Is it possible to break into consulting?
Hi, all. I’ve noticed that throughout my career, many of my employers have said that I have a communication and work style similar to consulting and that I would be better suited to work as a consultant. I did a bit of research on breaking into the consulting industry and found PrepLounge and invested in a few books designed to help with breaking into MBB, but wanted to know if it was possible with my background. I could also trying breaking into other consulting shops such as Deloitte, Accenture and Perficient. I have 3+ YOE in Marketing, and recently pivoted to Analytics; however, I don’t have a degree which may be a barrier to entry at any consulting firm. I have some programming experience, but I’m not sure how valued it would be. I’m currently at the Lead level, but I’d be willing to accept a downlevel if the TC is there. Is it possible to break into consulting by grinding case interviews? How is the market outlook for the consulting industry? Thank you in advance for your input. TC: $44/hr or ~90K YOE: 3 in Marketing, 1 in Analytics
I do have the background needed to break into consulting but having a tough time cold-applying. I heard big4 only takes via referral or campus recruitments etc
Thank you for your input. I think the market’s brutal for all markets now, and that the tech winter has pushed into a full recession in the job market.
False on referral or campus recruitments only. I got an offer after cold-applying. The market is certainly not good and most of b4 have thick bench due to over-hiring. Target Mbb or T2. MBA should be only after you could not enter consulting. MBA helps but not a requirement nor guarantee a job in consulting
Your best bet is enrolling in a business school at a top program.
That’s what I was also thinking, but I thought that I might have had a chance without a degree. Thank you for your input.
It's best to break in at night from the back door.
Very hard if you are not in B school.
That’s what I was thinking as well. For some industries such as Finance and Consulting, it seems to be skewed in favor of people with degrees. Thank you for your input.
Consulting is easy, but contracting is not. Ive done it for 11+ years and if youre interested, dm me. I can tell you all about it. Its a very difficult business to do.
I’m surprised there’s a difference. I’m currently working as a contractor on a C2H role after leaving MRM, but thought it might be possible to break into consulting. Thank you for your input.
Go to MBA -> be good -> case prep -> break into MBB+. Don’t do big 4 or Accenture.
Thank you for your input. Is an MBA the only way to break into consulting? I already have the case prep, but I’m not sure if it’s worth it to try and go back to college. Why not the Big 4 or Accenture?
Also to add to this point - you’d need to go to a top tier MBA which feeds into MBB to have a shot at landing an MBB role. Otherwise you can try lower tier firms but that route will likely take you 3-5 years.