From The Student Room

TSR Wiki > Careers > Career Options > Consultancy

---

Thanks to Springboard for the original content of this page, now updated by TSR users.

Consultants are usually experts in their fields with lots of relevant work experience.

Quite a few industries use the term consultant (eg beauty consultant, travel consultant, consultant in a hospital) but to many people, they are mainly concerned with business and management.

A few years ago, companies would turn to a consultancy firm to solve a problem that couldn’t be handled in-house. The recession in certain industries, such as manufacturing, has meant some companies are less inclined to pay money to outside organisations, and rely on internal experts.

At present the biggest users of consultants are the financial, public (central and local government) and communications sectors.

Contents 1 Opportunities available 2 Entry requirements 3 Future trends 4 See also...

Opportunities available

Opportunities exist with one of the few really large consultancy firms, who turn over millions of pounds in profit, or with any one of a number of smaller companies. Self-employment is also a possibility for experienced consultants.

Entry requirements

Entry below degree level is unusual. As jobs can be so competitive, you will often be expected to have postgraduate qualifications - either to become increasingly specialist or to gain a management qualification, such as an MBA.

Future trends

As with many industries, competition might come from foreign firms. Some of them will be able to provide the same expertise, but at much lower prices. In response, a few of the large (and expensive) UK firms may be forced to cut staff or try to give organisations buying-in consultants more value for money.

Consultancy staff will need to have excellent communication and IT skills.

Smaller firms, who tend to charge less than the large ones, may get a bigger share of the work. This has already started to happen.

Increasingly, consultancy staff will need to have excellent communication and IT skills, along with their other areas of expertise.

See also...

Find out how apprenticeships can help you get into consultancy

PricewaterhouseCoopers