Job Title Discrepencies

Question

Hi everyone,

I have just received an offer from a MBB Consulting team in APAC region but do want to check out if the stated title would cause an issue during my reference checks.

I previsouly hold a role at one of the boutique consulting firms as a management consultant (my official title) for less than a year through their graduate program (12 months with training and real-world work exposure). However, somehow I thought the title "management consultant" should be around 3-5 years of experience in the industry and therefore put down my title as "management consultant apprenticeship" on my resume to signal the training nature. I know that is wired and now I am worried about this title change....

Just want to ask if this is a material misrepresentation or just a small mistake?

Any contribution is greatly appreciated!

Answer 1

Hi there,

This is very unlikely to be a material issue, so try not to worry too much.

MBB background and reference checks mainly verify employment dates, employer, and general role scope, not the exact wording of junior titles, especially for graduate programs. In your case, the wording you used actually downplayed seniority rather than inflated it, which is not something firms are concerned about.

If the topic ever comes up during checks or references, you can simply explain that while your official title was Management Consultant, the role was part of a structured graduate program with significant training, and you chose wording on your CV to reflect that nature. This is a reasonable clarification and unlikely to raise any red flags.

What would be an issue is overstating seniority, which you did not do. Given that you already have an offer, this should not put it at risk.

Best,
Evelina