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Take the first offer. There is a possibility that you might not the get the other one, just to be safe.
tough market out there. You can always do consulting -> MBA -> top mm ib. I wouldn't take the risk of not having any offers. take consulting.
I appreciate the replies. I have the exact thoughts, the only thing i'm concerned about is the consulting firm is quite unheard of (although their clients include 35 of the Fortune 100), which makes me worried about my exit opportunities.
My other argument for merchant banking is if I don't receive an offer, I can always try to gun for internships in the spring, obviously that means delaying graduation by a semester.
I was literally in this exact same situation about 2 weeks ago. My exploding offer was in ER and the merchant bank I interviewed with couldn't get back to me in time. I ended up accepting the offer because like others have said, it's a tough market out there. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush; don't turn down a sure thing. Also, I'm sure your consulting offer is 'at will' employment, so although it's frowned upon, you can always renege if the merchant bank comes through.
Even though you say the consulting firm is unknown, this seems not to be the case in the industry itself given that they have been able to secure working relationships with 35 of the world's largest companies. I'd imagine that exit opp's could include positions at these companies if you network well.
The thing you are forgetting to take into account is that the merchant banking group at Piper is just starting out and currently has only 2 MD's and 1 analyst (my roommate interviewed for the position). It would seem that they are more unknown (in the MB industry) than the consulting firm is in it's own market. Of course, saying that you helped build out a completely new group at a well-known MM bank could make an awesome story for b-school. The only question is whether there will be enough deal flow to keep you occupied and make it a worthwhile experience (although maybe less hours is a good thing!).
Also, where is the consulting group out of? If in NYC, it will make for a very different decision given that the other offer would be for Minneapolis. Of course, location always comes down to personal preference.
My advice? Ask for an extension on the consulting offer and go from there.
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