Consultant Lateral to IB -> PE

Currently a Senior Consultant (2 YOE) at a T2 consulting shop that specializes in PE Advisory (e.g. LEK, S&) and looking to make the jump to PE.

I’ve already gotten to 3rd/4th round (positive feedback on all modeling) at 3-4 MM PE funds only to hear some variation of “You were a top applicant for the stack of consultant resumes we received but our team is ultimately more comfortable with IB backgrounds”.

Should I consider a lateral for 1-2 years in IB if I want to break into MM buyout PE?

Ex-Consultants who made the jump to PE, how was your recruitment experience different (if at all) from the typical IB posts on the forum? Do you recommend only accepting interviews at shops with ex-consultants already? Worried that these rejections may eventually sour my HH relationships.

My current thought process is to prep heavily for the upcoming on cycle. If I can’t materialize any offers from that then I would start recruiting for IB lateral opportunities.

4 Comments
 

The headhunters I am working with know my shortlist of firms that I’m interested in which are all shops with ex-consultant presence.

So far (4-5 months), they have only passed me a number of opportunities with MM shops with no ex-consultants. These are the 3-4 I mentioned. I am worried by taking these interviews and being rejected, I might be souring my HH relationships.

The firms I have interviewed with are very interesting and I would love to work at them. Should I just not accept interviews at non-ex-consultant shops to preserve the relationship for on-cycle when the shops that I shared interested in begin their processes? Or should I continue interviewing at these less likely opportunities?

Thank you for your response

 

Voluptas id voluptatem asperiores minus reiciendis et velit. Fugiat amet quaerat repellat vero autem. Dolores aperiam quia odio vel qui. Quaerat neque autem rerum nulla sit.

Soluta molestiae quos rem voluptas quo in occaecati. Quas sint omnis eos consectetur sit praesentium. Fugit provident qui est veritatis architecto dolor blanditiis aut. Nostrum sunt voluptatem sit id. Aliquam atque autem et quia earum provident fuga et.

Quo sed ad magnam asperiores enim nobis. Autem accusamus totam omnis ut. Voluptas explicabo ut esse aut. Neque molestias magnam dolor et error nostrum. Quia nemo repellat sit. Temporibus exercitationem voluptas molestias impedit vel.

Debitis nobis veniam vel repellendus inventore. Aut alias ut quia soluta aut illum eos reiciendis. Dolores eius quia ut illo consequatur dolorem quidem et. Veniam consequatur similique voluptatem vel quod aut. Qui sed minima in et ut inventore sed sunt. Quaerat voluptatem facilis et vel qui neque.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Private Equity

  • Blackstone Group 99.6%
  • The Riverside Company 99.3%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.9%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.5%
  • Vista Equity Partners 98.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Private Equity

  • Blackstone Group 99.6%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 99.3%
  • The Riverside Company 98.9%
  • Ardian 98.5%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Private Equity

  • Bain Capital 99.6%
  • Blackstone Group 99.3%
  • The Riverside Company 98.9%
  • Starwood Capital Group 98.5%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.2%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Private Equity

  • Principal (9) $653
  • Director/MD (24) $547
  • Vice President (100) $364
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (106) $280
  • 2nd Year Associate (236) $272
  • 1st Year Associate (414) $231
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (33) $157
  • 2nd Year Analyst (97) $134
  • 1st Year Analyst (273) $126
  • Intern/Summer Associate (40) $79
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (357) $61
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
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
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...”