This interview was conducted
                    with a graduate student who had just accepted a job with McKinsey
                    & Co. He describes his job search experience and offers
                    advice for other students interested in management consulting.

                    .

Chemical Engineering.

• What will your new job entail?

I will be joining as an associate (commensurate with MBA
                    hires) in the general practice of McKinsey and Company. My
                    work will involve working with Fortune 500 companies to help
                    resolve some of their high level

                    strategy issues.

• Were you pursuing both academic and nonacademic
                    options in your job search?

My main motivation for pursuing a doctoral degree was to
                    teach as a professor. Over the last couple years as I realized
                    that professorship in top Engineering schools in the country
                    was more about conducting research (especially so in the initial
                    years) and less about teaching, I started leaning towards
                    non-academic options.

                        • Were you considering a range of nonacademic
                    options or had you decided to focus on consulting?

Within non-academic options, I was looking mostly towards
                    consulting because some of the skills necessary to do research
                    and teaching transfer very favorably into consulting. On a
                    more practical note, the decision was strengthened by the
                    knowledge that some of the top tier consulting firms were
                    actively pursuing PhDs with a non-business background.

That said, I had planned on pursuing the non-academic (more
                    specifically consulting) route for the past Fall semester
                    and if things were to not work out, I would start a full-swing
                    job-search within my area of research inquiry. So I had not
                    completely ruled out the academic/related industry option
                    but placed my priorities in the order just mentioned. Again,
                    it made sense to order them in such a way because consulting
                    firms come to campus in the Fall and academic recruiting occurs
                    in the Winter term. Regards related industry recruiting, that
                    happens on a rolling basis year round, so no issue with regards
                    to timing there. I was definitely clear that I did not want
                    to mix my two recruiting efforts because the interviewing
                    and the selection process is very different for the two sets
                    of options. As a matter of fact, I was to realize later that
                    even within consulting, every firm had such a different culture
                    that though they were looking for the same set of overall
                    skills, there were very fine and intangible distinctions,
                    which are very easy to overlook.

• What resources (books, webpages, friends,
                    networking, etc.) did you find most useful during your job
                    hunt? What resource, if anything, do you wish you had made
                    use of earlier in your search?

The biggest resource I leveraged was people. My preferred
                    choice of learning method is interaction and, therefore, reading
                    books on the subject seemed like the last option to me. Through
                    firm-sponsored workshops, the Michigan consulting club, and
                    through follow-ups with recruiters, I had a good base of people
                    I could interact and prepare with for the interviewing process.
                    On the side, looking up company profiles on the web was useful
                    a few days before the interviews to understand their business
                    better. Most of the books I referenced were university case
                    books that are freely available in the Business School library.

Looking back, I wish I had started on my efforts sooner because
                    learning how to solve cases is a very different ball-game
                    than conducting research in a lab or teaching a class. That
                    said, it isn't rocket science, rather it's a practised art.
                    In that sense, I would say that 'time' was the only resource
                    I wish I had made use of earlier!

• What impact do you think your PhD had on employers'
                    interest in you? What do you think was most appealing about
                    it to them? Were there any stereotypes about PhDs that you
                    felt you had to overcome?

To the firms aggressively recruiting PhDs alongside with
                    their regular MBA hires, a PhD signifies the pinnacle of academic
                    achievement. As a practical justification, one hears that
                    a PhD program can be understood as a masters degree with few
                    years of work experience. The biggest appeal PhDs have for
                    consulting firms is their extraordinary problem solving ability
                    coupled with persistence and perseverance. Their only concern
                    is whether PhDs are able to transfer these skills into a nonacademic-type
                    setting. So the only stereotype one might be expected to overcome
                    is to demonstrate that a candidate is willing to break out
                    of the academic cocoon and apply his skills to a business
                    situation.

                        • Many students cannot understand why a consulting
                    firm would be interested in PhD students, that they have nothing
                    to offer especially compared to someone with an MBA. How would
                    you address that issue?

I like the way McKinsey addresses this question. According
                    to them, in order to be a successful consultant, a candidate
                    needs to demonstrate four attributes - problem solving ability,
                    personal impact, leadership potential, and high aspirations.
                    It's interesting that 'business knowledge' per se is not a
                    necessary skill they are looking for. That said, an MBA degree
                    assists people in putting their experiences and skills in
                    a perspective that is attractive to most employers because
                    they would rather 'recruit' a ready-made and 'packaged' candidate
                    rather than taking the time and effort to groom people in-house.
                    For example, McKinsey now offers the incoming PhD hires a
                    4-6 week 'mini-MBA' program to bring them up to speed with
                    the business concepts and jargon and, therefore, finds its
                    hD recruiting as fulfilling as the MBA stream.

• What do you think makes a candidate for a
                    consulting position successful? How would you recommend that
                    hDs present themselves (in person or on paper) in order to
                    be successful? Are there any pitfalls to be aware of when
                    translating a CV to a resume?

Indeed, the minimum a consulting company expects is a well
                    written resume. Some firms are comfortable with looking at
                    a CV though I personally recommend a one-page resume. The
                    idea is not so much to avoid pitfalls in converting one to
                    the other, but understanding the need of the employer and,
                    therefore, ensuring that the key attributes they are looking
                    for be highlighted and brought out well in the submitted document.
                  

On the behavioral side, I would say that the most important
                    attribute is to come across as very professional and demonstrate
                    the ability to do the job. Recruiters often ask themselves
                    the following questions during their interactions with candidates
                    - a) can I put this person in front on a client? b) can I
                    have a good time talking to this person if stuck in an airport
                    due to flight delays? and c) can this person put forth their
                    ideas in a persuasive and succinct manner to the CEO of a
                    company?

These questions are filters to measure candidates on their
                    ability to a) present themselves in a professional way, b)
                    hold an interesting conversation outside of work, and c) be
                    able to synthesize key information into a concise statement.
                    I strongly recommend that prospective applicants prepare themselves
                    in order to convey these three interpersonal skills.

• What, if anything, do you anticipate will
                    be your biggest challenge in adjusting to work as a consultant?

I would have to say it would be life/work-style and travel.
                    Years of PhD work have allowed me the flexibility to work
                    late hours since I tend to function best at night. I would
                    definitely need to work on maintaining sane waking hours to
                    be a consultant! Also, travel for work, which seems to be
                    an essential component of any consulting job, is something
                    I would like to keep at a minimum or adjust to, whichever
                    the case may be!