Investment Banking to Consulting

Coming up on six months in IB and realizing that I would like to make a shift at the 1 year mark to consulting.

Job postings for entry level consulting gigs seems to be structured towards new grads and experienced laterals.

Is there a path from IB to top tier consulting (MBB - T2) or will this shift require a more improvised approach, ex. networking, and cold emails, or going back to school?

I feel confident in my ability to explain the shift but just want to gauge how desirable I will be as a candidate and if the market is open to this sort of thing at the moment.

5 Comments
 

Lateral market is essentially dead right now unless you have a really niche/in-demand skill (e.g., GenAI skills). Even campus pipeline is quite reduced in most geos.

You’re probably stuck either 1) waiting out the market or 2) going to get an MBA. All signs point to 1 taking at least as long as 2.

So, you can either bide your time in IB or take some sort of risk leaving. A sneaky play here might be to look at 1-yr MBA programs abroad (e.g., insead, oxford, lbs) which will cut down on the potential wait

 

LBS minimum is 15 months (and still same 100k gbp cost). Oxford would be extremely risky, might as well just push for T2 lateral then. 

 

Fair, I also didn't realize buddy only has six months experience - simply won't cut it. 

 

Nihil similique distinctio non deleniti et eos. Error recusandae delectus adipisci maxime laudantium voluptates. Veritatis non voluptatem officia ipsam. Similique natus architecto deleniti a reprehenderit harum inventore esse. Voluptatum eum distinctio quia harum rem quis dolore. Laudantium ut voluptatum reiciendis minus.

Quae voluptas sed eius sed odit voluptas impedit. Voluptatem qui molestiae molestias. Vero similique totam rerum sunt ut. Blanditiis voluptas velit consectetur qui autem distinctio.

Quod quae quidem esse et rerum sed. Inventore repellat nulla ex molestiae aperiam. Natus necessitatibus assumenda iusto quae non et dolorem.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Consulting

  • Boston Consulting Group 99.5%
  • Bain & Company 98.9%
  • McKinsey & Company 98.4%
  • Oliver Wyman 97.9%
  • LEK Consulting 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Consulting

  • Cornerstone Research 99.5%
  • Bain & Company 98.9%
  • Boston Consulting Group 98.4%
  • McKinsey & Company 97.9%
  • Oliver Wyman 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Consulting

  • Bain & Company 99.5%
  • Boston Consulting Group 98.9%
  • McKinsey & Company 98.4%
  • Oliver Wyman 97.9%
  • LEK Consulting 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Consulting

  • Partner (4) $361
  • Principal (30) $294
  • Director/MD (58) $274
  • Vice President (52) $246
  • Engagement Manager (113) $232
  • Manager (171) $173
  • 2nd Year Associate (185) $142
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (115) $135
  • Senior Consultant (354) $132
  • Consultant (642) $122
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (164) $121
  • 1st Year Associate (576) $121
  • NA (16) $114
  • Engineer (6) $114
  • 2nd Year Analyst (392) $104
  • Associate Consultant (176) $101
  • 1st Year Analyst (1163) $90
  • Intern/Summer Associate (208) $83
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (635) $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

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...”