Consulting or IB?
Hey everyone! I'm a US citizen matriculating at a non-HSW M7 in the upcoming fall. I'm coming from an accounting background and had the goal of pivoting into consulting (any company), but now I'm thinking if I should take a closer look at banking instead. I initially struck down that path cause the work-life balance sounds brutal, but with how rough the job market is and how competitive consulting recruiting sounds like it was this cycle, I'm pretty worried that I'll totally strike out. I imagine IB recruiting will be slightly easier for me given my CPA background (please tell me if that is just wishful thinking), and maybe I just suck up the long hours for a couple years to secure the bag before moving on. I'm really just trying to have a good career pivot to my family business longer term, so am looking for the right post-MBA career to expand my business strategy toolkit. Consulting feels like a more natural fit for that goal given the scope of work done, but I'd love to hear any arguments for and against going into banking instead to achieve those same goals. Thanks!!
Posted Feb 22, 2026, 5:06 PM UTC