Bain Consulting Kickstart is an extraordinary opportunity to get initial exposure to and learn about a career in consulting. The program was designed to empower undergraduate freshmen that come from backgrounds that are underrepresented in consulting.

 

If you’re planning to apply for the Bain Consulting Kickstart program and want to know how to give yourself the best chance of getting in, then this article is for you.

 

I’m a former Bain Manager and interviewer and in this article we’ll cover what is the Bain Consulting Kickstart program, program requirements and deadlines, and tips for the application and interview.

 

What is the Bain Consulting Kickstart Program?

 

The Bain Consulting Kickstart program is an interactive, virtual series that provides exposure to a career in consulting for undergraduate freshmen from underrepresented backgrounds, including Black, Hispanic, Latin American, and Indigenous.

 

Getting into the Bain Consulting Kickstart program is highly competitive because there are a lot more applicants than the limited available number of spots.

 

Participants in the Bain Consulting Kickstart program can expect to:

 

• Interact with Bain leaders across North America virtually

 

• Hear from Bain business leaders that are at the top of their fields

 

• Discover what it is like to pursue a career in consulting

 

• Network with other participants and Bain consultants

 

• Have the opportunity to interview for Bain’s Building Entrepreneurial Leaders (BEL) program

 

A big draw of the program is being guaranteed to interview for the Bain BEL program, a one-week program in which participants will receive training, work on a case team, and have the opportunity to interview for a summer internship position.

 

For further questions on the Bain Consulting Kickstart program, you can email [email protected].

 

The Bain Consulting Kickstart program was previously called the Freshman Leadership Accelerator (FLA) program, which no longer exists.

 

Bain Consulting Kickstart Requirements

 

Freshmen undergraduate students enrolled in a four-year institution in the US or Canada that identify as Black, Hispanic, Latin American, or Indigenous are eligible to apply for the Bain Consulting Kickstart program.

 

Indigenous includes Native American, Alaska Native, Inuit, Metis, and First Nations.

 

Non-US citizens and students from other countries can apply as long as they are currently studying in the US.

 

No prior experience in consulting is necessary to participate in the program. Bain encourages students from all majors or backgrounds to apply.

 

Bain Consulting Kickstart Program Deadline

 

The application for the Bain Consulting Kickstart program is typically due on April 15. The application usually opens in January. You should check the Bain Consulting Kickstart website to get the official deadline for the upcoming year.

 

We recommend that you apply for this program as soon as you are ready to.

 

If you are not selected for the Bain Consulting Kickstart program, know that you will still be eligible to apply for the Bain BEL program and the Associate Consultant summer internship.

 

The results of your application to the Bain Consulting Kickstart program have no impact on your application to these other programs.

For your convenience, we've put together a list that summarizes all Bain application deadlines to all of Bain's programs, internships, and full-time opportunities.

 

Bain Consulting Kickstart Application

 

The Bain Consulting Kickstart program requires you to submit your resume, cover letter, educational information, unofficial transcript, test scores, and office preferences.

 

Resume

 

The resume that you submit for the Bain Consulting Kickstart program is the most important component of the application process. It’s important that you spend sufficient time crafting your consulting resume so that it best highlights your qualities and accomplishments.

 

Application reviewers will spend most of their time looking at your resume when making decisions on who to interview. Your cover letter, educational information, and unofficial transcript may be glanced over or not read at all.

 

Cover Letter

 

Although the Bain Consulting Kickstart program asks you to submit a Bain cover letter, it will most likely not be read. The majority of application decisions are made based on your resume and background information.

 

However, if you are a borderline candidate, a well-written consulting cover letter could push your application over the edge and help you get an interview.

 

Educational Information

 

You will need to submit some basic educational information, such as the name of the school you are attending and your intended major or degree. If you have not decided on a major yet, you can select “Undecided.”

 

Unofficial Transcript

 

The Bain Consulting Kickstart program requires you to submit an unofficial transcript to show the classes you have taken and your cumulative GPA. This does not need to be an official transcript that is directly sent from the school to Bain. Instead, you can submit a PDF document that you downloaded from your school’s website.

 

Test Scores

 

The Bain Consulting Kickstart program requires you to also submit your test scores for the SAT or ACT, depending on which exam you have taken. You will not need to submit an official score report. Just input the numerical scores.

 

Office Preferences

 

Lastly, you will select up to three Bain offices that you have a preference for. You will be asked to weight each of your office preferences such that the sum of all weights adds up to 100%.

 

For example, you may indicate your office preferences as 70% San Francisco, 20% New York, and 10% Chicago.

 

However, note that the second and third choice offices you select will not have much of an impact on your application. Bain typically will only consider you for your top-choice office.

 

Bain Consulting Kickstart Interview

 

After submitting the Bain Consulting Kickstart application, candidates will be asked to submit supplemental video essays using a video recording tool. These self-recorded video essays take the place of an in-person interview.

 

Applicants are typically asked to answer three questions in a video format through HireVue, a video recording tool.

 

Following the Bain Consulting Kickstart application deadline, applicants will receive a link to complete the HireVue video essay prompts the following day. Applicants will have a few days to complete this.

 

These supplemental video essays must be submitted by the designated deadline in order for your application to be considered for the Bain Consulting Kickstart program.

 

There are three major types of questions you could get asked: resume questions, behavioral questions, and motivational questions.

 

Resume Questions

 

Resume questions ask you to discuss your background, strengths, and weaknesses. These questions are asked to provide more detail about who you are, beyond what is listed on your resume.

 

Examples of common resume questions you could get asked include:

 

• Tell us about yourself

 

• What accomplishment are you most proud of? Why?

 

• What do you consider as your greatest strength?

 

• What do you consider as your greatest weakness?

 

• What is something that we should know about you?

 

Behavioral Questions

 

Consulting behavioral questions ask you to draw upon a time or experience in the past in which you demonstrated a particular quality or trait. For example, you may be asked common consulting behavioral interview questions such as:

 

• Tell me about a time when you led a team

 

• Give an example of a time when you went above and beyond

 

• Tell me about a time when you failed

 

• Describe a problem that you solved using data

 

• Tell me about a time when you resolved conflict while working on a team

 

Motivational Questions

 

Bain asks motivational questions to assess your genuine passion for consulting and to see if you are actually interested in working at the firm.

 

The Bain Consulting Kickstart program has an extremely limited number of spots. Therefore, Bain wants to ensure that the applicants that they accept will have a high likelihood of wanting to work at Bain full-time as a consultant after graduation.

 

There are two common motivational questions that you should prepare for:

 

• Why are you interested in consulting?

 

• Why do you want to work at Bain?

 

Tips for Getting Selected for the Bain Consulting Kickstart Program

 

1. Perfect your consulting resume

 

Your resume is the single most important component that will determine whether or not you are accepted into the Bain Consulting Kickstart program.

 

Therefore, you’ll want to dedicate at least a few days perfecting your resume while also getting feedback from peers, your school’s career center, or even consultants that you know.

 

Make sure to follow the tips below to perfect your consulting resume.

 

• Keep your resume to one page only. If it is longer, you’ll need to make your resume more concise and less wordy

 

• Every bullet on your resume should start with a verb in the past tense to show that you have completed or achieved something

 

• Every bullet should have some kind of number or metric in them so that you can quantify your accomplishments and make them sound more impressive

 

• Your resume’s bullets should show a mix of quantitative skill accomplishments (e.g., analyzing data) and qualitative skill accomplishments (e.g., managing or working with others)

 

• Avoid using technical jargon, unfamiliar abbreviations or acronyms, and buzzwords with unclear meanings

 

• Your resume should prioritize showcasing your work experiences, particularly if you have worked at a brand name company

 

• Include personal interests at the end of the resume to give resume reviewers something interesting to read about

 

If you need professional help crafting the perfect resume that will land you consulting interviews, check out our resume review and editing service.

 

2. Practice recording your video essays

 

Bain uses HireVue to collect answers to their supplemental video essays. Recording yourself and talking to a camera is not a natural thing that most people are comfortable with.

 

Therefore, you can significantly improve the way you communicate your answer by practicing recording yourself and talking to a camera ahead of time.

 

You should watch recordings of yourself to see if there are any opportunities for improvement.

 

Can you make better eye contact with the camera? Are you using appropriate hand gestures? Do you appear calm, confident, enthusiastic, and genuine?

 

You will be surprised at how you appear on camera unless you take the time to practice recording yourself speaking to a camera.

 

3. Prepare answers to behavioral interview questions

 

For the supplemental video essays, expect to be asked at least one behavioral interview question.

 

To answer behavioral questions well, follow these guidelines:

 

• Prepare 6-8 different stories in advance that draw upon your professional and personal work experiences. This ensures that you have prepared answers and stories that you can draw upon no matter what behavioral question is asked

 

• Only select and share experiences that are the most impressive, impactful, or unique. You want to showcase the highlights of your experiences, not just any experience that is relevant

 

• Make sure that you the stories you prepare are collectively diverse. You’ll want to have at least one story that is relevant to leadership, teamwork, problem solving, resilience, integrity, decision making, communication, and interpersonal skills

 

• Structure your answer to help keep your answer clear and easy to follow. Most candidates use the STAR method, which stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result

 

• When giving your answer, cover the Situation and Task sections quickly and spend most of your time focusing on the Action and Result

 

If you want to learn how to answer 98% of behavioral and fit questions in just a few hours, check out our behavioral interview course.

 

4. Prepare your answer to “Why Bain?”

 

In addition to behavioral questions, there is also a high likelihood of getting asked “Why Bain?” as one of the supplemental video essays.

 

There are a variety of different reasons you could give for why you’re interested in Bain:

 

• Bain works with an impressive roster of prestigious clients, working on solving their most important and difficult problems

 

• Bain has a fun, collegial culture that fosters learning, professional development, and friendship

 

• Bain has an extremely supportive culture, highlighted by their mantra of “A Bainie Never Lets Another Bainie Fail”

 

• Bain offers a range of involvement opportunities outside of case work, known as “Extra 10s,” which includes various hobby and interest groups

 

• Bain’s local staffing model cultivates close-knit connections with colleagues at your local office

 

• Bain is the leader in private equity consulting work

 

• A friend or mentor worked at Bain and highly recommended working there

 

5. Prepare your answer to “Why Consulting?”

 

There is also a high likelihood of getting asked “Why consulting?” as one of the supplemental video essays.

 

There are a variety of different reasons you could give for why you’re interested in consulting:

 

• You want to make a significant impact by working on the biggest, most challenging business problems that companies face

 

• You enjoy the diversity of solving business problems across multiple different industries and functions

 

• You see consulting as the quickest way to build a strong toolkit of both hard skills and soft skills that are needed to be successful in business

 

• You want to get an insider view on how companies are run and operated

 

• You want to develop knowledge and expertise in a particular industry or function

 

• You value the significant mentorship and professional development that consulting provides

 

• You find fulfillment in working with and servicing clients, helping deliver significant value to them

 

Resources to Get into the Bain Consulting Kickstart Program

 

To give yourself the best chance to get into the highly competitive Bain Consulting Kickstart program, look into the resources listed below.

 

You don’t have to go through the application process by yourself. Getting professional help from a former Bain Manager and interviewer can significantly increase your chances of getting into the program and giving yourself a head start on your consulting career.

 

For help landing consulting interviews

 

• Resume Review & Editing: Transform your resume into one that will get you multiple consulting interviews

 

For help passing behavioral and fit interviews

 

• Behavioral & Fit Interview Course: Be prepared for 98% of behavioral and fit questions in just a few hours. We'll teach you exactly how to draft answers that will impress your interviewer.

 

For help passing case interviews (required to secure a Bain BEL or internship offer)

 

Following the completion of the Bain Consulting Kickstart program, you’ll be given an opportunity to interview for the Bain BEL program, which can potentially lead to an Associate Consultant summer internship. 

 

The interview process largely consists of case interviews, a special type of interview that consulting firms use. A case interview is a 20 to 40-minute interview in which you are placed in a hypothetical business situation and asked to develop a recommendation to solve a business problem.

 

These are the resources we recommend for learning case interviews quickly and efficiently:

 

• Comprehensive Case Interview Course (our #1 recommendation): The only resource you need. Whether you have no business background, rusty math skills, or are short on time, this step-by-step course will transform you into a top 1% caser that lands multiple consulting offers.

 

• Hacking the Case Interview Book (available on Amazon): Perfect for beginners that are short on time. Transform yourself from a stressed-out case interview newbie to a confident intermediate in under a week. Some readers finish this book in a day and can already tackle tough cases.

 

• The Ultimate Case Interview Workbook (available on Amazon): Perfect for intermediates struggling with frameworks, case math, or generating business insights. No need to find a case partner – these drills, practice problems, and full-length cases can all be done by yourself.

 

• Case Interview Coaching: Personalized, one-on-one coaching with former consulting interviewers.