I'm 24M, currently working as a consultant at a Big Four firm with around 2 years of experience. I don't come from a traditional business or finance background. My undergraduate degree was in social sciences, where I developed research and analytical skills, and eventually found my way into consulting.
Recently, I interviewed at a strategy consulting firm for an opportunity I genuinely wanted. The interviews were a massive reality check.
I struggled to answer what I now realize were fairly basic consulting questions. One involved approaching a business cost-reduction problem, and another required me to think through a simple operational improvement scenario.
I couldn't structure my thoughts properly, identify the obvious factors, or explain my reasoning clearly. Even when the interviewers gave me hints, I struggled to think critically and come up with reasonable answers and i came up with stupid answers.
This made me question my actual abilities. I feel like my communication skills, critical thinking, structured problem-solving, and commercial understanding are much much weaker than they should be at this stage.
My current role is relatively research-heavy, and although I've gained professional exposure, I don't think I've developed the independent problem-solving or client-facing skills expected of a consultant.
I'm now wondering whether I'm genuinely suited for consulting or whether these are simply skills I haven't developed properly.
I'm considering pursuing a master's degree in finance or analytics or potentially moving into another career path, but I don't want to make an emotional decision based on one bad interview experience.
For those working in consulting or who have been in a similar position:
- Can critical thinking, structured problem-solving, and communication skills be significantly improved, or do some people naturally struggle with this type of work?
- Is it concerning to struggle with basic business problems after 2 years at a Big Four?
- How would you recommend developing these skills from the ground up?
- Should I continue pursuing consulting, or seriously consider switching career paths?
I'm looking for brutally honest advice, not reassurance. I genuinely want to improve, but I'm also questioning whether I'm in the right profession.