Apologies for the delay in releasing this article; it was primarily because it took me three tries to open my laptop since my instinct is still to put in my work laptop’s password while praying the device stops working forever.
I was one of the editors asking seniors to write blogs for insight last year, and it honestly feels weird writing one myself. Nonetheless, I’m still trying to come to terms with the fact that I’m done with my summer internship while also being placed in the same. Here I am, officially a fourthie still recovering from a covid induced skewed sense of time.
To start right from the beginning, I came to know about consult because of debsoc, the real consult club of IITB. Let’s tackle the “Why consulting?” first. If you’re a little clueless about which field or specialization you want, it’s the perfect answer. It has excellent exposure, learning and exit opportunities across industries. So if you’re like most 20-year-olds in college, including me, give consulting interns a shot. It’s minimal commitment since it’s just an internship, but you’ll come out of it knowing what working in a consulting firm full time would look like.
I knew a few seniors placed across MBB , and even though it was the first year that Bain and BCG were coming for interns, I was certain the process would to be similar to the ones my seniors had gone through during placements.
These companies have been coming to campus for years, so most of the people you’d talk to would know what happens during recruitments. You start with case prep (maybe a month before Day 1); the books are available on resume repositories/ most seniors have them. Do not get overwhelmed by the sheer number of avenues you can prep from; pick a book (CIC is incredible) and just start doing cases with your friends. Try your best to do as many cases as possible with another person than reading them; it’s better for your practice.
If you’re lucky enough to get shortlisted, you’ll have to do a few cases with your assigned buddies (generally IITB seniors working in these companies). Final day, you’ll have interviews ranging anywhere between 1-3, and if you’re selected, congratulations on becoming yet another corporate slave 🙂
Pro tip: Have a runner! Generally, everyone is aware of this during placements, but it’s equally important to have one during interns, especially if you have multiple shortlists.
Moving on, I wanted to primarily focus on my internship experience within this article because when I was sitting for these companies, I had little clue about what I was signing up for. In my mind, consulting was the peak of corporate culture. All the fancy shenanigans – parties at 5-star hotels, glass doors and salad bars in offices – you name it, it’s there. I was already making plans with my friends who were interning in Mumbai about how we’d chill in Jio World Drive after work and restaurant-hop across every new restaurant in Bandra or SoBo. This was gonna be an ideal summer.
I was super pumped, work-life seemed like a luxury, and I wanted to make the most out of it. Cue to day 3, when they gave us our cases, I got a case outside of Mumbai. And I don’t mean Navi Mumbai – I mean goddamn rural Karnataka. To say the least, I wasn’t expecting it and it was a huge dent to my elaborate plans. Somehow after hyping ourselves up (I had a co-intern on the case with me), we convinced ourselves that it’s at least going to be interesting.
There was a lot of traveling; I took a Monday 7 AM flight every week followed by a 5-hour drive and the same drill back on Friday. Of course, my manager was very considerate and gave us the choice of either staying in the hotel at the client site or living in the nearby city. Still, I wanted my weekend to be in Mumbai (the main reason was the bathtub in my hotel room). I had to give myself a chance to fulfill my ideal summer plans.
Work wasn’t a piece of cake either. It was a strange place with a lot of client interaction, and I was clueless initially. The project was also highly technical, almost R&D level technical, and none of it was what I had imagined it’d be like since, my idea of consulting was to make pretty decks and use pivot tables in excel. The first week went by just adjusting to the climate at the site, getting a feel of work and to be honest, I was terrified at the prospect of spending two months in an industrial plant in the middle of nowhere..
The second week began, and it slowly started getting better. I could at least get a hold of what was assigned to me, and I was more comfortable talking to clients, getting requisite data and developing insights by myself. Consult isn’t easy, I know experiences depend a lot on the case you’re assigned and I might’ve got the more challenging end, but in a way, I’m glad I did because I probably wouldn’t have learnt so much while working just from an office in the middle of a city. I was right there at the site, watching how my ideas and analysis were being responded to. I had significant responsibility (of course, with guidance whenever needed), which felt like a lot of pressure in the beginning, but it ended up teaching me way more than I had ever imagined. Also made me realize that I could possibly achieve a lot more than I ever thought I could.
I used to get stressed out often, and there were times when I felt like an absolute imposter, but when even the most minor things end up working out, the sheer amount of confidence it builds is something college can never give you.
So yeah, consult is full of surprises, and honestly, you never know what kind of work or where you’d be, and that’s probably part of the appeal if you’re able to embrace it 🙂
Before I end this, I’ll touch up a little on the company’s culture because, hey, it matters!
BCG or probably consult in general is the definition of “Work Hard Party Hard”. I will keep this blog relatively sanitized but trust me; you’ll have a lot of fun. You’ll meet so many new people and try things you’ve never thought you would (in some cases, it’ll be grilled salmon at the top of Four Seasons, in some, it’ll be street food in Hampi but trust me, they’re both worth it).
Socialize, interact and try your best to form connections because that is what makes work fun. You’ll love your work and sometimes you won’t. However, if you like working with the people around you, trust me, it’ll make things a hell of a lot easier.
Lastly, if it ever gets too much – bitch about it! One of the associates on my case told me that it’s the best coping mechanism, and I’d have to agree 🙂
