MBA graduates are attracted to consulting firms not just because of their high compensation, but also because they are more easily integrated into the culture. Employers who know what MBA grads can achieve and how to use them successfully are willing to pay a premium for them. The graduates will not face any hostility or misunderstanding, and there are likely to be others on staff with similar backgrounds. Their academic background is well-suited to investigations in areas such as consulting and mergers and acquisitions.
The relationship between MBA graduates and management consultants dates back to the 1970s, when business schools were initially notified by corporate recruiters that they did not want applicants straight from college. Even as business schools evolved, few employers were ready to invest in recruiting graduates with a first degree from colleges, hiring them for two years, and then pushing them to leave to attend business school with no certainty of their return. Management consultants were the only ones who performed this. First-degree graduates were recruited as research associates on the university’s “milk round,” urged to attend business school, and then rehired as MBA grads.
As a result, consulting dominated the candidate pool and recruitment basis for business schools. They also discovered that students with a consulting background were more demanding, requiring analytical “tool kits” as an example. As a result, the curriculum was designed toward consulting, with a significant emphasis on strategy.
Only a few students who join consulting firms stay there for the rest of their life. Many are drawn to the job because of the high pay, the lifestyle, and the high-profile aspect of the position, which offers them access to the highest levels of corporate life. After three or four years, many consultants move into mainstream business. However, management consultants are well aware of and nearly anticipate this, which is one of the reasons they are such good recruiters.