Hi guys,I recently joined Pwc Audit on the school leavers program,right before i applied I was under the assumption that I could always change to consulting after a year or two.....I never really wanted to do Audit but thought it would be vital to have audit as a base before i make a move to consulting....well after 4 weeks in the firm it doesn't look like it and its either I have to spend my next 4 years in a career that just doesn't suit me or I will have to leave PwC.Well this is where the problems get deeperI don't have a degree as I was too naive and always thought I will be an accountant and didn't see the need..I will like to end up at MBB(who wouldn't)....would like any input into the transitions below regarding which one is more feasible looking at my situation and if any one has another opinion on a better route,I will like to know.Going back to get a degree isn't an option(way too old for that).1.Finish Audit training contract(4 yrs with ACA)-top MBA-MBB2.Leave Audit now-Start new training contract at Deloitte(4 years with CIMA)-Top MBA-MBB3.Leave Pwc Audit to PwC consulting-Top MBA-MBB I will really like further input to any other available transitions i could take.Thank you.

Mmmm,To be honest, looking at your three options I don't think any of them are realistic - and the reason for that is because you don't have an undergraduate degreeTop business schools have a huge number of applicants per place. They stratify their admissions so that they don't have too many people with any one background - the number of people applying from Big 4 companies is in real terms very large, and in relative terms only a small % will get accepted. Compare this to physicians/scientists/engineers, where the actual e.g. number of applicants in real terms is lower but the % accepted is higher. Without a degree you will be at a significant disadvantage in a highly competitive pool - you may get in somewhere, but probably not a top MBA that feeds the MBB-type firmsYou can say exactly the same about MBB, except you can add on the fact that these companies have clients who want to know that they are hiring the brightest and the best - and MBB demonstrate that with the credentials of their employees - Harvard, Oxbridge etc - in addition to stellar work experience. You may be the brightest and the best, but without relevant qualifications to prove it, I am afraid you will not be considered. They have too many applicants and so they use criteria such as the undergraduate degree as one way of reducing the number very quickly - it's just the way it is.I am afraid I don't know what to suggest, other than to think that you have two options1) Continue in employment now, but recognize that you will likely need to revise your plans accordingly - if you do that, make sure you do something that you enjoy and will excel at - then you will end up fine2) Go back to universityProbably not what you want to hear, and it's only the opinion of one person, but this is how I see itGood luck

My two cents - apologies if it is going to sound rude, I promise it is not the intention, I am just used to be direct:- Working at MBB: it will never happen, at least as a consultant. Send an application if you really have to, but the faster you move on from the idea, the better. They will never take you without a degree and, even assuming you go back to university and get one, you still would't fit their mould (straight A stars --> immediately off to uni --> Oxbridge with a first)- If you really want to have a career in professional services, the path you are on is the best shot you have at it by a mile. There are hundred of kids with good degrees that every year apply for a position (any position) at firms like pwc and get turned down. The fact that you managed to get hired despite not having a degree shows that you must be a pretty smart and likable person so kudos to you but, frankly, you should also thank the Lord every day you got an opportunity that plenty of people with a better education than you did not get- if you want to work in a consultancy one day, one important skill you will have to learn is resilience. Resilience is what makes you get through a shitty 12 months assignment in a place forgotten by God and still get the job done. Start practicing it early - do your 4 years and, after you get qualified, I promise you there will be a plenty of doors in consulting that will be open to you (no MBB though, be under no illusion). Leave today, and they will all be shut- Lastly, consider if consulting is really where you want to spend your professional career. Both banking and consulting are in structural decline and there are lots of other industries in the tech space that offer far better long term prospective. Incidentally, they are also way less likely to care that you didn't get a 2:1 in biology from DurhamGood luck

Thank you guys for your input......I probably should have just mentioned my main goal which is to possibly be a CEO in the sports industry....that was why I basically thought the best approach is to probably work for the biggest consultancy firms and move on from there....I am against all odds to get into a top business school and probably the same to get into MBB....however if i even fail at becoming a CEO I will like to do that being a consultant as i dont see myself staying long in Audit....It just doesn't suit me ...i get bored very easily and I know it can become very repetitive after 2 years....so to rephrase...what will be the best route for me to achieve my main goal .....I am pretty much happy and know how lucky I am to get to such a firm without a degree...I have got quite thick skin(lol) so don't worry about being honest

I'd just add my weight to what's been said here. It's best to get a dose of realism now and then be able to make an informed decision. The odds you've been given here are spot on.Personally I would choose to stick out the accounting route. Lots of entry-level options are fairly mundane, so you've no guarantee that pursuing any other option is going to leave you feeling more fulfilled. But getting your accounting qualifications will open up all sorts of doors for you in a way that most other options you might pursue will not.Best of luck with things, Tony

I can only echo others that have commented in saying that MBB will be out of reach without the MBA from LBS / IE / INSEAD etc. I would also say that you can learn as much about consulting from many other firms, even if you can't navigate it in your current role.That being said, you should be extremely proud of the company that you're working for an what you've achieved to date. If the sports industry is where you want to go, finish off your programme with PwC and apply to whoever the industry leader is in the particular area of the sports industry that you're interested in.Best of luck.W

I will never understand why people diss accountancy!Anyhoo... my 2 cents.I use a real life sports industry CEO. Ed Woodward of Manchester United. He is an accountant. He did not go to Oxbridge. He went to Bristol - waaaayyyy better.Continue with audit and assurance. Get a professional qualification. Make sure you really do well. Then, get into an MBA programme at a top, top school. Then, join MBB.

See link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-37550769Now, let's consider this. I am a recruiter at MBB. What do you think? Would your CV and experiences not stand out? Especially when you did as per my post above?I am not sorry to say this. Your generation is the worst generation in the history of mankind.

[quote]- Lastly, consider if consulting is really where you want to spend your professional career. Both banking and consulting are in structural decline and there are lots of other industries in the tech space that offer far better long term prospective. Incidentally, they are also way less likely to care that you didn't get a 2:1 in biology from DurhamGood luck[/quote]What makes you say consulting is in structural decline?

There is more than one reason clearly, but to me the main is a general commoditasation of most of the products/solutions sold. Clients want more and more to pay for results, which is a good thing, but this often translated into looking merely for man power to implement pre-defined solutions, rather than for someone that could truly challenge your vision or at least help you to shape it.The result is that the market is flooded with companies who called themselves consultancies but do little more than implementation/body shopping at contractor rates. This makes differentiation difficult, as clients struggle to understand why you want to charge 3 times more than your competitor ("They are consultants too - how come you are so much more expensive?") creating tremendous downwards pressure on rates and generally lowering the standards of the profession and of the solutions proposed (ultimately, you get what you pay for). Nowadays, I really struggle to see consultancies working on project that really matter to the client, really influencing the direction in which they are going.Starting my career today, I would go for industries where the focus is on top line growth rather than counting pennies on how much you charge - much more creativity sparked and, in the long term, much better money too.

Might seem like a stupid question...but can you give examples of industries that 'focus on top line growth'

Broadly agree with Phil. Although I'd say the big strategy firms still help to 'shape the vision' as you put it. Not much creativity normally - partly due to their methods but mostly due to them being asked to deliver quick, low-risk solutions under time pressure.