MM IB vs Econ Consulting vs Mgmt Consulting

I have an offer from a decent MM IB (think JEF/Oppenheimer) that I have to decide on soon. It's my only banking offer, and while I like the people and the culture, I'm still not sure whether to take it, or to keep interviewing. I have final rounds at an MBB regional office, an elite boutique consulting firm (think LEK/Mars) and a couple of the top economic consulting firms either coming up in the next two weeks, or waiting to be scheduled.

I originally thought management consulting was going to be the way to go, but now I'm not sure. Should I at least start cancelling interviews with the economic consulting firms?

 

congrats on your offers and interviews, especially in this market.

The bias against consulting on this board is ridiculous. Case in point - in the Evercore vs BCG thread which is a very close decision everyone said go with Evercore. From my experience it is absolutely harder to get a job at MBB than GS/MS/JPM, much less a middle market bank. MBB also sets you up better for business school, and it will set you up better for management positions later down the line.

Unless you are set on private equity MBB and LEK/MARS wins by a landslide, and even if you do want to go into a megafund MBB/Lek will look better. The only thing MM IB sets you up better for are MM PE funds and maybe HFs. The only concern might be regional office, but if LEK is in New York thats fantastic. (That being said MM IB is still a great job, just not as top notch as MBB)

FYI: I'm applying mostly to banking jobs

 

Just an update...got an offer from the boutique consulting firm at their HQ, with one MBB final round later this week, and I'm on hold for a final round with another because I started the process late and they had a higher yield from their earlier interviews than they thought they would...

Life, liberty and the pursuit of Starwood Points
 

What about choosing between MBB? I have an offer from one, and am interviewing for the other soon. If I end up receiving an offer from the other and deciding between those two, should I mostly base it on culture and fit, because exit opps, prestige, etc. are pretty much equal?

And what about taking the boutique over MBB? Is that the same as taking say, PWP or HLHZ over Goldman or Morgan Stanley? In terms of Vault ratings, I think it's pretty similar...

Life, liberty and the pursuit of Starwood Points
 
Best Response

No, sorry, I meant would taking the boutique consulting job over MBB be the same kind of decision as turning down GS/MS for HLHZ or PWP? I guess from what I've seen on here, people generally think it's a bad idea to turn down GS/MS/JP Morgan for the top boutique banks, which I guess would be Greenhill, Moelis or PWP? I'm wondering if the same holds true for consulting...

And no, I don't really know what I want to do, which is why I'm leaning toward consulting, I'm just wondering whether it would be really dumb to take the boutique consulting offer over MBB for culture/fit/lifestyle reasons.

Life, liberty and the pursuit of Starwood Points
 

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