The Major Perks and Downfalls of Consulting
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1. You gain tremendously valuable business experience at such a young age. When you leave school, you are no longer sheltered in the college bubble. You become just another college graduate face. In the grand scheme of people your age, consulting is one of the most prestigious jobs attainable in the country. It immediately differentiates you by establishing a strong trajectory for your future whether it be to attend a top business school, start your own business, or move into the corporate realm. |
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2. The work is stimulating. Strategic problem solving projects are exciting. You will become passionate about your work. |
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3. You will work with some of the most talented people you've ever met. More so than any other factor in consulting, it is your peers whom most significantly contribute to your development. You will learn so much in your day to day conversations with your co-workers about life, business, and yourself. I've been blessed to work with such amazing people who have taken me under their wing and have instilled their knowledge, insight, and ideas in me. |
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4. Compensation. You will no longer be the poor college student! Across all firms, the range for base starting salary for 2007 new college hires was around $56k - $65k + a $3k to $10k signing bonus. In addition, all most all firms give year end bonuses with some as high as $5k-$10k. |
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5. The little perks. You will get more vacation days than most people. You rack up airline and hotel points really fast. There's this thing called flex trips. If you're on an out-of-town project that requires air travel (most projects are like this) instead of flying back home, you're usually allowed to fly somewhere else. I've taken flex trips to places like Vegas and Miami. And lots of times you have the option to work from home on Fridays. |
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6. The workload is manageable. Weekends are yours. Regardless of the firm, very few consultants I know work extraordinarily long hours over the weekends. A couple hours here and there on a Sunday night maybe, but you will have time to enjoy your young professional life. |
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Of course there are downsides to consulting. In the end it is a job and like all jobs there are going to be work related annoyances and 'Office Space' moments. But this happens everywhere. To me, the real downsides about consulting have more to do with the way it affects your personal life. When you do travel, you are gone Monday up through Thursday night so you will miss out on some social functions. And if you travel weekends, there will be stretches of time where you see your apartment very little. Next, it's somewhat difficult to date. It's very doable but the person you're dating has to be very understanding. Waking up really early (5am) to catch a 7 oclock flight isn't that much fun either. And speaking of flying, you will have your airport moments of complete frustration: missing flights, delayed flights, delayed flights that will make you miss something important, waiting for cabs, and Ohare or Laguardia in general. But overall, the travel is very manageable and compensates you with rewards like airline miles and the flex trip option. So if you can deal with being away, the benefits of consulting completely override the negatives. |
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