The BCG Advance program is an amazing opportunity for undergraduate sophomore women to learn more about consulting and a career at BCG while developing their leadership skills.

 

Additionally, participants in the BCG Advance program are guaranteed to get an interview for a BCG summer internship position.

 

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

 

In this comprehensive article, we’ll cover what the BCG Advance program is, program requirements and deadlines, and tips for the application and interview.

 

What is the BCG Advance Program?

 

BCG Advance is a one-week, invite-only virtual conference for sophomore women currently enrolled at a college or university in the US or Canada. During the conference, participants will learn more about BCG, grow their skills, and make connections with other participants and BCG consultants.

 

Those that attend the conference will be invited to interview with BCG for a summer internship position for the following summer.

 

During the BCG Advance program, participants can expect to:

 

• Learn more about consulting and a career at BCG

 

• Meet senior BCG leaders and consultants

 

• Develop leadership skills

 

• Network with other passionate and successful professionals from the US and Canada

 

• Partake in first round interviews with BCG for a summer internship position

 

There are no costs or fees to attend the BCG Advance program.

 

The BCG Advance program is extremely selective and competitive. There are significantly more applications than there are spots for participants.

 

If you have further questions on the BCG Advance program, you can contact [email protected].

 

BCG Advance Program Requirements

 

To apply, applicants must be sophomore or second year students that are women and attend a four-year college or university in the US or Canada. Applicants that are located outside of the US or Canada are still eligible to apply as long as they are enrolled at a US or Canadian school.

 

If you are currently pursuing an MBA or other educational degree, you are not eligible to apply for this program.

 

Applicants are not required to be business majors or have any prior knowledge of consulting. BCG Advance is open to all students who are interested in consulting. BCG welcomes students of all majors to apply.

 

BCG Advance Program Deadline

 

The BCG Advance program application is typically due on Mar 1. There is also a one-way interview submission that is required and due Mar 6. However, you should check the BCG Advance website to see the official deadline for the upcoming year.

 

Historically, the BCG Advance program follows the timeline below:

 

• Feb 1: BCG Advance application opens

 

• Mar 1: BCG Advance application deadline

 

• Mar 4: One-way video interview invitations sent

 

• Mar 6: One-way video interview submission deadline

 

• Mar 15: Invitations to attend the conference are sent out

 

• Mar 21: Deadline to RSVP

 

• April 1-4: BCG Advance conference

 

We recommend that you apply to the BCG Advance program as early as possible. Make sure that you have all of the necessary application components ready, especially your resume.

Make sure to check out our comprehensive list of all BCG application deadlines for internships, full-time roles, and other programs.

 

How to Apply to the BCG Advance Program

 

There are two components to applying to the BCG Advance program: the BCG Advance digital application and the one-way video interview.

 

If you are not selected to attend BCG Advance, know that you are still eligible to apply for an Associate role at BCG. The results of your BCG Advance application has no impact on your internship or full-time applications with BCG.

 

BCG Advance Application

 

The digital application should take 5-10 minutes to complete. The major components of the application include: resume, cover letter, educational information, test scores, and office preferences.

 

Resume

The resume that you submit for the BCG Advance 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 accept. Your cover letter, educational information, and test scores may be glanced over or not read at all.

 

Cover Letter

The BCG Advance application lets you upload an optional BCG cover letter. 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.

 

However, for the vast majority of candidates, the cover letter will likely not make much of a difference on your application.

 

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.”

 

Test Scores

The BCG Advance 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 BCG offices that you have a preference for. You will be asked to weigh 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% Denver, 20% San Diego, and 10% New York.

 

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

 

BCG Advance One-Way Video Interview

 

The one-way video interview helps add a more personal touch to your BCG Advance application. During this interview, BCG will display a few questions on the screen and you will answer these questions one at a time via video.

 

The one-way video is conducted through the Spark Hire video platform.

 

The prompt for the one-way video interview will be sent 1-2 days following the application deadline. The interview must be completed by the indicated deadline, typically 48 hours, in order to be considered for the BCG Advance program.

 

The one-way video interview should take 45-60 minutes to complete.

 

To do your best on the one-way video interview, follow these tips:

 

• Select a quiet, clean location with strong internet connection

 

• Remove all distractions from the area

 

• Speak loudly and clearly

 

• Make eye contact with the camera

 

• Wear business appropriate attire

 

Tips for Getting Selected for the BCG Advance Program

 

1. Perfect your consulting resume

 

Your resume is the single most important component that will determine whether or not you are selected for the BCG Advance 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 one-way video interview

 

BCG uses Spark Hire to collect answers to their one-way video interview. 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 BCG Advance one-way video interview, 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 answers to “Why BCG?” and “Why Consulting?”

 

In addition to behavioral interview questions, you should expect to be asked “why BCG?” at some point during your BCG Advance one-way video interview. There are a variety of different reasons you could give for why you’re interested in BCG:

 

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

 

• BCG has ambitious, intelligent people that fosters a dynamic environment where ideas are constantly challenged and elevated

 

• BCG has a strong commitment to professional development, including professional development chats, mentorship programs, and peer-to-peer teaching

 

• BCG has a culture of innovation, known for pursuing fresh ideas, novel solutions, and groundbreaking strategies

 

• BCG’s regional staffing model strikes a balance between local presence and global opportunities, offering employees the best of both worlds

 

You should also expect to be asked “why consulting?” 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

 

5. Prepare for case interviews (required to land a BCG internship)

 

Upon completion of the BCG Advance program, you’ll have the opportunity to interview for a BCG internship. These interviews are largely focused on case interviews.

 

Case interviews are difficult and require a lot of time and practice to do well in them. Unlike behavioral or motivational questions, it is extremely unlikely you will nail your BCG case interview unless you have practiced at least 5 to 20+ cases.

 

Below, we’ve put together a 30-minute video giving you a solid introduction to case interviews.

 

If you’re looking for a step-by-step guide to learn case interviews quickly and save yourself hundreds of hours, make sure to check out our comprehensive case interview course. Whether you have no business background, rusty math skills, or are short on time, learn the most effective case interview strategies and become a top 1% caser.

 

The course also includes plenty of practice cases that you can do without a case partner. This will significantly speed up how quickly you can master case interviews.

 

Resources to Get into the BCG Advance Program

 

Getting into the BCG Advance program is extremely competitive. To give yourself the best chance of landing an interview and getting accepted into the program, we highly recommend the resources below.

 

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 land a BCG internship)

 

• 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.