Hi,I am a final year law student (good uni etc ...) and have decided against a career in law on a sudden gut feeling. I am considering consultancy after an interactive case study evening with one of the big practices, as I really enjoyed it and was told that I demonstrated the right skills.Is the job challenging? Are there lots of opportunities for progression (I am female and very ambitious with no desire for children)? And what kind of start salary should I expect if I were to move to London?Any advice or info to help me make a decision would be helpful. Also are there any firms that I should avoid?Thanks

what big questions! let me give a shot. The industry is EXTREMELY competitive and challengin, second only perhaps to investment banking. (i know this will cause noise). there are incredible opportunitiies to progress; usually if you start as a graduate in 6 years you will make manager ( 100-250K a year). Start salaries in london average around 30k, with some firms paying up to 46k (mercer) and some a bit less. a little advice though: dont enter this career because you did 'an interactive test'. be sure you understand what consulting is, what the life style / job entails etc before you go for it. it is an amazing career path, and will launch you into whatever you wish to follow if done correctly. good luck

Hi there. I would agree with the points 'anon strat' stated. Ive just secured a position with a consulting firm and start soon. What I would give you is thoroughly do your researc and speak to anybody you know within the industry. Which uni are you currently attending? career service good? What type of consulting are you looking to do? I think you need to answer these questions to know which firms will appeal to you. You may have to make compramises, regardless of what many firms say all is not great within them and often graduates can be pigeon holed so be careful. All the best

Thanks for that. I am attending so many presentations evenings etc ... and insight days and events that actually show the work. And I really did not like pwc at all - they had such a bad vibe and were actively trying to discourage anyone from applying to their consultancy areas.I am at Bristol and the careers service is really good but I am also a Freshminds One to Watch so am using that source of info too.I think that I would prob enjoy the human capital consulting more as I have a background in training and have had a small but effective result in this area within my part time work. But thanks for all the advice - I don't actually know anyone personally in the profession so all your advice is really useful.Thanks again!