Advice > Consulting

20 consulting resume keywords recruiters look for

By Max Serrano on March 23, 2023 How we wrote this article
Consulting resume keywords

Preparing a killer resume for your consulting application can be a real challenge. It's sometimes hard to know what experiences to include. Should you talk about that award you got 5 years ago, or is it too far in the past? And it can also be a challenge to know how to talk about your achievements. Does that bullet point  really reflect what you were doing, or are you going too far?

Click here for a resume review with an ex-MBB consultant

A good way to work around these issues is to focus on the skills that McKinsey, BCG and Bain are looking for. And to associate these different skills to corresponding keywords in your resume. Taking this structured approach will ensure that your resume is tailored to what consulting firms are looking for.

As we mentioned in our consulting resume and cover letter guides, reviewers essentially look for the following four skills when screening your resume:

  • Problem solving. This means you need to have shown strong intellectual abilities to solve problems at University and during your work experiences.
  • Personal impact. This means you've shown a dedication to achieving great things in everything you undertake. You've got a strong personal impact on most projects you are part of.
  • Entrepreneurial drive. This means you have a track record of launching new initiatives. You are not satisfied with doing things the traditional way and like innovating.
  • Leadership abilities. This means you've shown you can lead groups of people in the past either in a professional context or at university.

Your resume should therefore highlight that you possess these skills. And here is a list of keywords that will easily enable you to achieve this:

  • Problem solving keywords
    • Performed an analysis
    • Resolved a problem
    • Generated actionable insights
    • Developed a quantitative model
    • Designed a solution
    • Etc.
  • Personal impact keywords
    • Delivered a project
    • Implemented a solution to a problem
    • Achieved success X
    • Built successful relationships
    • Presented in front of large audiences
    • Etc.
  • Entrepreneurial drive keywords
    • Started a project
    • Grew a project from X to Y
    • Redesigned a process
    • Took an initiative
    • Obtained backing / support
    • Etc.
  • Leadership abilities keywords
    • Lead a team
    • Organised an event
    • Managed a project
    • Trained new colleagues
    • Mentored junior colleagues
    • Etc.

You will have probably noticed that all these keywords are action verbs. It is extremely important that you start your bullet points with action verbs. This enables your resume reviewer to identify the skills you have by just reading the first word of every bullet point! If you make your reviewer's life easy, trust us, they will want to work with you and will give you an interview :)


If you are looking for more guidance, you can also check out our consulting resume review service. We've helped thousands of candidates get an interview and land an offer and can help you make sure you maximise your chances of getting an interview with McKinsey, BCG and Bain.

Related articles:

Accenture case interview
ConsultingApr 04, 2023
Accenture case interview (questions, process, prep)
The ultimate guide to Accenture case interviews. Learn about the interview process, what questions to expect, how to answer them and how to prepare. Essential reading for anyone applying to a consulting position at Accenture.
Read more
Boutique vs. MBB consulting firms
ConsultingAug 03, 2022
Boutique vs. MBB consulting firms (and how to move to MBB)
Differences between boutique and MBB consulting firms, including size, projects, salaries, etc. Plus strategies for moving from a boutique firm to an MBB firm.
Read more
Case interview issue tree
ConsultingMay 17, 2023
Issue trees: how to use them in case interviews?
Issue tree analysis is used by McKinsey and other consulting firms to solve client problems. MECE issue trees (aka logic trees) are used to break down complex questions into simpler sub-questions. In this post we cover issue tree examples and templates you can reuse in your own case interviews.
Read more
A case interview candidate looks at her two interviewers
ConsultingMar 18, 2024
Case Interview Prep Guide (5 steps to an offer at MBB)
Step-by-step case interview preparation guide to help you get offers from top management consulting firms like McKinsey, BCG, Bain, Deloitte, and more. Includes case frameworks and example cases to practise with, plus tips on PEI and fit questions.
Read more
What do consultants really do
ConsultingMay 17, 2023
What do consultants really do at McKinsey, Deloitte, etc?
Forget the buzzwords and vague generalisations. In this article, we're going to cut right to the heart of the question "what do consultants do?". From day-to-day life to what type of clients and projects they work on.
Read more
Mutually Exclusive and Collectively Exhaustive (MECE)
ConsultingJun 27, 2023
MECE Framework (Meaning, Examples, McKinsey)
MECE stands for Mutually Exclusive and Collectively Exhaustive. McKinsey consultants use MECE frameworks all the time. In this short tutorial we teach you 3 simple secrets to make your own frameworks MECE in case interviews.
Read more
Profitability consulting cases
ConsultingMay 01, 2018
How to master profitability consulting cases?
Learn to solve profitability framework case interviews. Profitability case studies are very common and it is therefore important that you know what framework to use to crack them.
Read more
Case interview frameworks
ConsultingJun 09, 2022
Top 7 case interview frameworks (and how to create your own)
List of consulting frameworks, including explanations of each one. Plus a step-by-step guide for creating custom frameworks during case interviews.
Read more