Most people leave their grad jobs after the 2 years is up but i'm keen to ind out the options at that point and would welcome opinions on the following:-Contracting - how much experience would you need to do this and how much would you expect to make (i suspect a lot more than 2 years!)- Jump ship to another firm - what's the going rate for a consultant after a couple of years at Acn,Deloitte etc.?

I'm in the same boat. I've 3 years experience and am totally fed up of my current employer. I'm tired of the travelling and want to be London based. Problem is, my role is in a very specialist industry and my technical skills won't be very applicable elsewhere.I'm thinking of applying to accountancy or banking. I have very good academics and extracurricular but I'd have to start as a grad again, this would undoubtedly involve a pay cut and at 27 I think I might be getting a bit old for a change.

Depends, if you got into IB or something after bonus you'd probably be on the same or more than you are now.

True. I'm not sure though that they'd want to take on an experienced consultant into their grad scheme. Does anyone know of someone who has made a similar change?

It's good to know that I'm not the only one in this position.I'm thinking that if you are thinking of doing a Masters anyway, this is a good opportunity to do a course relevant to the area you want to switch into. Thereafter you can apply to graduate schemes. I do recall from the assessment centres I went to (both for consulting and industry jobs) that there were a fair number of career-changers there, so having a few years experience isn't a complete barrier to getting into a graduate scheme.I have thought about switching in as an experienced hire, but for a lot of these roles in accounting and banking I wouldn't be comfortable without the experience and qualifications that you pick on the graduate scheme. I also know people who've made that move and feel isolated without the network you get as part of a big intake.

I am thinking of doing the same as anon above - I have been in a grad scheme for 2 years and would like to go for a Master (but I would rather work for another year or so and save some money).Where I come from (France) 3 years of work experience in between the Bachlor and the Master seem a bit long but is it ok in England? Will employers mark this positively, negatilely or don't care? and is it worth it? Cheers

It is okay in the UK as most people don't do the Masters degree directly as an undergraduate. Postgraduate Masters are quite expensive so people often come back and do them after a few years when they have saved up the money. Others do them after a few years when they have become more amenable to the idea of yet another year's studying.One instance where 3 years between Bachelors and Masters degrees would not be long enough (rather than too long) is for a Masters in Business Administration (MBA).