heyat the moment im in my second year of uni and have got an internship with one of the Big 4 this summer. Im also interested in management consultancy though and am trying to decide what career to go for.are there any books written by consultants that describe what its like? i know there is a lot of travelling, what about work hours, can they really be 50+hours a week? do you often have to work weekends??deciding whether to go for consultancy (if i do it will probably be within the big 4, not MBBB) or private wealth mgmt, again in the big 4

I recommend you concentrate your efforts on pursuing a private wealth management career within the Big 4.

I think u are bit confused.. If u want to go for management consulting, then try MBBB.. If u prefer private wealth management, then go UBS, Merryl Linch and the alike..

i dont want to apply to MBBB because I dont think I will get in, I would be happy if I got into advisory/consulting in the Big 4. And the Big 4 also do wealth mgmt/private client services.I am just wondering if the long hours and travelling is worth it to you guys that are actually doing mgmt consulting as a career?? how you manage to keep an active social life (one that doesnt revolve around your colleagues) ?? also, what about your health, with all that travelling??

I remember being a second year student, thinking that 50 hour weeks were long (what wouldn't I give to a 50 hour week, just once!?). Honestly, as a second year student, you have absolutely no idea what is going to happen to you down the line. You have no benchmark and no scientific idea how one company compares to another. Take pot luck at this stage. Any viable internship at this stage will set you apart from the majority of your peers when it comes to applying after graduation or in your final year. Also, perhaps more importantly, it will give you a chance to see how professionals conduct themselves, get you used to office politics, working hours, work culture. Your message should be that you are there to learn and contribute in any way you can. You will meet the motivated, the disgruntled. Please don't take this the wrong way (I know this sounds very patronising) but getting too bogged down this stuff now is like trying to study quantum physics before learning to read and write. Do the internaship. Keep an open mind. ask the people there what they think. more importantly, watch how the successful conduct themselves. Get the the final year. Apply for pretty much anything with a respectable company (even if only to get interview practice). Get used to making a business case around why you are the perfect candidate and why this company is the perfect employer. Get as many offers as you can (1 will do). make the judgment at that point. You are unlikely to have as wide a choice as you think you will have. Also, with interview taking place in various cities, it is nice to have travel costs paid for around the country so that you can catch up with your mates afterwards...