I realise this has probably been asked a trillion times (and i guess the structure of the forum doesnt help much)...But could someone briefly outline the levels within a consulting career (avoid acronyms please!), the duration typically spent between each of them, and an approximate UK salary figure for each? Major Kudos

If you cannot even perform this basic research (and you could start by doing some searching on here given you said it yourself its been asked a trillion times) then you either dont have a career ahead of you in consulting, or some MC firm really did draw the short straw.Lazy lazy lazy.

Whereas you have so much time on your hands Mars that you are able to write a thoroughly unhelpful reply - maybe it would have been better spent just attempting to answer the OPs question?

It's not about time Snickers it's about EFFORT.

Up there on your high horse, its surprising you dont get nose bleed from time to time. With the multitude of acronyms all over the place, coupled with the fact every bank seems to have a different name for each grade, that wasnt the nicest way to induct an 18 year old university starter to the community - was it Mars? I think i've pieced it together now anyway. im 'sure' you'll be glad to hear. Its precisely arrogance like this i was hoping to avoid in IB. Yet low and behold a consulting recruiter (see, ive done my research after all) has manage to come across every bit as loathsome as them. Hopefully you are an exception to the industry...

Besides, with such exposure to the consulting industry, did it not even occur to you that my supposed laziness might not be the root of the problem? The fact is, a forum with sub forums (grad questions, experienced hires, general chat etc) would make finding this sort of thing out alot easier. Again, since the forums been going 4 or so years, I guess this is another thing which has been mentioned countless times... Im sure there are probably financial/technical restrictions, but thats my $0.02 anyway...

Naivety Sucks,Grow a pair of balls! You don't appear to be thick-skinned enough to hold down any job.

Can't help on salaries (just browse here) but here are some typical levels. These grades do overlap between firms:Analyst / Associate - grad new entry holding pen ConsultantSenior ConsultantManager / Managing ConsultantSenior Manager / Executive Consultant / PrincipalDirector / Principal / Associate PartnerPartner / Vice President / Senior Executive

Naivety Sucks - reality check time. Where did you mention in your OP that you are an 18 year old University fresher? Believe me or not I would have been far more inclined to help if you had made that clear. Secondly calling me 'loathsome' on the basis of me telling you to put in some effort is rather immature don't you think? But as you are 18 and fresh off to University I'll be more helpful. Taxrebate is pretty accurate, although grades used and progression between them varies between firms. As do attitudes and expectations on progression. McKinsey and the other major strat firms will likely expect you to leave after a few years for an MBA or to get some industry experience, which would skew your progression if viewed against say Big 4 firms, but in reality would not slow you down.But let's take a - representative - cross section and give you some sort of idea. Bear in mind this is very generic.Raw grad - analyst level - you'll be on mid 20s in salary, moving quickly depending on performance metrics. Big 4 tend to value accounting quals highly, so passing each exam should move you quickly through these into high 20s into early 30s. Consultants generally early 30s anything upto high 50s, which could also be a senior consultant. Effectively this is the 'grinding' band, so see this as say 24 to 55. Next comes 'minding band' which could mean a lowish paid project manager for an indian outsourcer or engagement leading at Bain, but for arguments sake will take you up to around 70 - 95 or thereabouts, and into 'finding' level - business winning, wining and dining and generally being a pain in the life of everyone below you. Comes in around 110K and upwards through the Principal/VP/Snr Enagagement Leader/Programme Leader/Senior Architect type remit before you make one final jump (and it is a jump) to equity status. If you are going to go be a high performer you should be aiming to hit the top end of minding level in about 8 - 12 years max to make it to equity level.

Mars A Day - One of the best post I have ever seen on those boards - accurate and enlightening , at the same time. I am doing a copy and paste and will be sending it out to everyone who asks me about Consulting ranks and salaries - Hope you don't mind?

Nice structure, although lacking an appropriate name for partner stage.I've tried to keep the rhyme; so my I suggest 'binding'. Dictionary definitions:- noun: the capacity to attract and hold something- adjective: hindering freedom of movement

Nice one there Skeebo, so now we have grinding, minding, finding and binding... consulting careers in a nutshell.

Apologies for any unintended offense. I was probably being a little bit petulant back then. Ive somehow managed to get more out of you than expected though, for which im genuinely grateful. Seems pretty difficult to gain access to such knowledge from the outside, so its a massive help. I suppose when you reach the binding stage, you essentially cease to consult. Essentially, one ceases to consult upon reaching the 'minding' pointof the cycle. Am I correct in assuming the majority who funnel off into Industry thus do so at this stage? Thanks for your input there 'taxrebate', also appreciated. I think a siphoned section of the forum would stop this kind of question being repeated in future, but i guess thats unlikely any time too soon.

AT Capgem as a grad (Associate level) I was on £32.5k and it's more now. Only IBM offered in the 20s everyone else offered £30K plus for analyst grade

My Analyst figures are probably a bit out of date - I dont generally get involved at that level.Naivety I would say at the minding stage you are still consulting to clients, but are moving away from implementation into either an SME status or programme management type work, steering the deliverables through a team of reports. This can vary of course, depending on the firm, with smaller firms likely to place the onus on the middle ranks to take on the burden of delivery.At binding stage (or even finding stage) you are more looking at consulting 1.5 - its more about shaping client thinking and what could be delivered rather than trying to work out what does need to be delivered and how.

Anon, you're way off on grad pay. Even Accenture now offers 31 plus a 10 sign-on. Big 4 are same ballpark. MBB are high thirties, and then top end seems to be Oliver Wyman and OC&C who put grads on an eyewatering low-forties salary plus sign-on.

Whoops -- that was supposed to be addressed to Mars A Day, not to Anon!

If you see my last post you will see I am happy to confess my guestimate on grad level is out of date, and was generally meant to be a guidline anyway.

Anon, what do you mean "even" Acn, they were offering 28k + 10k sign a decade ago.

No, they weren't offering that 10 years ago. That would have been more than the starting pay at Booz! 10 years ago Booz offered 28K + 4K sign-on. ACN was around £23K with no sign-on. They did offer overtime though, which I thought was a nice way of reassuring people that they wouldn't get burned out.

I was at ACN in the glory days of paid overtime for the first two years... We used to reckon on adding 25% to our salary, and you could get a mortgage on that basis if you were brave enough. In addition the out of office and petrol allowances were generous then, and you could charge payable time to self study 'green books' (the sign-off answers to which were traded round the office...). Ah, those were the days, jumpers for goalposts etc etc...

lol amen to that, there were C3's on some death march projects earning more than their senior managers thanks to full o/t.