<p>I will be going to Cornell next fall, and I was wondering, with an ILR degree, how hard is it to get this type of job and what the starting salary is for an average Human Resources Consultant?</p>
<p>In addition, can Cornell CAS Econ majors go into consulting? What about HR Consulting?</p>
<p>And finally, in general, how hard is it to find good consulting jobs these days? Is it hard like ibanking?</p>
<p>Thanks for the info.</p>
<p>First, any job is going to depend more on you and your traits than any degree you have in your hand.</p>
<p>Secondly, it largely depends on the current state of the economy. For the next couple of years, I imagine it's going to be pretty rough for college grads. Maybe not as hard in the consulting space as in the IBanking space, but hard enough. Maybe by the time you graduate things will pick up.</p>
<p>I'll add that there are plenty of good jobs out there for people who are interested. Take teaching for instance-- most major cities are falling over trying to hire employable teachers for secondary education. I know Boston starts teachers at $45k a year, which after you factor in vacation and summers off, is a higher rate than most consultants start at (in the $50s)</p>
<p>And yes, CAS Econ majors can go into consulting as well, including HR consulting if they take a couple of ILR courses. There are a lot of different types of consulting gigs out there -- ranging from management consulting to environmental consulting, design consulting to IT consulting. So take your pick.</p>
<p>Hmm cool, thanks. So the avg. starting salary is $50 K? I guess it will differ from job to job but I hope it gets a little higher; like 60K maybe.</p>
<p>"with an ILR degree, how hard is it to get this type of job and what the starting salary is for an average Human Resources Consultant?"
HR consultants recruit quite heavily for ILR grads. I received an offer for an HR consulting job, it was $65K a year for the top ranked firm. Still, it depends on your gpa, activities, how you present yourself, and how well you interview. There are dozens and dozens of factors involved. </p>
<p>"In addition, can Cornell CAS Econ majors go into consulting? What about HR Consulting?"
Consulting, yes. HR consulting, it's not as easy mostly because HR consulting firms recruit specifically for ILR students and those in other colleges cannot submit resumes to their recruitment events. I think HR consulting is much more lucrative than management consulting, less travel, less hours, etc. </p>
<p>"And finally, in general, how hard is it to find good consulting jobs these days? Is it hard like ibanking?"
Yeah, it's very hard. I'm surprised I got offers, actually. Then again, I'm surprised I got an offer from a bank. Since the banks have severely cut back on hiring, every big money wannabe has flocked to consulting so they're dealing with hundreds of resumes for a few spots. Once again, it doesn't matter what you major in, it will make NO difference when it comes to getting hired.</p>
<p>"Once again, it doesn't matter what you major in, it will make NO difference when it comes to getting hired"</p>
<p>On a general consulting/banking note, it is not exactly true that majors dont matter. While many government majors (for example) get jobs in ibanking and more so in consulting, companies like to see a demonstrated interest in their field. Furthermore, there are many firms recruiting AEM, Hotel, and yes, ILR directly than for other majors. Engineers are also highly recruited for the more technical banking and consulting jobs. Make sure you show interest by taking business courses like accounting, and finance. If you want a real estate finance job, take a real estate course in the hotel school, etc. Get involved (actually actively involved with leadership) in related clubs. </p>
<p>Also, do not worry too much about the economy now. I am currently a junior with a consulting position this summer. I have been talking to people in investment banking and most are optimistic that most likely as early as next fall companies will begin hiring larger intern classes again. Banks will also have to hire larger full time classes than normal as they think the economy is expected to get better by the end of the calendar year, and this summers intern class is so much smaller than normal. </p>
<p>I would say an econ major is in the right area for banking/consulting as well as the others posted above. Consulting jobs are competitive, but many consulting companies are doing really well right now because as companies do poorly in a bad economy, they often hire consultants to appease their shareholders as kind of a checks and balances system. Just be sure to take an human resources course in the hotel school, and definitely take finance and financial accounting at least.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Also, do not worry too much about the economy now. I am currently a junior with a consulting position this summer. I have been talking to people in investment banking and most are optimistic that most likely as early as next fall companies will begin hiring larger intern classes again. Banks will also have to hire larger full time classes than normal as they think the economy is expected to get better by the end of the calendar year, and this summers intern class is so much smaller than normal.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>We'll see. Won't we? I think Herbert Hoover was saying the same thing eighty years ago.</p>
<p>"On a general consulting/banking note, it is not exactly true that majors dont matter. "
My experience in the process says otherwise, at least in relation to entire majors. </p>
<p>"companies like to see a demonstrated interest in their field"
So take a finance class or something. Demonstrate your knowledge and interest in the field during the interview ... the interviewers are professionals and gaging interest and fit, they'll see it. Say you're an art major (I do know an art history major at GS right now), you're not at a disadvantage by studying something you love and are interested in (I think they picked her in part because she wasn't 1 of the 80 econ majors applying, and they praised her for doing something she loved). I think you're saying a multitude more about your interest by talking about your well diversified portfolio or discussing an interesting quark you picked up in the P/E ratio of a major tech firm. </p>
<p>"We'll see. Won't we? I think Herbert Hoover was saying the same thing eighty years ago."</p>
<p>Why would we have to worry with George W in office, right? ;-)</p>
<p>Gomestar -- Did you arrive to ILR before or after the two labor history courses and Boyer's the development of economic institutions was no longer required?</p>
<p>I ask because I found them to be three of the most important courses for an ILR student in terms of general knowledge and insight into the way in which the country's political economy works. Students who haven't taken those courses might not have nearly as much grasp on the current situation as many alumni may have. Cowie, in particular, spent a wonderful week describing the events leading to the Depression.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, HR260 is still required.</p>
<p>I only took 1 labor history and Boyer's class wasn't covered. </p>
<p>I did, however, take Boyer's economics of the great depression class. Fascinating. I see a few parallels between the late 20's and today with the housing situation. Still, back then, housing seemed significantly more tied to other sectors of the economy (lumber, concrete, appliances, etc), those sectors don't seem to be taking as big of a hit. </p>
<p>I think the push to go green is really helping parts of the economy despite the housing slump. I have stock in CSX (railways), and while the RR industry was hit heavily in the 30's, it's booming in the current economy, thanks to how efficient locomotives are compared to cars or trucks. Same thing for other stocks such as Cree (LED technology). </p>
<p>The second parallel I see is with increasing consumer debt. I think it was Bernanke (I think, I could be wrong) who studied the issue of debt and the great depression. Basically, everybody bought so much in the 20's, they were up to their ears in debt by the 30's and couldn't afford to help the economy expand. Here we have people on a $40,000 income getting approved for a $450,000 loan on a house - come on!</p>
<p>Boyer's Great Depression class would do the trick. I was unfortunately studying abroad when it was offered. </p>
<p>But LE140 was an amazing class, and a true testament how even a 150 person lecture hall can result in a very intimate learning experience. It was a combination economic thought/economic history course, and traced the development of Western civilization until World War II in tandem with economic theory. So everything from Thomas Aquinas to Milton Friedman was covered.</p>
<p>And yeah, Bernake is considered to be the finest scholar of the monetary history of the Great Depression. Let's hope he knows what he is doing. I've met him. He's short and bald.</p>
<p>But the second column in this table has me deeply worried:</p>