What are the Consulting Club's roles?

In this article, we will attempt to assess whether these clubs, which are present in the target schools of strategy consulting, are relevant to candidates and top firms alike.

What's in it for the clubs?

Setting up partnerships

Consulting clubs are a good way of forging partnerships with firms, with "Case competitions" or "Case classes", for example, during which students work with real consultants on real-life issues.

Create a network

Consulting clubs are also great networking opportunities. Not only do they bring student candidates together to identify training partners and help each other prepare, they also bring them into contact with existing consultants.

Representing the profession in schools

Within schools, having a consulting club helps promote the consulting profession to students. For consulting firms, consulting clubs serve as a relay antenna for their communications.

Put yourself in a consultant's shoes

Consulting clubs also enable students to integrate practical knowledge. In many cases, schools impart fairly general knowledge that does not prepare students for strategy consulting interviews in particular. Students often have theoretical knowledge, but not necessarily a practical understanding of the business. In this sense, being a member of a consulting club is a plus over the average candidate.

Why don't all schools have consulting clubs?

Having demonstrated the benefits of consulting clubs, we can now ask why not all schools have them? The main reason is that consulting clubs are the result of individual initiatives. So you need at least one or more motivated individuals who want to create a structure from scratch.

Are firms interested in consulting clubs?

Firms' interest in consulting clubs is real. Most firms are very keen on these partnerships, which bring them a number of benefits, including brand awareness, promotion of their business and communication support. Consulting clubs have no trouble attracting industry professionals to their events. Regrettably, however, this service is not provided by the schools themselves...

Conclusion

In short, being part of a consulting club is most of the time highly relevant. On the candidate side, they'll do everything they can to get you up to speed by organizing events that will enhance your practical knowledge. They will also provide you with a place where candidates can help each other find resources and partners with whom to train. As far as firms are concerned, these clubs are a guarantee of quality and a real communication channel. So, in most cases, for both students and firms, consulting clubs are a win-win situation.