"Consulting at KFBS: A Snapshot" by Parker Grayson

Hi everyone! My name is Parker, and I am the VP of Communications for the MBA Consulting Club at Kenan-Flagler. Today, I’m going to kick off our Fall 2020 Blog Series about recruiting for consulting at Kenan-Flagler.

But first, a little bit about me. I’m a 2nd year MBA student concentrating in Consulting and Finance at UNC. In addition to my involvement with the Consulting Club, I also serve as the Executive VP of the MBA Sport & Entertainment Club and as a Career Mentor (I help 1Y’s with internship recruiting). This summer, I worked in internal strategy at Corning Inc., a Fortune 500 glass and ceramics manufacturer.

Kenan-Flagler has a great program for students interested in consulting. 1st year students attend weekly “Career Lab” sessions to hone their ability to interview and case, in addition to attending firm presentations and coffee chats. 1st year students are also paired with 2nd year “Career Mentors” who have previously gone through the consulting recruiting process so that they can work with students on resumes, cover letters, and case preparation. For me, both Career Labs and my Career Mentor were key factors for helping me to recruit for consulting and internal strategy roles. Career Labs taught me how to sharpen my “2-minute pitch” and responses to behavioral interview questions, and I met with my Career Mentor at least once a week to do a case with her.

Academically, Kenan-Flagler has a strong curriculum to prepare students for consulting. One of the hallmarks of the program is Student Teams Achieving Results (STAR), in which 4 MBA’s and 2 UNC undergrads are paired with an S&P 500 company to help them with a 4-month strategic project. Last year, I had the chance to work with a leading cruise company to develop a 5-year technology investment strategy for the firm. Similarly, foundational classes such as “Consulting Skills and Frameworks” and “Advanced Consulting Skills and Frameworks” (ACSF) give students the fundamental toolkit necessary to succeed in any consulting role. As part of my final project for ASCF, I worked on a profitability project for a skincare company with a $1B valuation.

In subsequent weeks, both 1st year and 2nd year students will share their own experiences recruiting for consulting and being a KFBS student more generally. We hope that you’ll come check out our future blog posts to learn a little more life at UNC!