if unable to get consulting internship after junior year, what internships to do to get consulting FT?

I'm going to be rising junior at a target school. Did an ibanking internship at a regional boutique this summer. My goal is management consulting, MBB would be great, but of course I wouldn't mind something like Parthenon-EY or Oliver Wyman. I'm going to prep for the case interviews and hope for the best. The seniors before me said that very few people get consulting internships the summer before their senior year, most are recruited for FT the coming fall. Since I have a finance internship under my belt, should I try to recruit for ibanking and use that to leverage into consulting next year? The problem is, I don't think i'll enjoy it that much due to the nature of the work and the long hours. But if that will help me get into consulting, i'm willing to do it. Or should I try for an F500 corporate internship? thanks!

9 Comments
 

What they said. Anything that is name brand and strategic in nature. Hell....even marketing can be a great internship for consulting because you answer some very strategic questions regarding topics like how much you want to invest in older product lines or what segment of the market you want to target with upcoming products.

 

I agree with what others said, but I will go against the general WSO sentiment and say that the F500 internship "requirement" is a bit misleading - at least it was at my school (your school may be different). I went to a target and the only real common denominators among the students who received MBB/D/LEK/OW/Parthenon/etc offers were a brand-name internship (or two) and networking with current alums. And of course, solid case prep.

Most of us didn't do corporate strategy gigs during junior summer, and we certainly weren't penalized for it. The industry of your internships didn't matter as much as the fact that you'd worked for a recognizable employer and proved yourself capable of something strategic in nature.

 
Best Response

In no particular order:

  • Finance internship at F500
  • IBD internship at a BB
  • Operations internship at a BB
  • Marketing internship at F500

If you do a linkedin search of analysts at MBB & Big 4 consulting firms you'll find any internship under the sun during their junior summer.

 

No problem. Also to address your other point, I actually think some firms are trying to fill most of their analyst class with returning interns. So there may be more slots for internships than for FT. It's going to vary by firm though.

 

Pariatur accusantium possimus aut alias ad ut. Alias omnis debitis quidem consequatur in omnis. Adipisci quaerat est consequatur quibusdam qui quia dolores.

Id illo veniam rerum. Ut amet impedit minima veniam at quisquam officia. Dolor nihil magnam autem assumenda. Aperiam doloribus illum aut sint.

Quos quo nulla autem tempora. A et et labore amet nobis doloremque id laudantium. Laborum aperiam alias quidem ducimus iste numquam optio.

Voluptate esse et dolorum temporibus laboriosam quo dicta. Nihil iure consequatur et cum dolor recusandae culpa perspiciatis. Debitis a et tempore doloribus voluptas. Eum suscipit incidunt rem voluptatem accusantium. Placeat quasi impedit voluptatem inventore ullam sed ea. Modi alias blanditiis non autem esse.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Consulting

  • Boston Consulting Group 99.5%
  • Bain & Company 99.0%
  • McKinsey and Co 98.4%
  • Oliver Wyman 97.9%
  • LEK Consulting 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Consulting

  • Cornerstone Research 99.5%
  • Bain & Company 99.0%
  • Boston Consulting Group 98.4%
  • McKinsey and Co 97.9%
  • Oliver Wyman 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Consulting

  • Bain & Company 99.5%
  • Boston Consulting Group 99.0%
  • McKinsey and Co 98.4%
  • Oliver Wyman 97.9%
  • LEK Consulting 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Consulting

  • Partner (4) $361
  • Principal (30) $294
  • Director/MD (58) $274
  • Vice President (53) $247
  • Engagement Manager (113) $232
  • Manager (170) $173
  • 2nd Year Associate (185) $142
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (116) $135
  • Senior Consultant (354) $132
  • Consultant (642) $122
  • 1st Year Associate (576) $121
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (164) $121
  • NA (16) $114
  • Engineer (6) $114
  • 2nd Year Analyst (390) $104
  • Associate Consultant (176) $101
  • 1st Year Analyst (1163) $90
  • Intern/Summer Associate (208) $83
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (631) $68
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”