CMU-Q builds mentorship network to encourage students interested in consulting

Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar hosted Professional Services Day, a networking session for students in Education City who are interested in careers in consulting. About 65 students attended the event, including 20 from other campuses in Education City.

Seven consulting firms attended the event: A.T. Kearney, Bain and Company, Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and McKinsey and Company.

“The interview process is different for consulting firms. Students must thoroughly prepare, so it is helpful to meet people from the firms, learn about the process and plan for interviews,” said Mohammed Mirza, career development specialist at CMU-Q.

Consultants work with clients to tackle a wide variety of business issues, and therefore firms look for candidates who are flexible, knowledgeable and creative problem solvers. Many firms in the Middle East look to long-established mentorship networks at large universities for potential candidates.

A student networks with consulting firms at Professional Services Day.

Farha Khan, who graduated from CMU-Q’s Business Administration Program in 2018, attended the event on behalf of her current employer, A.T. Kearney. When she was a student, Farha realized that there was not a mentorship network in place at CMU-Q to guide her through the consulting interview process.

To help other students and to further develop her own skills, Khan founded the Carnegie Consulting Club. In the 2017-18 academic year, the club worked on a real case from a local client, and guest speakers came in to guide students and answer questions.

“I wanted to set up a framework for students to gain more experience with the whole consulting process,” said Khan. “Now that I am working in a consulting firm, I want to do what I can to mentor current students. CMU-Q students have the talent to do well in consulting, and now they have a way to develop skills as well.”

Farha Khan at Professional Services Day

Mirza noted: “Farha worked very hard to learn the interview process, and then she helped establish a mentorship network so current students could more easily pursue careers in consulting.”

This is the second annual Professional Services Day at CMU-Q. The Carnegie Consulting Club has expanded, and now has two groups of students working on real cases with two different clients.