I was an APD candidate and took a 26 question multiple choice test. Then there were breakout sessions with 4 other candidates and a current consultant to work through cases as the case interview was unfamiliar to many of us. It was an odd experience and our invitation for a second interview was based solely (or so they say) on our performance on the 26 multiple choice questions. The word questions were not overly complex but they involved a lot of calcuations and you are not allowed a calculator. Work on basic mental math before you interview!
It was an odd way of being judged and the day I was informed I would not be invited for a second interview I heard an NPR piece on a former McKinsey big muck who was indicted on multiple counts of insider trading.

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skills test

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The interview consisted of a Group/Panel Interview and a Skills Test.

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Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Jan 2012 in Palo Alto, CA (took 4+ weeks)

The McKinsey interview process is 3 rounds: (1) a problem solving test (see their website for a sample test) + Case study workshop, (2) 2 x 1 on 1 interviews, half of it is to test "fit" (whether you fit in the McKinsey culture), and the other half is the case study, (3) Onsite.

The process is as fair as it might get - they set you up with a McKinsey buddy, who answers your questions and helps when you need it. Also, they have workshops to help you along, e.g. a case study workshop, and informational sessions to introduce you to different parts of McKinsey (e.g. the west coast business practices, the business technology office).

I didn't make it past the second round; however it is as advertised- if you practice McKinsey-type cases, and work on your fit interview stories, it should be a fair assessment.

Interview Questions

Conflict question - name a time you had a conflict

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I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview, an IQ/Intelligence Test and a Personality Test.

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Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Oct 2011 (took 2+ weeks)

I applied online after attending an information session for advanced degree candidates at my university. They invited almost everyone to the initial assessment (1st round), which is a written multiple choice test and group cases. The test is supposed to be what matters and the group cases are more of a preparation for the later rounds. The test is similar to the sample on their website. I got an email a few days later saying that I didn't make it.

Interview Questions

Written test similar to the sample on their website.

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Interviewer-driven group cases (see case example on their website).

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I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a Group/Panel Interview and a Skills Test.

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Received and Declined Offer

Interviewed Dec 2011 in Chennai (India) (took a day)

I got interviewed after an initial resume based shortlist (where the firm looks for "peaks" in different facets of your career, say academics, leadership etc). The interviews were a pleasant experience. Had four rounds of about 40 min each, each of which had a personal "Experience Interview" where they expect you to substantiate stuff in your resume followed by a "Case Interview", where one is expected to solve systematically, a business problem that McKinsey consultants typically face. Creativity is highly valued but comprehensive analysis of the problem is critical.

Interview Questions

How would you monetize a Social Entrepreneurial startup?

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I got the interview through a College or University and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview and an IQ/Intelligence Test.

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Overall Neutral Experience

Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Jan 2012 (took 4+ weeks)

One month after I applied on the internet site, HR contacted me to schedule the first round and emailed me some docs that I found really useful to prepare myself. The first round consisted of a written test followed by a 1:1 interview. The written test was very similar to one that I had received in the email.

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Why does a haircut cost much more money today than in the sixties?

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The interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview and an IQ/Intelligence Test.

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Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Sep 2011 (took 4+ weeks)

First round consisted of two phone interviews, both with associates. These were essentially all case (I'll get to them later). Each interview took about 30 minutes

Second round consisted of four in office interviews, two with principals, one with an engagement manager, and one with an associate. These consisted of about 25 minutes of a case, 15-20 minutes of an experience interview, and 5 minutes for your questions. The experience interviews are unique to McKinsey. Basically the interview will ask you to "tell about a time..." and then after you tell a story they'll ask probing questions. The prompt will fall into one of the following categories: problem solving, achieving, personal impact, and leadership (details/descriptions can be found on the McKinsey web site). To prepare for these you should have at least one story for each category. Don't memorize but run through it in your head once or twice and make sure you remember all pertinent details (you'll need to be able to talk about it for 10+ minutes). I also ended up taking the McKinsey Problem Solving Test in the office after the interviews (this seems to be reverse order, not sure why it happened that way other than McKinsey doesn't officially recruit at my school). The language filter will not let me say what I want to say about that test, but the impression I got was that they didn't think it was worth much anyway. I would agree with this notion since it was essentially a test of your accuracy at performing complex math (complex as in lots of decimal places, sometimes with division) without a calculator. It was pretty similar to the practice test that's available on their web site, but a little more difficult.

The McKinsey cases are very structured so the interviewer does the driving. This takes a lot of the weight off your shoulders versus some of the other firms, but you still have to be able to perform and explain math efficiently and effectively as well as come up with innovative ideas. The feedback I was given was that I wasn't quite creative enough, which seems reasonable. Definitely practice, but nothing to get worked up about. I would not recommend doing 20+ cases as some have suggested because that will just stress you out more.

The people I interviewed with were all quite friendly, but I did not particularly care for the analysts/associates who took me out to lunch. I actually think it's a blessing in disguise that I wasn't offered. I had an odd timing situation so I probably would have accepted if offered, but, since I wasn't, I ended up interviewing at a firm of similar prestige that fit me much better and accepted there. The office was fairly nice but was completely dead (even on a Friday).

My main words of wisdom from this experience (well worth it btw) is to not try to cram in these interviews. I ended up taking a later flight so as to not miss a class on Thursday which resulted in me having to connect. In the end I didn't make it to the hotel until after 11pm while if I had been willing to miss one, unimportant class I would have been there 5-6 hours earlier. I blame my lackluster performance during the case interviews on the resulting lack of sleep (always trying to pass the buck).

Interview Questions

See what I said about the experience interviews. People expect the cases, but probably haven't heard of the experience interview before.

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The interview consisted of a Phone Interview and a 1:1 Interview.

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Very Difficult Interview

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Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Apr 2011 in Madrid (Spain) (took 5 days)

After applying online, I was sent an email several weeks later, announcing I was selected to be in the next step in the application process.
The interview consisted in a test, with five or six cases of study. You were not allowed to use a calculator, and the test was very deep and long. Time and answer as many questions as you were able to, were very important.
Then, I had two different 1:1 interviews with a consultant about an hour each one. First ten minutes were about personal questions: challenges, reasons to apply, etc. But most of the time was a case of study, which was very hard, and you need to be very fluent and experienced in order to solve it properly.
Definitly, I think it was too much for an engineer not an economist.

Interview Questions

Have you ever found a serious problem while working in a team? How did you solve it?

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I Applied Online and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview and a Skills Test.

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4.0

Difficult Interview

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Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Dec 2011 in Istanbul (Turkey) (took 3 days)

Applying for a B.A. position with McKinsey is typically a 3-round process plus a Problem Solving Test at the very beginning. PST and interview rounds were held at a 5-star hotel in Istanbul.

1st round consisted of the PST plus two one-on-one case interviews. Took the 1-hour PST and then waited 10 minutes before being called in for my first case interview. Apparently I passed the PST. I think they mainly use it to make sure you reach a certain benchmark of problem-solving ability. Test is basically three McKinsey-style business cases with lots of graphs and stuff a multiple choice questions. Questions are both qualitative and quantitative in nature.

Interviewers were very nice. Asked me a couple personal questions about my reasons for applying and also to describe a time when I had "personal impact." Both interviewers were McKinsey Engagement Managers.

Made it through to the 2nd round. Only made me wait a few minutes before telling me I had passed. Then they gave me some feedback with some advice on how to proceed in the next round. I was a bit weak on the quantitative side (not quick enough or thorough enough with numbers apparently) and was also advised to ask for help quicker when I got stuck in a case.

2nd round was the exact same format except w/o the PST. Interviewers were a Associate Principal and a Partner, respectively. Cases were about the same. One was particularly tricky though as it included a very confusing graph that I got stuck on about production capacity for a steel manufacturing company.

Told 15 minutes afterwards that I did not make it to the final round. Their only concern this time was my quantitative skills. Too slow and made a math error.

Interview Questions

Describe a time when you showed personal impact.

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Steel manufacturing company. Wants to increase profits without making any financial investments.

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Philanthropic donor who won the lottery and wants to use her money to open a network of kindergartens in her old hometown in rural Turkey. Needs McKinsey's help to determine if this plan is feasible and if so how she should go about doing it. Only two constraints are that it needs to be affordable for families in the town and that it must be self-sustaining after the initial investment.

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Retail chain (like Barnes & Nobles or something) with falling revenues. Need to determine why and how to boost sales/revenues.

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Estimate number of couples that got married in Istanbul this year.

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I got the interview through an Employee Referral and the interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview and a Skills Test.

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Received and Accepted Offer

Interviewed Nov 2011 in Boston, MA (took a day)

There are totally 3 rounds interviews. The first one includes a one-hour-test with GRE/GMAT format test. It is a little hard to finish the test on time, since there are 26 questions and require reading and calculation. The second and third rounds are case interviews. The interviewer are all very friendly and willing to help you if you have any problem in understanding the questions.

Interview Questions

Tell me about a situation you made some one angry.

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The interview consisted of a 1:1 Interview.

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5.0

Very Difficult Interview

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Interviewed and No Offer

Interviewed Jan 2012 (took a day)

Applied back in December, interview was offered one week prior to the actual interview date. The interview was a Problem Solving Test involving 26 quantitative and qualitative questions to answer over the course of an hour. I had practiced but the test was very difficult and I finished barely on time.