Originally posted by siempre595
yea, i know the literal translation, didn't really see the connection to application errors. sorry, i'm no investment banker or consulting agent, so i have no idea how the jobs work or what gets you axed from them.
Oh...basically, the application process first screening is on cover letter and resume (and you have to write a solid cover letter--writing a generic cover letter for every company is a way to failure). If you get an interview (somewhat difficult in this economy), then they want to know that you're a good fit for the company, so it can be somewhat superficial.
For i-banking, you don't need to be all that intelligent, because they train you. They tend to like football players/frat boys a lot, and also WASPy sorts of folks (this is from my roommate who is currently going through the on-campus interview process).
For consulting, they give you these nice case interviews, where they give you a case and you have to analyze it (as you would do in the job, only more superficial). They want to know that you're intelligent and that you can think.
As an example, Morgan Stanley started with 130 applicants, cut to 26 for first round interviews, 14 for 2nd round, and 8 for 3rd round. So it's pretty cutthroat. Three years ago, all 8 might have gotten a job, but in this economy, we'll see. It's supposedly the worst since the Great Depression (quoted by the Morgan Stanley people--even worse than the crash of October 1987).
