Soft Science PhD to consulting?

I am currently finishing up my PhD in ecology (with work in R, and several published articles) at a German university. Academic research is very rewarding, but I'm considering other opportunities. A friend in corporate strategy suggested that I might like consulting and some top consulting companies hire PhDs. I checked out some case examples and the work seems interesting. This is a completely new field for me, so I could really use some advice on the steps necessary to make the switch between research and consulting.

  1. How do job prospects change when applying to a consulting job from a post-doctoral research position vs. straight out of the PhD program?
  2. How much time after completing the PhD program can I let pass before applying?
  3. Any further thoughts on how I could improve my chances are welcome.
2 Comments
 

Post-doc = Academia only Straight out of PhD = McKinsey/BCG/Bain hires a lot of PhDs compared to anyone else Apply immediately, WTF! Assuming your university is good enough name-wise in Germany, you'll be a shoo-in for Associate interviews. The best way you can prep for case interviews is to have top-notch case-prep skills.

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