Career questions (1st year at unversity)

That was quite the lengthy post, but I can relate to a lot of it, so I'll give you my solicited 2 cents.

First off, it's good that you already have a sense of what you want and don't want in your career. I can't speak with first hand experience since I've only interned in consulting and will not start fulltime until next year, but your dreams of 40 hrs a week and still playing a sport are unlikely to be fulfilled. Most entry level associates in operations or implementation consulting (think Big 4) probably average about 55-65, with strategy consultants working closer to 70-80 and potentially more if doing due diligence.

Travel can also be a big drain on quality of life, and some of it is luck of the draw. You may be on a local client and get home at 6 every night, or you might be staffed 2000 miles away, taking red-eye flights and working until 1AM alone in your hotel room.

To answer your questions directly: Are there exit opportunities to consulting after a few years that would involve a 40 hour work week? Absolutely...but if you're set on this, why not skip consulting and start in industry right away?

Am I such a hopeless piece of crap that I should give up straight away and become a teacher? Well you've acknowledged that you're lazy, but there's nothing wrong with not having aspirations to be CEO of a company, partner at a firm, etc. No point in surrounding yourself with type-A people all reaching for the top, when there are plenty of careers for smart people that don't require the personal sacrifice that the "prestigious" consulting or banking jobs do.

If you don't hate studying, becoming an actuary might be a good fit. You'll work 40 hour weeks at the entry level and senior level, and will be well compensated as you pass the exams. It's a quick path to a low six figure salary and potentially more, but it also requires hundreds of hours of studying for each exam, and there are 9 in total. But if you've done well in school with minimal studying, you might find this to be true here as well.

Hope that helps!