Considering a jump to Management Consulting, but....

... looking for some feedback on my background, as it relates to the likelihood that I might land a gig at a McKinsey, Bain, BCG, or one of the smaller firms in the same league.

  • double major in accounting and finance at Michigan (satellite campus, so less prestigious than main campus), gpa 3.28

  • grad school at the University of Chicago - masters in computer science. i cross pollinated and took a few classes in the Booth MBA program: Competitive Strategy and Strategy Development. gpa 3.7

  • ~ 8 yrs work experience; 3 in public accounting (audit); the last 5 in in-house IT strategy / execution.

  • successful internships at PwC and Intel

  • i "look the part", if one can be said to look the part, i.e. I'm well dressed, well spoken, confident, and could easily be mistaken for the stereotypical consultant. have been presenting to, and understanding the needs of c-level execs since the day I graduated.

  • interested in smaller markets, maybe in the pacific northwest, i.e. seattle, portland, denver, norcal (I guess san fran isn't considered a smaller market, but the others). does this help or hinder my odds? On one hand I could see most folks wanting to live in NYC / Chicago / DC, etc. On the other hand, I could see smaller practices in smaller cities resulting in less opportunity and more competitive placement.

I've historically shied away from this path because of the travel and hours (experienced that during my public accounting days) but I'm stagnating in a corporate environment and looking for a younger, vibrant, demanding and fast-paced workplace. If anyone in the know has thoughts about my profile as compared to some of the non-traditional mba placements at these top firms, it would be much appreciated.

 

how many post-masters work experience?

at my m/b/b APD round 2, i met a couple of ppl with a masters and significant post-masters work experience, and they were still told that they won't start off at the post-mba level, but this might differ depending on firm and maybe even location.

 
Best Response

I'm just wrapping on the masters right now, so no "post degree" w/e I guess. I was working full time while completing the degree. Comp Sci is a very technical subject, so not really something the strategy / management consulting shops recruit as far as I can tell - which isn't to say that it's not a useful skillset in that line, imo. And while I'm able to take advantage of being a UofC grad student and take classes in the Booth MBA program, I'm not an MBA student or graduate, so I won't have access to its recruiting channels.

 

I'm also a non-MBA grad student, and got interviews, and ultimately an offer, through online application system. I think if it's a fresh degree, you should expect to start off at the level below MBA applicants, though, regardless of the WE, but maybe others have better insight.

 

eh, I might even be ok with that if it's the right fit. I'm pretty confident in my ability to rock out once I'm there, especially if my peers are 22yo right out of undergrad. if you don't mind my asking, did you get in to the post-mba (i.e. consultant) level, or pre (i.e. analyst)?

 
djfiii:
eh, I might even be ok with that if it's the right fit. I'm pretty confident in my ability to rock out once I'm there, especially if my peers are 22yo right out of undergrad. if you don't mind my asking, did you get in to the post-mba (i.e. consultant) level, or pre (i.e. analyst)?

i got in post-MBA, but i had a more advanced degree than a masters. in any case, like i said, at this point, you might as well apply and see. no sweat. and while confidence to rock might be admirable, overconfidence may not be. i'll be younger than most of the people in my starting class, so, if anything, i'm actively hoping that age doesn't affect one's performance =P

 

In my office, there's someone with a degree from a top target, a masters in a policy field and ~5 years work experience in industry, and they came in as a "senior pre-MBA".

They may have a quicker path to promotion (maybe 12 months to post-MBA level?) but since they've only been here six months, hard to say. I bet they get paid more than I do, though.

Life, liberty and the pursuit of Starwood Points
 

1) No recruiting channel: Reach out to Michigan/Booth alums at these firms and ask which level at the specific firms is the best fit for you and push for internal fwding of resume. Online apps w/o networking=low yield. 2) Comp Science, as you said, is a spin. It shouldn't hold you back. 3) Don't be overconfident. Interviewers pick this up as "You could overwhelm the client."

 

point taken on being overconfident. I won't make that mistake in an interview. I'm going to submit some applications and see what happens. Thanks everyone for the feedback.

2x2: 31 - probably too old?

 

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