A McKinsey internship is an extraordinary opportunity to get firsthand consulting experience while also securing a full-time consulting offer. McKinsey internships are highly selective and competitive to get into. Less than 1-2% of applicants receive a McKinsey internship.

 

If you’re thinking about applying for a McKinsey internship and want to maximize your chances of getting in, then this article is for you. I’m a former MBB Manager and interviewer and in this article, I’ll explain:

 

• What is a McKinsey internship?

 

• Types of McKinsey internships

 

• McKinsey internship eligibility and deadlines

 

• McKinsey internship acceptance rate

 

• McKinsey internship salaries

 

• McKinsey internship application details

 

• McKinsey internship interview details

 

• How to get a McKinsey internship

 

• McKinsey internship FAQs

 

• Recommended Resources to land a McKinsey internship

 

If you’re looking for a step-by-step shortcut to learn case interviews quickly, enroll in our case interview course. These insider strategies from a former MBB interviewer have helped thousands land consulting offers while saving them hundreds of hours of prep time.

 

What is a McKinsey Internship?

 

A McKinsey internship is a 10-week experience in which interns are placed on a real consulting team and contribute to helping solve a client’s problems. In addition, McKinsey internships include a week of professional training and several social events for fun and networking.

 

McKinsey internships are offered in nearly every single McKinsey office and typically take place during the summer.

 

The McKinsey internship program is highly selective and considered to be one of the most prestigious consulting internship programs. Since McKinsey is one of the top three management consulting firms, known as MBB, its internship programs are highly sought after.

 

Throughout the McKinsey internship, participants can expect to:

 

• Receive a week of training on topics such as business strategy, financial modeling, presentation skills, and client interaction

 

• Be staffed onto a consulting team, helping to contribute towards solving a client’s business problem

 

• Collaborate with McKinsey consultants and partners

 

• Receive mentorship from a McKinsey consultant

 

• Receive regular performance feedback and official performance reviews

 

• Discover whether consulting and McKinsey is a good fit for them

 

• Develop professional skills such as problem solving, teamwork, and communication

 

• Participate in fun social events with other interns

 

• Participate in networking events with McKinsey colleagues

 

• Be eligible to receive a full-time offer upon successful completion of the internship program

 

The vast majority of McKinsey interns have an overwhelmingly positive experience with the McKinsey internship program. It is a fun, challenging, and rewarding experience.

 

Types of McKinsey Internships

 

There are three major types of McKinsey internships, the McKinsey Summer Business Analyst Internship, McKinsey Summer Associate Internship, and shorter specialized McKinsey programs.

 

McKinsey Summer Business Analyst Internship

 

The McKinsey Summer Business Analyst Internship is a 10-week program for undergraduate juniors and non-MBA master’s students that consists of professional training, real client case work, and social activities.

 

There is also a McKinsey Sophomore Summer Business Analyst Internship that is intended for undergraduate sophomores that come from diverse backgrounds.

 

McKinsey Summer Associate Internship

 

The McKinsey Summer Associate Internship is a 10-week program for first-year MBA students that consists of professional training, real client case work, and social activities.

 

The training that Summer Associate interns receive has slightly more emphasis on soft skills than hard skills compared to Summer Business Analyst interns. Compared to Summer Business Analyst Interns, Summer Associate Interns are held to a higher bar in order to receive a full-time consulting offer.

 

McKinsey Inspire

 

McKinsey Inspire is an immersive two-day event for incoming US MBA students to connect with members of McKinsey’s diversity networks, explore a career in consulting, and refine problem solving and leadership skills. The program consists of case workshops, panels, and networking events.

 

McKinsey Ignite

 

The McKinsey Ignite program is a highly selective, invite-only half-day program for undergraduate women to learn more about consulting, meet McKinsey women, and improve leadership skills.

 

McKinsey Insight

 

The McKinsey Insight program is a virtual two-day workshop for students in North America pursuing a PhD, postdoc, or MD to see what it’s like to work in management consulting. McKinsey Insight is a program tailored to participants with academic backgrounds in STEM and healthcare.

 

McKinsey Early Access

 

McKinsey Early Access is a virtual program for incoming MBA students that consists of webinars and virtual meet-ups to learn more about McKinsey, consulting, and the recruiting process. The program kicks off in late May and has events through early August.

 

McKinsey Internship Eligibility and Deadlines

 

We’ve compiled the deadlines for all of McKinsey’s internships and programs in the table below. This table will be updated as new deadlines are announced. We’ve also listed the eligibility requirements for McKinsey’s internships and programs.

 

Internship / Program	Eligibility	2024 Deadline	2025 Deadline
McKinsey Summer Business Analyst	Third-year undergraduate or first-year non-MBA masters students	September 12	To be announced
McKinsey Sophomore Summer Business Analyst	Second-year undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds	October 7	To be announced
McKinsey Summer Associate	First-year MBA students	November (Expected)	To be announced
McKinsey Inspire	Incoming MBA students from diverse backgrounds	May 13	To be announced
McKinsey Ignite	First-year, second-year, and third-year undergraduate women	March 17	To be announced
McKinsey Insight	Graduate students, post docs, and medical residents	March 1	To be announced
McKinsey Early Access	Incoming MBA students	May 13	To be announced

 

McKinsey Internship Acceptance Rate

 

The acceptance rate for McKinsey’s internships is less than 2-3% if you attend a target school and less than 1-2% if you don’t attend a target school. If you attend a McKinsey target school, there is a 20% to 30% chance of receiving an interview, 30% to 40% chance of passing the McKinsey first round interview, and 20% to 30% chance of passing McKinsey final round interviews and receiving an offer.

 

If you don’t attend a McKinsey target school, then your chances of receiving an interview are significantly lower, less than 5% to 10% depending on McKinsey’s hiring needs.

 

McKinsey Internship Salaries

 

McKinsey internship salaries are generally close to the pro-rated base salary of the equivalent full-time positions. McKinsey Summer Business Analysts are paid about $9,000 per month while McKinsey Summer Associates are paid roughly $16,000 per month.

 

These are based on the base salary of a first-year Business Analyst being around $112,000 and the base salary of a first-year Associate being around $192,000.

 

McKinsey Internship Application

 

McKinsey internship applications require a resume/CV, cover letter, educational background information, work experience information, unofficial transcripts, test scores, and office preferences

 

Resume/CV

 

Your consulting resume is the single most important component of the McKinsey internship application. It is the first thing that McKinsey recruiters and resume reviewers will take a look at to decide whether or not you will receive an interview.

 

Your resume/CV summarizes your entire student and professional career, including your education, internships, work experience, volunteer experience, extracurricular activities, skills, languages, and interests.

 

No matter how much you network, you will not land a McKinsey internship interview unless you have a strong resume that showcases your experiences, accomplishments, and skills.

 

Therefore, you’ll want to spend as much time as you can crafting your resume and ensuring that it best highlights your achievements.

 

Cover letter

 

The cover letter is another critical component of the application. Although, the cover letter is not always read by McKinsey recruiters, it can potentially help distinguish or separate yourself from other candidates.

 

Especially for candidates whose resumes are on the borderline between receiving an interview and getting rejected, a well-written consulting cover letter can help candidates receive one of the last few interview spots.

 

The cover letter should be concise, memorable, and tailored to McKinsey. It needs to introduce yourself, explain your interest in McKinsey, and summarize why you’d be a great fit for consulting and McKinsey.

 

Educational background information

 

McKinsey’s internship application will ask you to fill in information regarding your educational background. You’ll be asked for a list of schools you’ve attended, degrees that you’ve earned or are pursuing, and your school start and graduation dates.

 

Although this information may already be on your resume, you’ll be asked to enter this information in separately because it helps make your application easier to screen and filter for.

 

Work experience information

 

McKinsey’s internship application will also ask you to fill in information regarding your work experiences. You’ll be asked for a list of companies you’ve worked at, your start and end dates, and locations of where you have worked.

 

Although this information may already be on your resume, you’ll be asked to enter this information in separately because it helps make your application easier to screen and filter for.

 

Unofficial transcripts

 

McKinsey’s internship application will ask you to upload an unofficial school transcript. This transcript will show the classes you have taken, the grades you’ve earned in them, and your overall GPA.

 

You do not need to submit an official transcript. Instead, you can download an unofficial copy from your school’s website and upload it to your application.

 

Test scores

 

McKinsey’s internship application will also ask you to report your test scores for all of the standardized tests you have taken. These include the SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, LSAT, and MCAT to name a few.

 

You do not need to submit an official test score report. Instead, you just need to enter in your score and the sub-score breakdowns.

 

Office preferences

 

Lastly, McKinsey’s internship application will ask you to list up to three office preferences. You should select offices based on the geographical areas that you would like to live in after finishing school and starting work full-time.

 

In addition, McKinsey will ask you to give a weight to each of your top office preferences such that the sum of all weights equals 100%. For example, you could list your top three McKinsey office preferences as 50% San Francisco, 40% Los Angeles, and 10% Seattle.

 

McKinsey Internship Interviews

 

After submitting your McKinsey internship application, there are typically two rounds of McKinsey internship interviews.

 

• McKinsey first round interview: Consists of two 40- to 60-minute interviews that are almost entirely focused on case interviews. You may get asked one or two personal experience interview questions

 

• McKinsey final round interview: Consists of two to four 40- to 60-minute interviews. One of the interviews will be focused on fit interview questions while the remaining interviews will be primarily case interviews and personal experience interviews

 

Overall, McKinsey internship interviews consist of case interviews, personal experience interviews (PEIs), and fit interviews.

 

Case interview

 

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. Case interviews are a special type of interview that all management consulting firms use in their interview process.

 

Examples of common types of case interview questions you could get asked include:

 

• What is causing profitability to decline and what can we do about it?

 

• How can we increase revenues?

 

• Should we enter a new market?

 

• Should we launch this new product?

 

• Should we acquire this company?

 

• How should we respond to this competitor?

 

The business problem that you will be asked to solve can be from any industry or function. Expect to see case interviews in industries ranging from retail to pharmaceuticals to financial services. However, know that no prior knowledge or experience in the industry is required to successfully solve the case interview.

 

Case interviews are used because they closely simulate what the consulting job will be like. In a case interview, you’ll need to use problem solving, quantitative skills, business judgment, and communication to work through the business problem, uncover insights, and make a firm recommendation.

 

Consulting firms, such as McKinsey, like to use case interviews in their recruiting process because they can assess a variety of skills and traits that are required to be a successful management consultant.

 

Personal Experience Interviews (PEIs)

 

The McKinsey Personal Experience Interview, or PEI for short, is a component of McKinsey’s interview process that is used to evaluate a candidate’s personal experiences, skills, and attributes.

 

During the PEI, the interviewer will ask you to provide specific examples from your past experiences that demonstrate certain skills or qualities. These could include leadership, teamwork, problem-solving, communication, and other relevant attributes. The purpose of the PEI is to assess your ability to handle real-world situations and to gauge how you might perform as a consultant.

 

The McKinsey PEI shares some similarities with consulting behavioral interview questions. These questions ask you to draw upon a time or experience in the past in which you demonstrated a particular skill or trait. Examples of behavioral questions include:

 

• Tell me about a time where you led a team

 

• Describe a time when you had a disagreement with a teammate

 

• Give an example of how you motivate people

 

• Describe a time when you solved a difficult problem

 

The McKinsey Personal Experience Interview is simply a single behavioral question that takes up 10 to 15 minutes, which is a long time for a single question.

 

Because your interviewer is only asking you one behavioral question, be prepared to dive deeper into your answer and story than in any other interview you’ve had.

 

Expect to be asked several follow-up questions:

 

• Why did you do the things that you did?

 

• How did you make this decision?

 

• What was going through your mind at the time?

 

• How did others react to this?

 

• What did you learn from this?

 

The interviewer doesn’t just want to know what happened and what you did, they want to get inside your head to understand why you did it and how you went about doing it.

 

Fit interview

 

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

 

McKinsey internships have an extremely limited number of spots. Therefore, McKinsey wants to ensure that the applicants that they accept will have a high likelihood of wanting to work at McKinsey full-time 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 McKinsey?

 

The first question evaluates whether you know what you are getting into. Do you actually have an idea of what consultants do and what you should expect on the job?

 

The reasons you provide for why you are interested in consulting will also help interviewers determine if you are interested in consulting for the right reasons. Are you motivated by the challenging, fulfilling business problems that you will solve? Or, are you motivated by the wrong reasons, such as the money or prestige.

 

The second question evaluates whether you’ve done your research on McKinsey. Do you know what makes McKinsey special among all the other management consulting firms? Are you interested in McKinsey for the right reasons?

 

How to Get a McKinsey Internship

 

To get a McKinsey internship, build up your skills and experiences, perfect your consulting resume, network to get referrals, pass the McKinsey Solve, pass your McKinsey first round interviews, pass your McKinsey final round interviews, and then accept your McKinsey internship offer.

 

1. Build up your skills and experiences

 

The first step in getting a McKinsey internship is to build up your skills and experiences. This will significantly increase your chances of landing a McKinsey internship interview. You should focus on your academic qualifications, leadership experience, and internships and work experiences.

 

Academic qualifications

 

Pursue degrees in fields such as business, economics, math, and engineering, which provide a strong foundation for a consulting career. Take advantage of coursework that develops your analytical and problem solving abilities

 

Engage in case competitions, research projects, or independent studies that allow you to apply theoretical knowledge to solving real world business problems. This helps demonstrate your ability to analyze complex issues and develop innovative solutions.

 

Leadership experience

 

Look for opportunities to take on leadership roles in student organizations, extracurricular activities, or part-time jobs. Leading teams, managing projects, and driving initiatives showcase your ability to influence and inspire others.

 

Furthermore, involvement in leadership roles highlights your ability to handle responsibility, make decisions, and deliver results, all of which are highly desirable attributes for McKinsey interns.

 

Internships and work experiences

 

Internships and work experiences provide valuable insights and practical skills that can improve your candidacy for a McKinsey internship. Look for opportunities to gain exposure to consulting through internships, co-op programs, or part-time jobs. These experiences will provide you with exposure to consulting methodologies, client interactions, and project management.

 

Additionally, internships provide opportunities to develop transferable skills such as communication, teamwork, and time management. These are all essential for success at McKinsey and for consulting in general.

 

2. Perfect your consulting resume

 

Your McKinsey resume is the single most important component that will determine whether or not you are extended an interview for a McKinsey internship.

 

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.

 

3. Network to get referrals

 

Consulting networking can make a significant difference in terms of increasing your chances of landing an interview for a McKinsey internship. Referrals carry significant weight in McKinsey’s recruiting process and meaningfully increases your chances of securing an interview.

 

Attend events hosted by your school, such as career fairs, alumni panels, and networking mixers. These events provide valuable opportunities to connect with McKinsey consultants and alumni who can provide insights into the firm and potentially refer you for an internship. Be proactive in introducing yourself, engaging in meaningful conversations, and expressing your interest in pursuing a career at McKinsey.

 

Utilize online platforms, such as LinkedIn, to expand your network. Connect with current McKinsey consultants, alumni, and recruiters on LinkedIn, and personalize your connection requests to express your genuine interest in learning more about McKinsey and exploring internship opportunities.

 

Informational interviews are an effective networking strategy for obtaining referrals for a McKinsey internship. Reach out to McKinsey consultants or alumni to request informational interviews, during which you can learn more about their experiences at McKinsey, gain insights into the company culture, and express your interest in pursuing an internship.

 

Use these conversations to ask thoughtful questions, showcase your enthusiasm and curiosity, and demonstrate your fit with McKinsey's values and culture. This helps build rapport and establish a connection that may lead to a referral down the line.

 

Lastly, leverage your existing network of friends, family, classmates, and professors to expand your reach. Let them know about your interest in consulting and ask if they have any connections at McKinsey or know someone who does. Be proactive in following up on leads and expressing gratitude for any referrals or introductions.

 

4. Pass the McKinsey Solve

 

The McKinsey Solve is a 70-minute pre-interview screening test taken on a computer, consisting of two 35-minute exercises: ecosystem building and the Redrock case study.

 

• Ecosystem building: Create a stable ecosystem by choosing a location for the ecosystem and selecting eight different species to inhabit it

 

• Redrock case study: Ensure ecological balance in a nature reserve by optimizing the number of wolves in the four packs that live there such that wolves and elk can sustainably coexist

 

The test is similar to an ecology-themed video game where players engage in tasks like building food chains, protecting species, and managing ecosystems.

 

The McKinsey Solve is scored based on the final answers submitted as well as the method used to arrive at them. The McKinsey Solve measures five broad cognitive skills, including: critical thinking, decision making, meta-cognition, situational awareness, and systems thinking.

 

The McKinsey Solve assessment does not require any business knowledge or video game experience. The assessment is taken at home, allowing candidates to use resources such as pen, paper, and calculators.

 

Each candidate receives a unique McKinsey Solve assessment. No two assessments are identical.

 

The parameters of the games within the assessment are dynamically adjusted, such as terrain settings, species diversity, and interaction rules, creating a distinct experience for each candidate. These variations prevent candidates from sharing information and cheating, as strategies used by one candidate may not apply to another.

 

While it can be helpful to learn the right strategies to tackle the McKinsey Solve, the best way to improve and guarantee that you pass the assessment is by practicing the actual games and exercises that you'll see on test day.

 

PSG Secrets provides a realistic McKinsey Solve simulation that includes all the games you'll see on test day. In addition to practice, they also provide further guides and tips for each game.

 

5. Pass your McKinsey first round interviews

 

McKinsey first round interviews primarily consist of case interviews. McKinsey first round interviews are used as a screener to determine whether or not you can solve case interviews effectively and whether or not you have the potential to be a great consultant.

 

Case interviews are difficult and require a lot of time and practice to do well in them. Unlike behavioral or fit questions, it is extremely unlikely you will nail your McKinsey case interviews 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.

 

6. Pass your McKinsey final round interviews

 

There are four important distinctions between your first round McKinsey interview and your final round McKinsey interview.

 

One, your interviewers will likely be more senior people at McKinsey. This means that the case interviews you receive may be a bit less structured and more qualitative in nature. The case interview may feel more like a discussion where you and the interviewer are discussing your opinions and ideas on a business problem.

 

Two, your interviewers may read the notes that your interviewers wrote during your McKinsey first round interview. If there was a particular area of the case interview that you struggled with, interviewers may want to test you again on it to make sure that it is not a significant weakness.

 

Three, there will be more of an emphasis on assessing your fit with the firm. McKinsey interviewers will be determining whether or not you would be a great fit with the office. Are you coachable and easy to work with? Are you collaborative? These are a few of the qualities that interviewers want to see.

 

Four, your interviewers will be assessing your interest in consulting and McKinsey. Make sure that you have genuine, compelling reasons to answer the “why consulting” and “why McKinsey” questions.

 

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

 

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

 

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

 

• McKinsey has some of the most ambitious, intelligent people that you’ll ever work with

 

• McKinsey’s global staffing model provides international exposure, helping you gain insights into different markets, cultures, and business environments

 

• McKinsey is the leader in government consulting work

 

• McKinsey allows consultants to specialize and develop expertise in specific industries or functional areas earlier in their careers compared to other consulting firms

 

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

 

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.

 

7. Accept your McKinsey internship offer

 

After finishing your McKinsey final round interview, all you have left to do is to wait for your McKinsey internship offer. McKinsey typically calls candidates to tell them that they are being extended an internship offer before emailing them.

 

Some candidates receive a phone call with good news on the same day of their final round interview. Most candidates receive their call within a few days.

 

If you have not heard back from McKinsey after a few days, that does not necessarily mean that you did not receive a McKinsey offer. Sometimes, you may be on the borderline of receiving an offer and McKinsey would like to finish interviewing other people before deciding whether or not to give you an offer.

 

Be patient on waiting for McKinsey to get back to you. If you have not heard back in a week, you can send a follow-up email with the recruiter to ask if there are any updates.

 

When you finally get your call and offer letter, all that is left to do is sign to secure your internship at McKinsey!

 

McKinsey Internship FAQ

 

See below for answers to some of the most commonly asked McKinsey internship questions.

 

Do I need prior experience in consulting to apply for a McKinsey internship?

 

No, prior experience in consulting is not required to apply for a McKinsey internship. McKinsey values diverse backgrounds and experiences. The firm looks for candidates with strong academic performance, analytical and problem solving skills, leadership experience, and effective communication abilities.

 

McKinsey provides extensive training and mentorship during the internship, so even if you have no prior consulting experience, you will be well-supported in developing the necessary skills to succeed.

 

What qualifications do I need to be eligible for a McKinsey internship?

 

While there are no specific qualifications that are required to be eligible for a McKinsey internship, ideal candidates tend to meet the following qualifications:

 

• Personal impact: McKinsey looks for candidates who can demonstrate a strong ability to influence others and drive change. This includes excellent communication skills, the ability to build relationships, and the confidence to present and defend ideas

 

• Entrepreneurial drive: McKinsey seeks candidates who exhibit a proactive and self-motivated attitude. This includes a track record of taking initiative, overcoming obstacles, and achieving goals, whether in academic, professional, or personal contexts

 

• Inclusive leadership: McKinsey looks for individuals who can lead diverse teams effectively. This means fostering an inclusive environment, valuing different perspectives, and ensuring that all team members feel heard and respected

 

• Courageous change: McKinsey values candidates who are not afraid to challenge the status quo and drive innovative solutions. This requires a willingness to take risks, adapt to new situations, and implement change even in the face of uncertainty

 

• Problem solving: McKinsey looks for candidates with exceptional analytical and problem solving skills. This includes the ability to break down complex problems, think critically, and develop practical solutions backed by data and rigorous analysis

 

• Expertise: While not always necessary, having specialized knowledge or expertise in a particular industry or functional area can be a significant advantage. McKinsey values candidates who bring deep insights and experience that can contribute to client solutions

 

If I am not selected for a McKinsey internship, can I still apply for a McKinsey full-time position?

 

Yes, you can still apply for a full-time position at McKinsey even if you are not selected for an internship. McKinsey internships are even more competitive than full-time positions. There are many more qualified applicants than there are positions available.

 

Therefore, McKinsey encourages candidates to reapply for full-time roles. Many McKinsey full-time offerees were not selected for a McKinsey internship, but reapplied and successfully landed full-time positions the following year.

 

What office should I apply to for my McKinsey internship?

 

The office you should apply to for your McKinsey internship depends on your geographic preference, language skills, and work authorization.

 

• Geographic preference: Consider where you would like to live and work during your internship. If you have a strong preference for a particular city or region, applying to the McKinsey office in that location can be a good choice

 

• Language skills: Ensure you meet the language requirements of the office you are interested in. Some offices may require fluency in the local language, so it's important to check the specific requirements for each office

 

• Work authorization: Verify the work authorization requirements for the country where the office is located. Some offices may require you to have the legal right to work in that country, so make sure you meet these criteria before applying

 

Do not apply to an office because you think it will be easier to get into. It is nearly impossible to predict which offices are more difficult to get into because it is based on the number of open positions and the amount of interest.

 

Instead of trying to game the application system, simply apply to the office that you’d like to work at.

 

What are the chances of receiving a full-time offer after completing a McKinsey internship?

 

While a McKinsey internship does not guarantee a full-time offer, your chances of converting an internship into a full-time offer are very high. Historically, over 90% of interns receive a full-time offer.

 

As long as you don’t raise any red flags or demonstrate significant skill deficiencies, you should have a very high chance of securing a full-time offer after completing your McKinsey internship.

 

What kinds of projects will I be working on during my internship?

 

As a McKinsey intern, you will work on real client projects that provide valuable experience and insights into the consulting industry. You will be part of a case team working on projects that range from strategy to operational improvements.

 

Expect to conduct quantitative and qualitative analyses to help understand client issues and develop actionable recommendations. This includes market research, conducting interviews, and financial modeling. Expect to prepare presentations that summarize findings and recommendations for clients.

 

Do McKinsey interns get to choose their project?

 

McKinsey interns do not get to choose their specific projects because project assignments are based on business needs and availability at the time. However, McKinsey does take into consideration interns’ backgrounds, interests, and skills when making project assignments to ensure a good fit.

 

Recommended Resources to Land a McKinsey Internship

 

To give yourself the best chance of landing a McKinsey internship, look into the resources listed below.

 

You don’t have to prepare your application and prepare for interviews by yourself. Getting professional help from a former MBB interviewer can significantly increase your chances of getting an internship and kicking off 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 the McKinsey Solve

• McKinsey Solve Simulation: A realistic McKinsey Solve simulation that lets you practice the exact same games you’ll see during your online assessment. Learn how to ace the McKinsey Solve step-by-step with detailed guides and tips for each game.

 

For help passing case interviews

 

• 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.

 

• Case Interview Coaching: Personalized, one-on-one coaching with a former Bain interviewer.

 

• 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.

 

For help passing consulting behavioral & 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.