Career insights
A day in the life of a junior consultant in the US
What the first job and the summer internship look like at US consulting firms, put together from what the firms themselves publish about the role.
The short version: you spend the day on one client problem with a small team, turning data into analysis and analysis into slides, with a manager checking your work along the way. The detail differs by firm, so this guide says which firm each point comes from.
In short
A junior consultant works on one client question with a small case team. A typical day opens with a team check-in to set priorities, then hours on research, data, Excel models and slides, then edits from your manager and, on good days, a meeting where the work is shown to partners or the client. Interns at Bain, L.E.K. and Kearney work on live client teams, and L.E.K. gives its summer associates the same work streams as full-time associates.
How one associate consultant's day runs at Bain
Bain published a day in the life of an associate consultant in its Seattle office (October 2024). The shape of the day is a good guide to the junior role at most strategy firms.
- 01
Team huddle
The day starts with the case team together to agree the priorities, sometimes with a quick game or trivia to open.
- 02
Check-in with your supervisor
A separate session with the manager to plan the day and split the work.
- 03
Models and slides
The associate consultant owns analytical models and slide output: working through the supervisor's comments on slides and building the first cuts of any new data.
- 04
Turning data into an answer
On a project to combine two companies, the work meant sorting data from both, from policy documents to detailed financial reports, then building an Excel model to find the trends that size the opportunity for the client.
- 05
Presenting the work
The high point: showing finished decks to partners and clients, and sitting in on meetings with senior executives.
What the work actually is
The firms describe the junior job in similar terms. These are the tasks that fill the day.
Research
Primary and secondary research. At L.E.K., junior associates also lead interviews with key stakeholders.
Data and models
Gathering and analyzing data, building analyses and models, and running competitor assessments, as Kearney describes its intern work.
Slides
Turning the analysis into client presentations. Much of a junior day goes on building slides and working through a manager's comments on them.
Recommendations
Helping the team derive insights and recommendations from your work, and at Kearney, helping put co-created solutions in place.
AI tools
McKinsey gives its people training and access to AI tools, including its own platform, Lilli, and ChatGPT Enterprise.
Client and senior time
Deloitte says new hires take on client-facing work from the start, and Oliver Wyman gives interns exposure to senior leaders through their project teams.
The summer internship, firm by firm
Interns do the same work as first-year staff, on a live client team. Here is how each firm sets up the summer, from its own pages and postings.
| Firm | Length | How it starts | The work |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bain | One summer | Up to a week of intensive training, led by consultants | Staffed on a real case team, owning a distinct piece of the project |
| L.E.K. | 8 to 10 weeks | A one-week training event, plus a mentor team | The same work streams as a full-time associate |
| Kearney | 10 weeks | A dedicated mentor for the summer | Data gathering and analysis, competitor assessments, recommendations |
| Oliver Wyman | One summer | A training week at the start | Project team work, with mentoring and senior leader exposure |
| Accenture | About 10 weeks from June | In person at offices, client sites or delivery centers | Tracks such as Strategy, Song and Industry X |
From the firms' pages and summer 2027 postings, the latest with published details.
Hours, travel and office days
Few firms publish hours, so ask in every interview. L.E.K. is the most specific: it says its associates travel less than at many consulting firms, weekend work is rare, and the hours expected on each project are communicated every week. Oliver Wyman's parent, Marsh McLennan, expects people in the office or on site with clients at least three days a week, and Accenture's summer analysts work in person.
Try a day before you apply
BCG runs OneDay@BCG, a set of 13 free virtual job simulations. In the Strategy Consulting module you help a fictional tech client, BeyondTech, reverse falling profits by improving its sales strategy, and you get sample answers from BCG consultants to compare against.
It is also good preparation for the interviews. McKinsey's problem-solving interview puts you in a typical client scenario, and the habits of the job, structuring the problem, doing the math and landing a clear recommendation, are what it tests.
Skills that make the day easier
Our advice, built on the tasks above. Each one is something you can practice before the internship starts.
- Excel: clean a raw data set, build a pivot, and size a market from it without help.
- Slides: write a headline that states the answer, then make the chart prove it.
- Taking comments: turn a page of manager edits around in an hour, and say what you changed.
- Interviews: prepare five questions before any expert or stakeholder call, and write up the notes the same day.
- Mental math: percentages, growth rates and rough market sizes, quick and on paper.
How each firm hires, stage by stage
The US process pages for the firms in this guide: what the application asks and how the interviews run.
Key takeaways
- A junior consultant spends the day on one client question with a small case team.
- The core tasks are research, data, Excel models and slides, with regular edits from a manager.
- Interns at Bain, L.E.K. and Kearney work on live client teams, with training and a mentor.
- Few firms publish hours; L.E.K. says weekend work is rare and hours are set out each week.
- BCG's free OneDay@BCG simulations are a quick way to try the work before you apply.
A day in the life of a consultant
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