The email below came in from a reader who found me through the interview that I did with ManagementConsulted.com last year. He’s a former Mechanical Engineer who worked his way up to VP of Operations at a software company. Now, he’s aiming for business school with a goal of going into Management Consulting after his graduation.

He’s presented me with a few questions regarding his school choices, how they might affect his chances of getting into Consulting, and whether he will have any control over his choice of office if he gets an offer. All of these are pretty interesting questions that took me back in time to when I used to go to information sessions and answer queries like this for anxious undergrad and MBA candidates. I’m not sure if I’m providing the kind of specificity that he’s looking for, but I hope my answers fill in some of the blanks for him.

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RC wrote:

Hi Marquis,

I was just reading your interview with the management consulted website and wanted to get in touch with you for a few questions I have regarding this field, specially because my background seems to be similar to yours and what i want to do is kinda aligned with what you have done.

I am a graduate from IIT Bombay and UofH in mechanical engineering. I worked in a small Houston based software company for past 5 years, from a junior analyst to now VP operations (well… the title is not all that important but i have been focusing on the business development and the offshore operations of the company off late). I want to apply to B Schools such as Wharton, Kellogg, Chicago, Sloan and Columbia and would like enter into management consulting after graduating and eventually into industry at a senior executive position.

My question to you is… given my background how easy or difficult it will be to get into Big 3 and do you have a say in deciding the location you want to work on once you get a job. I wanted to stick to energy industry so perhaps the Houston or Dallas offices might be more relevant for me. Also in the above list of schools (in case i get into more than one — is there a preference for consulting companies in terms of school — e.g. I would assume they hire more students from Wharton and less from Columbia )

Thanks and regards,
RC

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My video response:

Question from a techie aiming for Consulting after B-school from Marquis Parker on Vimeo.