For our last major tour of the year, we started our crazy adventure in Philadelphia - joining all the wannabe consultants at Wharton's annual Consulting Club Conference (featuring Jenny Rae as wannabe suitcase model).
After our awesome red-eye flight, we were feeling stiff and needed to freshen up. So...before our entrance into the conference, we dashed into a student's dorm for a quick shower and to freshen up. That's right - a throwback to dorm days. Yikes!
However scary it was, this is some of the coolness we were greeted with:
(who is this magical Joan?)
Jenny Chen represented WUCC hard - collecting our books from the dodgiest UPS collection site with Jing, an MC intern. WUCC it girl!
(For those who are clueless, WUCC = Wharton Undergraduate Consulting Club.)
Anyone feeling lost in the crazy world of consulting? WUCC's conference aimed to provide a roadmap for those who needed a bit of of direction.
We hung out in the MASSIVE hall as Jenny Rae prepared to present the 2 hour bootcamp - the only time that day the largest venue at Wharton was used.
Then, just because we could, we flew all the way across the ocean to London - in style. Half the plane was empty so we could stretch out!
Jenny Rae was very happy to be at LSE, although it was blustery and typically London - all rainy and cold.
Arriving at LSE, we were met with bad news: the film club was in our room. What? Our host forgot that he had booked a different room to fit more people due to the high level of interest. All was well - we found our room, and so did everyone else (every seat was full)!
As always, we invited group participation - below is a brave soul (who later joined us for the all-day bootcamp) sharing her elevator pitch.
As if traveling across the ocean on the plane wasn't enough, we felt it necessary to use as many forms of transportation as necessary...so we took a train up to Durham University.
The Durham University students were interested in the difference between consulting in the US and the UK, and the band of new brothers and sisters walked us nearly all the way back to the train station.
UCL folks were a mix of the undergraduate and masters students, and they came with lots of curiosity.
Many questions were asked about resumes, cover letters and the importance of inserting a cover letter with their applications.
The students from Manchester Business School's MBA program enjoyed interacting with each other during the 8-hour bootcamp. We loved the diverse crowd of students from literally all around the world (including India, the U.S., and Mexico).
We also got great feedback from the Manchester folks - including this testimonial: "This is the best session that I have had to date, in terms of learning, applicability, and practicality. I want to thank you for your time today - it was an amazing session, and I just loved it."
We got some additional love from an attendee: "For the first time in my MBA, I never looked at my watch! Time just flew, and yet it didn't leave me exhausted."
Or what about this one? "Really great! I feel that I am more confident in describing my story and in how to deliver that. How could you possibly go into an interview not having done this bootcamp?"
That's right - it was a total love-fest.
In fact, we had a few second-time attendees. Here was some feedback from one of them: "I came to this same bootcamp last year, and thought it would just be a review. However, I'm amazed at how many more insights I got today on my second time around. It is a very informative session, suitable for both entry-level and more experienced consulting interviewees."
And to cap off our London adventure, we had an 8-hour open bootcamp at the Grosvenor House, a schmancy hotel overlooking Hyde Park. We had such a great time cracking case questions with our participants.
We got some great feedback from our London folks as well. One said, "My favorite thing about the day was the frank, open, insider info. Jenny Rae was very personable and engaging and had a clear structure."
Another said, "I loved the elevator pitch, walk me through your resume, and hero stories. They were really strong - in fact, they were the best I have come across."
Feeling like you missed out and want another opportunity to hang out with the MC team? We'd love to hang out with you.
If you are considering partnering with us in 2015, don't hesitate to book in a 30-minute session with us to discuss how we can bring our A-game or tailor our courses to suit your group or school!
Thanks to all of our partner schools for hosting MC this year - we can't wait to see you again in 2015!