Wondering what degrees can get you into Big 4 consulting? We asked Big 4 consultants and recruiters to find out.
What should you major in to become a consultant at the Big 4 (Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC)? Lucky for you – unlike accounting, consulting is a very open-ended field, which means they take all kinds of degrees!
But don't take our word for it. Hear what actual consultants and recruiters have to say on this topic.
According to the consultants we spoke to, the Big 4 hire from a wide range of degrees. That said, some degrees are more common, especially for more specialized types of consulting.
Personally, I had a finance degree and I know there are a lot of people with accounting degrees, finance degrees, and economics degrees.
But we've hired ppl without any business background. For example, people with science or engineering degrees or students who were pre-med – we know these are tough programs!
– Consulting manager @ EY
MIS (Management Information Systems) is a common major for people who go into tech consulting.
When I worked on Human Capital consulting projects, I met people who had degrees in Psychology, Organizational Psychology, Human Resources, Human Capital Management (HCM), Industrial & Labor Relations, and Education. There were also some former educators, including some who'd worked in early childhood education.
If you are applying to be an analyst in AI offering, you'll probably need to be studying Statistics or Computer Science – something quantitative or computational.
And from what I know, an Accounting degree is favored in the Risk & Financial Advisory offering, as well as Finance, undergrad Business, and Economics.
– Former junior consultant @ Deloitte
However, just because these are common majors doesn't mean they're needed to get into consulting. They mainly show you have an interest in a certain field and probably are equipped with certain skills. Whatever you study, you just need to be able to address any concerns recruiters may have about you and show that you have the right skills.
Yes, liberal arts majors can and do get into Big 4 consulting. According to consultants, firms don't judge you solely on your degree and care more about what you bring to the table (e.g. whether you can think critically about business issues) and how well you present yourself during your interview.
Liberal arts majors tend to think they don't have a chance at a financial services firm, but if they're able to answer interview questions well and display critical thinking in a business context – without a business background – that actually impresses us more. We don't blacklist people with the "wrong" degrees.
– Consulting manager @ EY
There were also people with liberal arts backgrounds (I was one myself). I mean, there's a lot of different ways you can qualify. I even met criminal science majors, for instance. Firms are very good about judging you as a whole person, not necessarily your degree.
– Former junior consultant @ Deloitte
At the end of the day, whether you're hired depends more on the skills you have and how well you interview than your academic credentials.
No, you definitely don't need an MBA to get into Big 4 consulting. Consulting firms (Big 4, McKinsey, Bain, BCG, etc.) will actually sponsor you to get an MBA, assuming you work for them for a certain number of years afterwards.
There's a common idea that Big 4 firms only hire students from certain colleges. However, this isn't true. The main reason these firms often recruit from specific schools is that they need to hire a lot of people. The schools they target have a large number of students, so it's efficient for the firms to focus their recruitment efforts there.
But this doesn't mean they exclusively hire from these schools. If you're not from one of these universities, it doesn't automatically rule you out. The Big 4 are more interested in finding a large number of talented candidates, and they know that these candidates can come from many different places, not just certain schools.
For example, firms also welcome community college students.
I certainly started in community college and many of my colleagues did as well. Although the Big 4 actively recruit from bigger universities, we accept applications from everyone and have staff with various educational backgrounds and experiences. – Human resources manager @ PwC
The Big 4 firms do not hold going to a community college against a candidate in their applications. I know at PwC, we look for the candidates that are hard workers and will fit in at our firm! If you have good work experience, are involved in organizations on campus, and show you are willing to do the work, you will stand out just as much as someone who started at a Tier 1 school! – Talent acquisition professional @ PwC
Nowadays the value of a college degree itself is changing. For example, there was a big survey where they asked 800 different companies about their hiring plans and found that nearly half of these companies are thinking about NOT requiring a bachelor's degree for some of their job positions.
This means that for certain jobs, companies are starting to focus less on whether candidates have a university degree and more on other qualities or experiences they might bring. It's a shift towards valuing different kinds of skills and knowledge that might not always come from a traditional university education.
The Big 4 seem to be considering non-traditional candidates as well.
I've heard of Big 4 firms hiring from community colleges and even coding bootcamps. Companies are changing the way they view 4-year degrees. – Former junior consultant @ Deloitte
Whatever you do, don't major in something just because you think it'll land you a job in consulting! Choose something you like and complement it with courses that'll help you build relevant skills.
I wouldn't say to pick a degree based on how a recruiter would view it.
Pick one that won't make you tear your hair out and try to balance out your degree with some courses that show you have certain skills. For example, if you're a liberal arts person, try to take some more quantitative courses. In other words, try to make it look like you didn't just study obscure literature for four years.
So don't let job considerations hold you back from something you want to study and can get a better GPA in. If I remember correctly, firms do look at your grades and have some sort of GPA cut off, like in the mid-3's.
– Former junior consultant @ Deloitte
Some schools are now offering degrees in consulting, but they're probably not a great idea.
I've seen some schools offering consulting degrees (majors or was it minors?) but I don't think it's a wise choice to major in consulting. Having worked in the field, I'm not sure what they would teach in a consulting major, because when you think about the term "consulting," it means you should be a subject matter expert in something.
So it's better to specialize in something undergrad and have extra depth of knowledge, but complement that with skills like being able to make powerpoints, writing well. And soft skills like dealing with ambiguity, being quick on your feet.
– Former junior consultant @ Deloitte
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