I did a spring week at Deloitte, so I'll start there.
The Deloitte spring week
Mine was virtual. We were given lots of small tasks, each designed to show what a different service line does: consulting, audit, tax, financial advisory and so on. It's a broad introduction rather than a deep dive. If you're not sure yet what kind of consulting you want, that's exactly what you need.
Choosing the right programme
Deloitte is huge and runs a lot of graduate programmes. Consulting alone is split into several areas: strategy (which is Monitor Deloitte), technology, operations, human capital, risk and more. People often pick the one with the nicest-sounding name. Read the descriptions properly and choose the work you'd actually enjoy, because the interviews will test whether you know what it involves.
What the CV should show
- Teamwork and client-type skills. Big 4 consulting is often about implementing change in large organisations, so experience working with lots of different people matters.
- A real interest in the area you've picked. Technology consulting? Show something technical. Human capital? Show you've thought about how people are managed.
- The basics done well: one page, grades, numbers in your bullets.
Before: Worked with the IT team on a new system
After: Trained 45 staff across 3 sites on a new booking system in 2 weeks; missed appointments fell by a third in the first month