 time zones separated us and that was the only time that worked.

There were 2 x 60 minute first round interviews conducted by 2 Senior Associates/EMs in the Toronto office. Standard 20 minutes of deep behavioral probing questions and a 30 minute case. Plus a few minutes of chit-chat at the end.

Second round interviews were conducted by Associate Principals and Partners. There were 4x60 minute interviews in this round and they were held back-to-back over a 4 hour stretch one Friday morning. Two of these interviews were face-to-face and two were conducted over video conference. Format was similar to the first round but the partners were a little more free-form moving from behavioral questions to case and sometimes back.

Negotiation Details – No negotiation is possible if you are entering the firm direct from school. Salaries and all offer details are normalized across North America for the entire incoming cohort.

Interview Details very interactive and fun. They had an individual presentation, two group discussions where they wanted to check how participative we were, and then had three-four technical questions which were very tough: they just wanted to check how you handle the questions rather than if you got the answers right

Negotiation Details – I didnt negotiate

Interview Details The process wasn't as hard as some people assume. You just need to be confident and not pissing your pants like so many people I saw. It was pleasant to see that they actually offer workshops on how to get through the interviews.

My process was 2 first round interview followed by 3 second round interviews a week later. There are usually 4 second round interviews but there was a staffing shortage so we only had 3. First round with Engagement Managers. First 2 of the second round with Associate Principals. All these were the same format. About 30 minutes behavioural and 30 minutes a set case that my interviewer was reading. My last interview however was with a Principal and he just told me about a situation he was in where he had to talk to a board about a sensitive situation and we went through how I would handle it.

Interview Details Submit an application with resume/cover letter, got called in for a first round interview. The first round bundled together a problem solving test (PST) one day, and two case interviews the next day. This round took place on campus. Got called back for final round interviews one week later - these happened at the office I applied to. Consisted of four back to back case interviews with partners at the office. Note that all case interviews also included a shorter 20 minute "fit" portion (leadership oriented). Got a call from partner about 3 days later with bad news - no offer - but still offered feedback from the interviews.

Interview Details Really good experience! Selected for the first round and invite to an "crack the case" dinner with the other candidates. 1st round, 2 interviews (behavioural questions + the case). The same day, they call me to invite me to final round. Final round: Same as first, but with 3 or 4 partner/associate.

Interview Details one screening interview, one phone case interview, round 1 (three cases), exam, then round two of three cases

Interview Details I had a 5min Phone Interview with the HR. On the big day, there were 5 of us. All of us had to introduce the next person seated next to us - this was to check on our presentation skills n confidence. The next activity involved us working as a team to work on a case study. The 3rd exercise involved a list of 10 tasks handed out; they asked us to put em in order of priority - basically to check on our time mgmnt skills. This was an individual task. An overall good experience - very friendly environment to be in. Very friendly. I was told the 2nd half of the day wud consist of 1:1 interviews - but i dint hang arnd..thrs was no point. I spoke to HR n left since i wasnt happy with the role. The recruiting agency didnt give a clear picture of the role initially.

Reason for Declining – I felt that I was overqualified for the role. The role was projected to be an intermediate level position, however, came to know that it was an entry level position. I told HR that i had apprehensions wrt accepting the offer. They were fine with it bcos they wanted someone at a junior level.

Interview Details The skill test itself is not very difficult at all, however their case interviews require knowing their format. I did not find the cases hard and in fact got hired at another consultancy but Mckinsey's feedback to me was to memorize their format and stick to it. It was less about the answers and more about knowing I had reviewed and studied their process intently, which admittedly I did not even look at except for the short webinar the weekend before. Practice and learn their process. Overall, a bit of arrogance from those I interviewed with leading me to question the culture though I cannot speak to it.