Here's what it takes to get hired at top consulting firms right now

• Top consulting firms like McKinsey and Ernst & Young use AI in their hiring processes.
• McKinsey seeks candidates with diverse majors and strong problem-solving skills.

Consulting can be a lucrative career, but landing a job at a top firm isn't always easy.

McKinsey & Company is known for its selective interview process. It receives about 1 million résumés annually and plans to hire fewer than 1% of applicants this year, in line with last year, a spokesperson said.

Ernst & Young, meanwhile, received more than 4 million applications in the past year and hired some 140,000 people, according to a spokesperson.

Business Insider checked in with four major firms — Boston Consulting Group, Ernst & Young, McKinsey, and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) — for insights into what they might be looking for in prospective employees.

What kinds of roles are consulting firms hiring for?

Consulting firms often hire for a range of positions.

Alicia Pittman, global people team chair at Boston Consulting Group, told BI the company is hiring for a wider array of roles than it did a decade ago. The company has a greater need for IT architects, UX designers, and data engineers, she said.

"The depth of breadth of expertise that we have has changed," she said, noting that the company now has climate scientists on staff.

Pittman said generative artificial intelligence is an area of "tremendous growth" for the firm. "It's going to change the mix of people and expertise that we need," she said.

The use of AI will even change how junior consultants do their jobs because it will often be possible to get answers more quickly.

"You learn the consulting tradecraft differently," Pittman said. "You learn how to interrogate data a little differently."

Ernst & Young is using AI to hire. With a tool called EY Candidate Assistant, applicants who think they might be a good fit but don't know the right role can upload a résumé and list their interests. The tool then recommends open roles suitable for them using AI algorithms.

Rod Adams, talent acquisition and onboarding leader at PwC, told BI that the company is hiring consultants, engineers, accountants, and tax professionals, among other roles.

What kinds of candidates are most likely to get hired?

Consulting firms often say there isn't one specific background or set of skills they look for.

McKinsey told BI that it looks for "distinctive students just starting their careers" who've majored in subjects such as computer science or art history. It also hires experts in industries ranging from technology to finance to law.

Regardless of their field, the firm wants all of its hires to have good problem-solving skills. One way the firm gauges that is through a game-based assessment called Solve. The results help the firm identify candidates who will succeed at McKinsey regardless of their business experience and are considered along with the rest of a candidate's application, interviews, and any other assessment results relevant to their role, the firm told BI.

PwC said some skills it looks for in job applicants are communication, problem-solving, and relationship building in a hybrid environment, while technical skills include accounting and auditing, tax strategy and reporting, and data engineering and visualization.

"We're also looking for candidates who are committed to continuing to build new skills throughout their career. People need to be able and willing to meet tomorrow's demands and take advantage of new opportunities," Adams said, noting PwC has a My AI initiative that trains its employees on generative AI.

If you're interested in consulting

McKinsey recently launched an interview prep site for new candidates that will include its best coaching and tips for prospective candidates.

"This helps to ensure candidates from any background — regardless of whether they have exposure to resources like consulting clubs — can demonstrate their distinctiveness in our process," the firm told BI.

Adams of PwC said college students and young grads should focus on upskilling and trying to get something new out of every class, project, and experience.

"My advice would be to take advantage of any and all learning and development opportunities, whether it be at school or at work," he said.