Figuring Out a Career at Caltech - Why Consulting?

Basically the title - right now I'm a HS senior (I'm assuming this is like most professional forums which get a lot of traffic from HSers asking annoying questions, so I'll try not to be this way) who's just committed to Caltech, and has no clue what I want to do as a career - I basically got into Caltech by doing a bunch of fun tech stuff which does not translate into a career I'd enjoy.

Now that all that background stuff is done, here's the question: Why'd you choose consulting? Would you choose it over other careers like tech, IB, etc? Is the money worth the WLB to you? And anything else you feel is something you'd want to tell any college freshman thinking of consulting or any other finance career. Thanks for answering. Or reading. One of the two if your this far into the post.

7 Comments
 
Most Helpful
  • Why consulting?
    • Typical question, for me it was relatively simple (I say after spending all of 2020 applying to literally hundreds of jobs :D). It comes down to:
      1. I find strategy consulting one of the most stimulating / fun jobs in the private sector (maybe not #1, but definitely top 3 for me)
      2. I enjoy the doors it opens for my career, which frankly few (if any) other jobs could have done for me
      3. I really like the people I work with (which is partly about joining and partly about staying)
  • Other careers like tech, IB, etc?
    • I would only have tried my luck at PE otherwise, because it's one of these other super fun and interesting careers to me, but I am in a much better position to try it than I was pre-MBB (although my interest level has waned)
    • Looking ahead, I'm interested in Gaming & Media, so I'm keeping an eye out for skills I'll need if I wish to transition
  • Money worth the WLB?
    • Yes, definitely. WLB in consulting is not that bad (certaintly compared to IB / PE). Although I do wish I had more control over my own time, but unfortunately we have to go with the flow of the case
  • College 1st Year advice
    • Unless you want to join IB / PE, do not worry about what you want to do later. For Consulting, there are some key dates, yes, but the more diverse your experience the better
    • You're in your late teens, and you have some idea of what you want to do. That's good, but don't be married to it. Try it out, see if you like it, and if you don't or you end up doing something else, that's also fine. There is no need to have your career determined from Day 1. Hell, I changed careers 3 times, and I'll likely do it one more time in the next 5-8 years. Just do what you feel you want to do, without worrying about what you "should be doing" or what "others are doing"
    • Learn to be financially responsible now (this is harder to learn when you're older and have formed some pretty bad habits), but of course enjoy being a student (no do-overs in life)
    • And generally, try to be helpful. Whether that's at work or at school when someone asks you a question or for some help, or whether that's by doing some extra work on the side for a charity or even just tutoring (you do need money after all). But try to find a way to be helpful to others. It's a good habit to take young too, and it's incredbly rewarding to be able to help someone on a very personal level 
 

Thanks for the really thorough response! Just a quick add-on, are you planning on staying in consulting for most of your career, or shifting into a more corporate job, and why? I've heard its standard for consultants to shift into industry and leverage their experience for high positions - is it a downstep in comp typically, lateral movement, or an increase? And any other advice you might have off the top of your head.

 
  • Future
    • I'm 50/50 between staying and leaving eventually (no sooner than 5-6 years, however). I'd stay because I really like the work and the people. But I'd leave for a job I find even more interesting and engaging, in an industry where I would love to make a difference
      • I think a lot of people who leave consulting for corporate jobs do it in part because it allows them to "own" something, rather than just give ppt recommendations and never seeing them through
      • Improved WLB is also a common motivator for a lot of people, alongside working in what they are passionate about (e.g., healthcare, tech, non-profit, or becoming an entrepreneur)
    • Exits from consulting vary a lot, esp. MBB / strat consulting in general: you could go to a non-profit, a start-up, start your own business, join a client's team, or go to PE. There's probably too much variance to extract meaningful averages on comps (for PE in London, I've mostly see Associates/Sr Associates at ~100-110K base + 100% bonus; no clue for others). Others would be better placed to answer from what they've seen
  • More advice
 

Because I was a stupid HSer a while ago who thought no one would answer my questions if I didn't say I was in college, and had a specific question for high ranking tech schools. Ironically, now I'm in a high ranking tech school, so ig it worked out.

 

Consulting is interesting work, hours are better, per hour pay (which arguably matters more if you’re not cash strapped) is higher than IBD. the better hours translate to sustainability and longevity of career. Contrary to what people say, exit opportunities in consulting are worse for the simple reason that high finance is mostly closed off to you. The banker can be a consultant, but the converse is not true. Anyway casing is easy once you’ve done about 20 or so of them. The math is pure BS and inaccurate for the most part in consulting. Great travel, flights, and meal expenses though, your expenses could be near zero after perks (definitely zero on weekdays).

 

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