Getting a job in one of the Big 4 is a dream for many consulting professionals. The major reason behind getting a job in one of the Big 4 is its 4-round interview process. But have you ever wondered which of these giants pose the greatest challenge to get a role there? So which Big 4 is hardest to get into?
After doing a thorough research, I found out that EY is the hardest of all Big 4 to get a job. The major reason behind this is its 4 round interview process, which is the trickiest of all. Another major factor is its low acceptance rate, standing at 3.5%.
In this article, I will answer the most commonly asked questions lurking in people’s minds, and that is which of the Big 4 companies is hardest to get into and rank them in the order by difficulty.
Which Big 4 Is Hardest To Get Into
Securing a role at one of the Big 4 firms—EY, PwC, Deloitte, and KPMG—is a highly sought-after ambition for many. These companies are celebrated for their global reach, career prospects, and esteemed reputation. Yet, the journey to landing a position is not straightforward.
Each firm’s recruitment process is distinct, with varying levels of complexity. This makes some firms more challenging to join than others. We will examine which Big 4 firm is the most demanding, dissecting their hiring methodologies and ranking them by the level of difficulty.
1. EY
In my research to reveal which Big 4 is the hardest to get into, I found the EY hiring process to be the most difficult. You may ask, why? Well, there are a number of factors influencing this statement.
Firstly, when it comes to hiring candidates, EY is highly selective!
Speaking academically, recently, the Big 4 companies made some changes in their academic criteria for hiring.
At EY, you will not be rejected solely on the basis of educational grades. In fact, the online assessment score combined with academic qualification gets you forward in the hiring process. Now, that’s the hard part! Scoring well in online assessment tests is crucial! (Source)
Second comes the recruitment process. It takes about 2 months, including the online assessments, phone interviews, and several rounds of case interviews.
During my research, I was amazed to know that case interviews are the hardest part of the firm’s recruitment process. It is the toughest among all the Big 4 companies! (Source)
Here’s what a candidate who got interviewed at EY has to say about his experience with the firm. “It’s all the same, I’ve interviewed with 3 and ACN, but not Deloitte. I didn’t find the interview process to be much different across them as an experienced hire. If I had to rank them based on difficulty (difficult to least difficult): EY, ACN, KPMG, PwC.” (Source)
The case interview round is a candidate-led interview. It’s different from other typical interviews. In this case, you are required to solve a business problem with your own strategy rather than answering the interviewer’s questions!
The sole purpose of the case interview is to find 6 core strengths on which EY decides to hire you. These are:
- Adaptability
- Curiosity
- Collaboration
- Learning Agility
- Resilience
- Relationship Building
(Source)
2. PwC
PwC is considered prestigious to work in. As per the recent stats, PwC has been ranked as the top consulting firm of 2023. (Source)
In my opinion, PwC ranks 2nd among the Big 4 in its difficulty level of hiring candidates. Why is that?
The firm received 304,000 job applications against 7500 different positions last year. It only hired 2.5% of all its applicants last year. Having such a low acceptance rate shows the difficulty in its hiring process. (Source)
But what makes it that difficult a battle to conquer for the new hires?
When I researched the hiring process of PwC, I found out that a large number of their hires are already interns at the company.
PwC knows that they already know the work culture and thus easily blend in! So, the company relieves the stress of hiring new professionals by just offering its interns more permanent roles.
What is more amazing to know is that the hiring process at PwC comprises not 1,2 but 4 stages! Yes! It’s that hard to get into PwC! (Source)
The 4 stage process includes the following milestones:
- Registering Online
- Video Interview for Pre-Screening Questions
- Attending a full-day event at an Assessment Center
- Two 1:1 Interviews with the Manager & Partner
(Source)
Passing each of the above stages requires you to be extremely competitive to get the offer letter afterward.
It is crucial to mention here that when it comes to the interview process, PwC is looking for 5 core qualities in a candidate. Which are:
- Leadership
- Business acumen
- Technical capabilities
- Global acumen
- Relationship skills
PwC also does a case-study interview style. The interview session evaluates you against various factors. These include your ability to tackle a certain situation and the strategy of going about it.
While I kept digging, it became evident that the case-study interview session was the biggest challenge for candidates! You wonder why? Because there are no right/wrong answers to this! You are judged on your ability and problem-solving skills, given the particular situation!
3. Deloitte
In my quest, Deloitte ranks at number 3 as the hardest Big 4 to get into.
Firstly, the academic criteria of Deloitte. It is almost as competitive as the other Big 4 companies, with GCISE degree requirements as well. (Source)
But that is just one foot in the door!
Next in line is the online assessment criteria. Candidates are required to complete an online assessment.
After this stage, the interview process starts. Unlike EY, Deloitte conducts only two interview sessions with you (The first interview is usually followed by the final interview).
However, there are no challenging case interviews involved! What a relief to know, right?
Though the interviews at Deloitte are quite tough, you can easily overcome this by practicing!
Let me show you the stats! About 71.8% of people rated their interview experience with Deloitte as positive. The difficulty rating was 2.9 out of 5 where 5 is the highest difficulty level. (Source)
About the whole recruitment process of Deloitte, I came to know that it comprises 1-3 weeks only (Which is less than EY and PwC).
4. KPMG
The acceptance rate of KPMG is the highest of all, i.e., 8%, and this indicates the least difficulty in getting into this firm. (Source)
The company also offers internship opportunities to prospective candidates! About 90% of applicants are offered internship roles, and about 85% of them accept this offer.
KPMG considers its interns as an asset to the company and usually gives them jobs at the end of their terms!
But what about the new professionals who don’t want to undergo an internship at KPMG?
For this, you need to clear the assessment stage. Then, you will be selected for the 3 rounds of in-person interviews with:
- HR representatives
- Hiring managers
- Senior executives.
Well, considering the recruitment stages of EY, PwC, and Deloitte, the interview stages at KPMG are less competitive, and its acceptance stats also attest to that fact.
In the end, here is a table that will show you my ranking of each of the Big 4 firms based on how hard it is to get into:
| Difficulty Level To Get a Job | Big 4 Company |
| Hardest | EY |
| 2nd Hardest | PwC |
| 3rd Hardest | Deloitte |
| 4th Hardest | KPMG |
