Hi guys, I'm an incoming senior at UCI (non-target school) and I was looking for some advice on whether or not I should pursue management consulting as a career. My resume is not very impressive as you might see in the picture that I attached to this post, but I genuinely have an interest in MC. I wouldn't mind working at Deloitte or a mid-tier MC firm, but I want to make sure my application is competitive enough before I invest these next few months prepping for case interviews. What do you guys think? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
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Is it still possible for me?
Overview of answers
Hi there,
If this resume is a fair representation of your actual experience, I would say that unfortunately your chance is slim. The chance for entering non-MBB firms may be slightly higher (quite a bit higher if they recruit at your school), but still on the low side. Several key issues I see here:
- Lack of key characteristics valued in consulting (e.g. quant skills). However, please note that this can be due to poor resume writing.
- Lack of professional experience in big name companies
- Non-target school with okay but not outstanding GPA. I assume you will be applying to the LA or SF offices, which are quite difficult to get in given the competition in your region (think Standard and the other UCs).
- Weak link to consulting in your past work experience
This is not to say that you have no chance at all. There are still certain things you can do to up your chance, such as:
- Improve your resume, dramatically: I do see in your resume several bullet points that have some potential (e.g. bullet point 2 under Live Good Inc). You may be able to dramatically improve the quality of your resume if you dig deeper into these experiences and tease out more stuff.
- Network extensively and get a referral: reach out to friends and alumni who work in consulting, chat with them and see if you can get a referral. Of course, this will require a ton of work, with no guaranteed outcome.
You are able to determine for yourself how likely you can achieve these two things. Again, if you were to submit your application through an online resume drop (with this resume as is), your chance is quite low.
I totally understand the rationale that you do not want to waste your time trying to reach something unreachable. Here are a few things for you to think about:
- Why exactly do you want to do consulting? Is it worth the effort?
- For the things you like about consulting, can you find them in another job/industry?
- If not consulting, what other alternatives do you have? How do they compare against consulting?
- What if you do not enter consulting right after college? Are you willing to work for a couple years at a different industry, and then switch into consulting?
Hope this helps. Feel free to message me if you would like to discuss further.
(edited)
Hi Anonymous,
it is still possible for you to be invited for interviews given your CV, however you should work on the following areas:
- Find a referral for your application; since your CV is not very strong, this is the most important thing to do to increase your chances; you can find more on referrals here: https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/hey-everyonehope-all-is-well-3176
- Get support to write a better CV; there are several parts in your CV that can emphasize in better ways your fit with consulting. I would recommend a professional support to get the most out of it
- Prepare a strong cover letter; it may not be even asked if you manage to get a referral, but you want to have it ready just in case
In case you need help on the previous points please feel free to PM me, I regularly help people to receive invitations from top consulting firms even when coming from non-target schools.
Best,
Francesco
Dear A,
In this case, I would recommend you to apply through referrals. It will maximize your chances significantly.
Also, we can quickly discuss your profile over a phone call, if you want.
Just drop me a line in PM
Best,
André
Hi,
Big 4 companies are pretty easy to get into, so I don't see any obstacles. Referrals will help you
More on the referral here:
https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/what-is-a-referral-really-1103
Best