{
  "title": "Who Gets In? AI selection comparison",
  "as_of": "2026-09-13",
  "status": "governed_comparative_snapshot",
  "denominator_definition": "Eight institutions in the current governed corpus for which an official current source explicitly addresses candidate AI use or AI/human decision controls: McKinsey & Company, UBS, PwC UK, Clifford Chance UK, Deloitte UK, HSBC, BCG and A&O Shearman UK.",
  "N": 8,
  "institutions": [
    {
      "institution": "McKinsey & Company",
      "market": "Global",
      "preparation_ai": "encouraged for responsible preparation such as resume polishing and interview practice",
      "protected_stage_ai": "prohibited for real-time interview answers and assessments unless specifically permitted",
      "employer_ai": "AI-assisted interview exists as a voluntary route/policy architecture",
      "human_review": "AI-assisted interview assessments are reviewed by a human recruiter before a rejection decision",
      "source": "https://www.mckinsey.com/careers/interviewing",
      "protected_stage_source": "https://www.mckinsey.com/careers/interviewing"
    },
    {
      "institution": "UBS",
      "market": "Global",
      "preparation_ai": "permitted for application documents where output genuinely reflects the candidate",
      "protected_stage_ai": "assessment tasks and recorded/virtual video responses must be completed independently without AI-generated responses",
      "employer_ai": "not inferred from candidate-use policy",
      "human_review": "UBS states people make decisions on submissions",
      "source": "https://www.ubs.com/global/en/careers/search-jobs/faq/ai-usage.html",
      "protected_stage_source": "https://www.ubs.com/global/en/careers/search-jobs/faq/ai-usage.html"
    },
    {
      "institution": "PwC",
      "market": "United Kingdom",
      "preparation_ai": "not coded as permitted from the reviewed assessment-policy source",
      "protected_stage_ai": "AI or third-party generation, editing, rewriting, summarising or coaching of assessment responses is prohibited unless authorised",
      "employer_ai": "PwC states it does not use AI to assess Early Careers candidate performance",
      "human_review": "on-demand video answers are reviewed by a human assessor",
      "source": "https://www.pwc.co.uk/careers/early-careers/applying/assessment-selection-process.html",
      "protected_stage_source": "https://www.pwc.co.uk/careers/early-careers/applying/assessment-selection-process.html"
    },
    {
      "institution": "Clifford Chance",
      "market": "United Kingdom",
      "preparation_ai": "AI tools may support application preparation but overreliance is discouraged and authentic voice is emphasised",
      "protected_stage_ai": "AI is not permitted in the Watson Glaser test",
      "employer_ai": "The Challenge separately uses AI tools inside a trainee-style simulation; this is not treated as general recruitment AI",
      "human_review": "the firm states its team reads every application",
      "source": "https://jobs.cliffordchance.com/guide-to-application-london",
      "protected_stage_source": "https://jobs.cliffordchance.com/how-we-hire-london",
      "protected_stage_verified": "2026-09-19"
    },
    {
      "institution": "Deloitte",
      "market": "United Kingdom",
      "preparation_ai": "responsible AI use is permitted for selection-process preparation, final-stage topic research and interview practice, while candidate interview responses must remain based on their own experiences",
      "protected_stage_ai": "AI is prohibited in named online assessments and in both in-person and virtual interviews; those stages must be completed independently",
      "employer_ai": "not inferred from candidate-use guidance",
      "human_review": "the Early Careers process ends with live assessor discussion and/or a skills and motivation interview depending on programme",
      "source": "https://www.deloitte.com/uk/en/careers/early-careers/integrity-guidance.html",
      "protected_stage_source": "https://www.deloitte.com/uk/en/careers/early-careers/integrity-guidance.html"
    },
    {
      "institution": "HSBC",
      "market": "Global",
      "preparation_ai": "GenAI may be used to research HSBC and roles, structure a CV or application, prepare for interviews and organise or draft ideas where the final content remains accurate and genuinely the candidate's own",
      "protected_stage_ai": "GenAI must not generate responses during live or recorded interviews; candidates must not submit work they cannot personally explain, validate or replicate",
      "employer_ai": "not inferred from candidate-use guidance",
      "human_review": "the student and graduate process publishes an assessment centre/Super Day after the online assessment for applicable programmes",
      "source": "https://www.hsbc.com/careers/application-hints-and-tips",
      "protected_stage_source": "https://www.hsbc.com/careers/application-hints-and-tips"
    },
    {
      "institution": "BCG",
      "market": "Global",
      "preparation_ai": "GenAI may support brainstorming, structuring resumes and responses, source-finding, clarity checks and interview practice, while the candidate remains responsible for authentic content and validation",
      "protected_stage_ai": "the reviewed candidate guidance requires authentic candidate-owned application content but does not establish a blanket prohibition for live interviews or assessments; those stages remain not yet evidenced for this coding field",
      "employer_ai": "BCG describes limited AI support including job recommendations and drafting interview questions, while stating AI is never used to make hiring decisions",
      "human_review": "BCG states applications are reviewed by experienced recruiters and hiring decisions are made by experienced recruiters and hiring managers",
      "source": "https://careers.bcg.com/global/en/careers-in-ai/using-ai-application-process",
      "protected_stage_source": "https://careers.bcg.com/global/en/careers-in-ai/using-ai-application-process"
    },
    {
      "institution": "A&O Shearman",
      "market": "United Kingdom",
      "preparation_ai": "AI may complement candidate skills and help refine CVs, applications and written responses, but should not substitute the candidate's voice or misrepresent skills or experience",
      "protected_stage_ai": "the candidate charter states that applications and assessments should reflect the candidate's own thinking, experience and abilities",
      "employer_ai": "A&O Shearman's London early-careers FAQ states it does not use AI at any point during recruitment",
      "human_review": "the same FAQ states all assessments and decisions are made by the firm's team; the London training-contract route also publishes two one-to-one interviews after the online experience",
      "source": "https://careers.aoshearman.com/en/how-to-use-ai-responsibly-application-process",
      "protected_stage_source": "https://careers.aoshearman.com/en/candidate-charter",
      "protected_stage_verified": "2026-09-19"
    }
  ],
  "denominator_backed_findings": [
    "8/8 publish an explicit boundary or control around candidate or employer AI use in at least one part of recruitment.",
    "7/8 explicitly protect at least one assessment or interview context through an AI restriction or candidate-owned-performance requirement in the reviewed sources; BCG is not coded into this numerator because its reviewed guidance does not establish a stage-specific live-assessment prohibition.",
    "7/8 explicitly permit or encourage some form of AI-supported preparation or application assistance in the reviewed source set; PwC UK was not coded as permitting preparation because the reviewed source addresses assessment responses rather than general preparation.",
    "Human involvement is explicit at all 8 institutions, but the control differs materially across recruiter review, people making decisions, human assessment review, application reading, live assessor interviews and assessment centres/Super Days."
  ],
  "limits": [
    "N=8 is a defined evidence subset, not a prevalence estimate for elite employers.",
    "Policies are institution-, market-, programme- and stage-specific and may change.",
    "Absence of a coded permission or prohibition is not evidence that no such policy exists.",
    "A general authenticity requirement is not automatically coded as a prohibition on AI during every assessment stage.",
    "The seven protected-stage policies are not seven equivalent AI bans. A&O Shearman specifies candidate-owned thinking in assessments; Clifford Chance explicitly prohibits AI in Watson Glaser. Policy publication does not establish enforcement or hiring effects."
  ],
  "updated": "2026-09-19"
}