Psychology background in strategy consulting

Hi there,

Q: I was wondering if anyone knows how common it is for people with a psychology background to end up in strategy consulting

This depends on the country, as some might be more open to profiles different from the standard ones, like yours.

When I applied in Italy, most candidates had a degree in business or engineering. However, in other countries consulting companies are more flexible in terms of the degree of the candidate. You can check on LinkedIn if for your country other candidates with your background managed to make the transition.

If you are planning a master, that could also help, depending on the master you choose.

In case you cannot find a position after your master, you can work for a few years and do a top MBA. After that, your profile should be substantially stronger for an application.

Given your profile is not standard, I would highly recommend to look for a referral before applying. You can find more on referrals at the links below:

▶ How to Get a Consulting Interview Invitation

▶ The Exact Steps to Get a Referral

Good luck!

Francesco

Hi there,

I think this is an interesting question that may be relevant for many people. I would be happy to share my thoughts on it:

• I both am and have coached several real non-traditional hires, thus I would advise you not to worry too much. Strategy consulting companies truly value diversity in all forms.
• Moreover, given that strategy consulting companies only care about your academic excellence, I would highly advise you to study the master's program that seems to fit with your current interests.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to address your specific situation, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hi,

As many other consultants and coaches will tell you - consulting firms really don't care what you study. What they are looking for ‘transcends’ degree, so to say.

Real life example - I studied History for my undergraduate college, my case practice buddy studied Psychology at the same college. He started at Bain and I started at Kearney before moving to BCG.

Plenty of older threads detailing what makes a strong application / how to get an interview - but happy to chat more and share my own experience if helpful.

All the best!

Hi there,

here my thoughts

1. Is it common to end up in strat consulting? No, as you would guess, a psychology background is definitely not the most common profile to end up in strategy consulting.

2. Is your profile attractive to consulting firms? Yes, absolutely. Especially the top firms (MBB and select Tier 2s) are actively striving to increase and cultivate diversity of backgrounds, since there is strong evidence, that this fosters the firms' problem solving and creative capabilities. In fact, know quite a few folks with psychology background who ended up in Strategy Consulting. 

With that in mind, as long as your academics are strong (and from a whitelisted school) and you are able to demonstrate other attibutes the firms are looking for (strong drive, international exposure, quant affinity, ideally some relevant work experience etc), then you will have decent chances to get invited - nuances, based on firm, will apply of course.

Hope this helps.

Feel free to reach out via PM, if you'd like know more about how realistic such a step would be with your given profile.

Regards, Andi

Hi there,

I guess only few would choose psychology as a major if at the same time they already knew that they wanted to go into consulting as a career choice - rather than, let's say, working as a psychologist.

But things and perspectives change along the way and that is perfectly fine. While it is “not common” to have psychologists per se as standard consulting staff, it is ”common" in consulting firms to have people of all sorts of different backgrounds. 

I worked with great consultants who had backgrounds in history, sociology or journalism for example. However, everyone of them had to pick up business/econ essentials as well because that's the most prominent area within most strategy consulting assignments.

Your own reasons for wanting to be in consulting are most important and whether you have a compelling story to tell as to why that is and what you think you can bring to the table.

Best of luck

Hi there,

Not common.

It's also not “common” for someone with an economics background to get in.

Nor is it “common” for someone with a business degree to get in.

Please remember that everybody is different and strategy consultancies hire people from all walks of life. In most courses of action you will be in the minority…few things in life are “common”

Please also remember to be objective-driven.

Your question shouldn't be “how common”. Who cares!

Your questions should be “should I…is it right for me" and “If so, can I achieve this”.

1srt question only a case/career coach can help answer. Second one, the short answer is yes, yes you can, but you have to do the right things in the right way to make it happen (as would a business major).

The best consultant I knew at BCG was a professional violinist in the Sydney Opera house prior to working for BCG…

Hi there, 

Indeed, there are not that many people transitioning from psychology but there's no issue with it in and of itself. 

The important thing to focus on is making sure you have the sort of skills that consulting firms are looking for (critical thinking, good numeracy skills, structuring, creativity, etc.). One way to acquire them is to start by interning with consulting firms during your studies. 

Best,

Cristian