Consulting with an MA degree
I graduated last year from a top liberal arts college and came to China to teach for a year and enjoy living abroad. Next year I will be attending Johns Hopkins SAIS for a 2 year MA program - although not a business school, the program has a few courses similar to MBA programs. I am not sure right now that I want to go into consulting (or I wouldn't be getting this degree), but I am considering it as a possibility. From what I understand, if I got a consulting job after my MA I would be hired at the same level as a recent undergrad, correct (ie business analyst, associate consultant, etc.)? Would my pay be any higher than a BA holder, or would I be on the exact same footing? More importantly, I am curious whether or not I would still need to get an MBA to move on to a consultant position a few years down the road? Would the MA + experience be enough to receive the promotion given my performance is good enough? Thanks for your help!
Congrats on SAIS. Its a great school. It has a great rep in placing students into the private sector so I shouldn't imagine you'd have any trouble. A friend went to the school and she placed into an associate role, but other people she knew went into higher positions. Simply, it depends on the firm, the school and your experience. I dont think you'll need an MBA to get into consulting from SAIS, as you rightly mention they have some great concentrations and the course construction is quite focused.
I rejected SAIS in favour of Harvard or Tufts, visiting both schools this week. Good luck!
I'm sure you'll have a great time at Harvard or Tufts! I figure I will probably start as an associate (I only have 1 year of work experience going into the MA) but I'm wondering whether I will be able to reach the higher levels/get promoted after a few years of working with the MA or whether I will need to go back to grad school again for an MBA. Any ideas?
Why not just do a MA/MBA together? SAIS allows an ad-hoc program so in theory you can go to SAIS and then do an MBA with say Wharton.
I did HKS/HBS.
I would definitely be interested - SAIS has the dual degree program with Wharton, Dartmouth, and INSEAD. But with only one year of work experience, would I even have a shot if I applied?
I don't know if you have a good shot at an MBA or not, but I wanted to comment on the starting position after graduation. While it is hard to tell (it depends on the office etc) you will probably not go in as a post MBA with only one year of work experience. Some companies might allow you to enter as a second year analyst, but there are downsides to that.
To clarify the downsides point more clearly:
I know a person that joined an MBB at a position slightly above that of a second year analyst. He confided to me that the people under him looked at him with certain skepticism and did not give him that much respect, because at times they knew more about the "X company Way" than him. It also hurt him that he was a foreigner in a non-US office where he was the lowest ranked foreign employee.
It seems that the downsides of skipping a year would depend on the specific circumstance. In that guys case, it might have been better to start from the bottom and learn the ways of company and the country. Today he is past that rough patch, so it did get solved. The original poster only has one year of work experience, so he might get some heat from the people at the bottom of the food chain as he learns the basics. In short, I just wanted to draw attention to the fact that you cannot simplistically assume that the higher the better. There might be other considerations.
Also, you will start at the bottom (like an undergrad because you don't have enough/relevant work experience) and you can rise without an MBA if you perform well.
Your MA won't matter, really. Unless you have an MA + post-MA work experience, you'll start at the same level as an entry-level, undergrad hire. Your ability to progress beyond that level without an MBA will depend more on the firm you join than your MA.
Non-MBA for management consulting careers? (Originally Posted: 09/29/2010)
Hello,
Any thoughts about my profile fit to management consulting?
Here's my profile
I am looking to apply for a position with the top 5-8 management consulting firms. I'd like to hear some perspectives about management consulting for non-MBAs (passed first year). And you can be as candid as you want. ..Remember, I survived an exit from my dream school . And live to tell the story :-)
My question is - Is there some kind of "glass ceiling" in these firms for non-MBAs. I would not want to waste my time applying to a McK or Booz if that is the case and may consider a career in tech product development. What kind of contacts help?
p.s. I hope I have posted this finally in the right place. Apologies if I have botched up somebody else's thread!
To be frank, dropping out of business school is a black mark on your resume that is going to make it extremely difficult to get a consulting firm to even look at you, let alone hire you.
Also... please don't refer to Stanford as an Ivy League school. The Ivy League is an old athletic conference in the northeast. The west coast school named after a despotic railroad magnate is in the Pac 10.
Talk to headhunters, talk to recruiters, and contact what alumni you have in those firms. Failing out of Bschool is going to a tough hurdle for top firms, you were given a great opportunity and you blew it ( understand it was because of family illness). It sounds like you have decent experience and were qualified enough to get into a top school so you have value. It won't be easy but it's possible, start networking and see what you come up with. You really don't have anything to lose by trying.
Thanks everybody for the response!
I was wondering where and how to go about networking. This is going to be a slightly greater challenge than when I was at B school , because the recruiting office at my current program is not much help - they simply referred me to the university career services which I have already rummaged through without much of an outcome.
I am reaching out through first year classmates from my MBA Program who are currently placed in such firms. The current program that I go to has a relatively small network of alumni in the top management consulting firms (though I am trying to dig into connections there)
Other things I am considering are - To attend events/conferences where I can actually meet people. Again, I am not sure how I can get invites/passes to a networking event where I can meet people in person.
Do any of you have tips on which recruiters to work with (nyc area) or who has been successful for you in the past?
Thanks again for your time!
Quis facere velit dolorum et. Temporibus laudantium dolore harum unde consequatur a est. Voluptas aut et accusantium reiciendis illum expedita. Sit quas aperiam nisi vitae nulla.
Enim voluptatem iusto illo laborum. Non debitis quia totam animi placeat officiis. Laborum cupiditate qui dolorum officia rerum. Laudantium aut voluptas temporibus ipsum aperiam.
Dicta rerum dolorem voluptatibus sit. Quia facilis necessitatibus doloremque quod quibusdam exercitationem. Eligendi qui illo et aliquid repudiandae dignissimos mollitia.
Necessitatibus itaque qui ut et molestiae officia. Consequuntur et et sed. Ea possimus dicta qui est perferendis. Consequuntur dolorum ut dignissimos magnam nihil. Sunt blanditiis sint eum sit amet maxime.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...