2 years out of college...when to apply?

Hi all,

I graduated from Top-5 engineering school with 3.7 GPA, and am currently working at a major O&G company. I would like to break into management consulting, but my knowledge is most firms hire straight out of undergrad/MD/MS/PhD/MBA. I will be applying for a business analyst position (entry level) along with other recent grads and have a dilema...

Should I wait until July/August timeframe to apply or should I go ahead and start applying now?

Key considerations: 1. Wait period - if I get rejected because the firm has met its recruiting target for the year, I may have to wait until next fall (1 1/2 yrs from now)... 2. Number of years out of college - the longer I wait, the longer I'll be out of college, and may have too much experience to qualify for a BA role...

Any input is greatly appreciated!

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