Calling all Fall 2010 Consortium Applicants (merged)

Just thought I'd chime in.

I also received and confirmed an email invite to the Consortium Brunch that is taking place during GBR. My invite came from a Consortium Student Liasons, and it appears that a few different students are working together to get the invites out. I'm assuming that it is open to all CGSM members accepted at Ross.

I look forward to meeting some of you there.

Posted from my mobile device

I'll also be at the Consortium brunch. Look forward to meeting the GMAT Clubbers!

wow! No posts here since Thurs AM till Fri PM?

Ok, this is for today Friday! TGIF

https://www2.haas.berkeley.edu/News/News ... rtium.aspx

i'm kind of jealous, i would have loved for the opportunity to apply to haas via the consortium, this is a great (re)addition

I know me too!!!!!!!!

Yeah that would have been nice, but at least it expands our CGSM network in coming years. I guess we have to look at the bright side.

word on the grapevine is that columbia might be one of the next ones to join the consortium. if true, then next year's applicants will surely have a ton of great options available to them

Me too. Getting the fellowship at such a strong program in a warm climate! What else can one ask for?

Although given the high number of URM in the state of California (not unlike NY) and the above reasons, the competition --at least in terms of sheer number of applicants (not unlike Stern) -- will likely be very high. Thence, the percentage of fellowship recipients will likely be low (I hear memeber schools can only give out an X number of awards per year)

When my friend told me about this I almost cursed him out just for delivering the news. It really does make you wonder what the member schools will look like in 5-10 years.

agreed, I would've been all over this . Haas is one of the schools I would've applied to if I could do this all over again. The bay area is awesome. But for networking purposes this is definitely a plus.

hey folks,
looks like i was wrong about my membership. I'm in! Didn't get the fellowship $ but I'm was still accepted as a member, so I'm excited to meet all of you at the OP.

But I was wondering if any of you know exactly the details of OP and how the whole program works. From what I understand, its a time where we get to meet with potential employers and possibly secure internships before we even begin school. Question is, will there be a list of firms that will be there? If we are given offers, can we wait till later to accept? If not, and we accept immediately, will reneging the offer to accept a better one be in bad form?

Reason I ask is this. Consider this scenario: Jimbo, a CGSM member with aspirations for consulting attends OP and by the end, is offered an internship at the OP participating firm, Booz Allen Hamilton. He accepts. Then through the course of the first year, Jimbo becomes a star at networking, talks to the right people, gets some interviews, and later is offered an internship at McKinsey. Is Jimbo screwed and should not accept the McKinsey internship because he has already accepted BAH's offer? If this is the case should Jimbo (and all of us) hold back on accepting offers if the company we would like to target is not amongst the OP firms? What is the proper strategy for approaching firms during the OP if the firm you would like to target is not amongst the attendees?

I ask this here on this forum to see if anyone has any insight. If this turns out to be a decent question and we all feel that we need some further insight, then maybe someone here can reach out to a current CGSM student and see what they have to say.

Congrats on acceptance into the Consortium!!

Great question. I've asked a similar question to current CGSM students before. My understanding is that they usually give you a timeframe by which to accept which depends on the company. It could be as early as Oct or Nov (usually around the time they start their traditional on-campus recruiting efforts) or as late as the end of Dec. NOTE: This could have changed since I last spoke to someone about this. One student mentioned that they told the company that offered them the internship that they wanted to keep their options open and continue their research of other companies before committing. Doesn't close the door from interning at the company through the traditional route and you already know a recruiter now.

Worse case scenario, you've networked and made a great connection if you try to get the internship again or better yet, a full-time position at the following year's OP and recruiting season. Look at it as a way to network and if they offer you an internship, you know they already like you considering you haven't even started classes yet!

Best case scenario, you start recruiting on campus and realize McKinsey isn't for you (probably because everyone and their mom is trying to get a position there) and BAH is where you want to be.

Wow I've been out of touch with this thread for too long. Thanks lakai777 for bringing me back. So there are a bunch of questions floating around here and hopefully you guys will have plenty of time at GBR to get a better understanding of The Consortium and what to expect at OP. For Ross students you'll be getting plenty of info, and possibly a mentor to help you prepare for OP.

So I'll try to break some of the questions down and answer them as quickly as possible (I'll be at the GBR brunch so we can talk in person).

"Question is, will there be a list of firms that will be there?"
Yes. Most firms will send in info to the CGSM with info on will they be attending, what disciplines are they hiring for and what specific positions they will be interviewing for. However some firms don't send in all their info so you won't know exactly what they will be recruiting for but you can look at the list of sponsors and talk to second years who interviewed with the companies the year before at OP. Some firms hire at OP, some use it as a first round interview, others use it as an informational or don't interview at all

If we are given offers, can we wait till later to accept? If not, and we accept immediately, will reneging the offer to accept a better one be in bad form?
Time frame depends on employer I had an offer that went all the way to the end of January. Reneging is generally considered very very bad - I wouldn't do it.

"Consider this scenario: Mck vs Booz"
First - there will not be any consulting offers at OP. If you are looking at doing consulting you'll mainly be using OP as a networking tool with future classmates and any firms you can get your foot in the door at but best case scenario is you get a close list spot on campus in late Jan or Feb. Many of us got offers in a more realistic scenario - which is maybe you want to do consulting but your backup is marketing, so you get a job at General Mills for marketing but aren't sure if you should accept or (roll the dice) try to get a first round interview with BCG. Conclusion = OP will vary by each students targeted career paths. (if you want to do marketing you'll probably accept an offer)

-Like I said I'll be around for GBR and will try to watch the thread for more OP questions.

lsuguy7, awesome response. Thanks for that insight!

I look forward to hopefully meeting at the GBR Consortium Brunch this weekend!

Does anyone know of a way to make it to OP even if you aren't going to a Consortium school?

I know the most likely answer ... but figured some ambitious soul may have found an answer to the problem plaguing me and a few others.

I'm pretty sure the answer is no. But something to consider is NBMBAA and NSHMBA both have large conferences that will get you access to a lot of the same companies plus many more. The ratio of students to employers at OP will probably be better, but those conferences will get you access still.

As for the networking part with other students, you can always develop your informal network but the Consortium seems to be an all or nothing mantra from how I've heard it explained.

Only situation I know of that people attend OP and don't attend a CGSM school goes like this: You are accepted as a CGSM fellow at school X but haven't decided between X and Harvard which you were also accepted. You tell school X that the benefits of being a CGSM are very interesting to you and want to attend OP. You can attend OP as a CGSM Fellow of school X and if you later decided to attend Harvard instead you'll have to pay back the cost of OP to the Consortium (your flight and hotel $s). While OP is a great opportunity I don't think you'd have the same long term take-aways from it if you didn't go to a CGSM and accept your CGSM Fellowship (the companies at OP are looking to hire CGSMers).