Been in IT consulting for over 5 years, started as a IBM GBS body shopped technical resource. Was planning on MBA -> MC, got a 710 GMAT and applied at just under 3 year exp mark but got rejected from two top tier MBA's (got 1 interview.. went ok.. was asked to send through undergrad uni marks, think my under grad GPA & no hons let me down).After another year I resigned GBS, had an offer from ACN but instead joined a practice in IBM software services (niche product line, good remuneration, high charge out rates). I enjoyed it and still do intermittently, but can't stay enthusiastic.. it seems dry and dull.. i don't focus, forget things, am messing things up and am not being proactive. Got no raise this year and not much in pipeline after I finish current engagement. Worst case - I get managed out & have no immediate exit ops (highly specialised).My current plan had been to stick it out in my current area get some good exposure, maybe contract for a bit and maybe reapply for b-school later, but at same time I feel I've wasted so many 'young blood' years and spent so much time in IT I might be past my used by date, and don't like my chances of getting into MBB anyway.rant ends, very therapeutic

Was the IBM role your first after university? are you approx 28-32 years old?

yep

First of all there is no need to be quite so depressed. You are still very much in the age range where you can “kick on” or “up a gear” in your career and you have a CV that can be polished to look perfectly adequate for the purpose of getting a new job. You are correct in your assessment of MBB chances being about zero. You would need to have a top GPA and hons undergrad and have spent your first years of employment at a more target firm than IBM. Put MBB out of your mind.Next step is to decide what you really want to do. Do you want......to move to a client side IT management career path?...to move to a less IT focussed consultancy role?...to do an MBA for “mind –expansion “ reasons aside from any immediate career benefits?...somthing else?Its simple, simple, simple. Destination first - then we can help you work out how to get there.

Thanks Mr Cool. I've been thinking about it but am unsure. Call me cynical on the whole 'mind-expansion' thing but my understanding is an MBA's value stems from the difficulty in being accepted. The more difficult to get in the more safely an HR department can select you as being a solid candidate in whatever you do afterwards. Other than that it's who you will network with and who hires from a particular school.Are there any real benefits to an MBA if you don't get MBB and don't want to do finance? I mean MBA -> Deloitte.. I could do that without one. IT start-up you don't need one and middle management in industry, again I could probably jump into that without one as well. Assuming I manage to talk my way into a top school with a nice looking CV I'd still need to get hired afterwards by a firm less concerned about my undergraduate markets. If there is an MBA aimed at IT people maybe that would be good as I don't really want to step sideways.These are the options I see:1. Stay with 'the firm' & 'up a gear' or at the least do another international transfer / something to boost excitement in short to med. Then switch into an in house industry role and climb to CIO.2. Maneuver into software sales / BDM, probably attainable via tech sales intermediate role. It might not suit but, you never know unless you give it a go.3. Go contract direct to industry and try do something more meaningful on the side, start-up with some friends, buy a business etc.4. Less IT focused consultancy role.. like what? Intelligence / Geopolitical risk analysis appeals but probably too difficult to transition into.My 'next step' decision making is complicated by a lack of clear direction but I'm interested in your thoughts.

My immediate thoughts are that you have a good understanding of your problem, i.e. you are unhappy with where you are are, but cannot take even the first step towards getting to where you want to be, because you are still considering almost every destination possible. Its not that unusual a posiiton; lots of folks feel that way.Some people get themselves on a defined path pretty early in life. Some of those people benefit from that single minded dedication and become millionaires, MC partners, rich and famous, etc. However, many others wake up in their mid-forties and have a breakdown when they realise its all for nothing and they've wasted half their life and are now so tied to a mortgage and a family that they have no feasible way to change without incurring a divorce and estrangement from entire peer group and social circle. Pretty grim, eh?Step 1. Stop beating yourself up for not knowing the answer - most people who think they do, will find out they don't. You're young enough not to be too trapped.Step 2. In the absence of the one true answer, work out what you enjoy doing and do that. Performance is almost always better when you’re doing what you enjoy the most. Sadly what you absolutely enjoy the most may not pay very well, or would require too significant a transition cost. If so you may have to compromise and do the thing you like doing second best, but which is still quite well paid. The range of options you’re conisdering is, as you know, too wide. Its not really a range - it everything. Some of the things on that list can’t be done (e.g. run your own business) half heartedly, while others (contracting) can be. People who want to run their own business (and end up good at it) generally don’t consider any other options.Don’t ask yourself what you no longer like. What do you ENJOY? That usuually narrows down the options considerably!!