If you're coming from business school, an Ivy League college or other comparable institution, your chances of landing the job just got a hell of a lot easier. Consulting firms often recruit top individuals from these institutions, so they may actually come to you. Now for the rest of us - are we just dead in the water? Absolutely not. Consultants love to tell stories about the guy who was flinging burgers and went on to become a top partner, making a six-figure salary. The encouraging thing is that somewhere in between the burger guy and the business school grad, there's a lot of room for you. It doesn't matter what school you attended.
Grades do matter, however. Firms often make initial cuts for interviews based solely on poor GPAs. Something around a 3.5 GPA should suffice to keep you afloat, but if yours isn't quite that high, you have other options, such as work experience. Perhaps you've become quite the expert on Web marketing in that recent internship or temp stint. That kind of experience can really make you stand out to recruiters.
There is one thing that is extraordinarily important to remember: your qualifications are only as good as you present them. The resume, cover letter and phone correspondence should be flawless if you want to make a good impression (and not have your materials end up in the trash). And don't try that old trick where you insert the firm's name in your cover letter after some generic words of praise. Firms would rather hear why you actually think that you'd be a good match for their particular group. This means research. Talk about how their office is a good fit for your personality and skill set. You can't go wrong.
SoYouWanna know more? Check out our full-length article SYW get a job in a consulting firm?
