The recruiter says the number.
You compare it with what a classmate received.
Higher feels better. Lower feels worse.
Simple.
Except a consulting offer is rarely just one number.
The headline can hide the package.
And if you are comparing offers straight out of a Master’s program, that distinction matters more than it first appears.
The base salary gets your attention... then the other lines start moving
Your offer may contain several pieces.
Base compensation is the most visible because it is guaranteed and easy to compare.
But the actual economics can also involve variable compensation, signing support, benefits, retirement contributions, relocation assistance, or other firm-specific components.
Suddenly, Offer A and Offer B are not so easy to compare.
| What catches your eye | What can change the picture | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Base salary | Performance bonus | Total cash may differ |
| Signing amount | Repayment conditions | Upfront money may come with strings |
| Office location | Cost of living | The same salary may feel very different |
| Benefits | Employer contributions | Value may not appear in your monthly pay |
| Start date | Months of income | Timing affects first-year earnings |
The offer letter is not the whole spreadsheet.
For a deeper view of compensation levels for Master’s candidates, read Master’s Graduate Consulting Salary: MBB, Big 4, and Tier 2.
The biggest number can still create the smaller outcome
Imagine one firm offers a slightly higher salary in an expensive city.
Another offers less in a lower-cost location and starts you two months earlier.
Which pays more?
You cannot answer from the salary line alone.
Then add a bonus.
Then taxes.
Then relocation.
Then the possibility that one component is guaranteed while another depends on individual or firm performance.
The comparison moves again.
Gross compensation is not lived compensation.
That is why candidates can spend hours debating a small salary difference while ignoring the parts of the package that may affect their first year more.
“Total compensation” sounds precise... until you ask what is guaranteed
Recruiting conversations sometimes compress everything into one attractive figure.
That number can be useful.
But you need to know what sits underneath it.
- What is fixed?
- What is variable?
- Is the bonus target, maximum, or typical?
- Is any signing payment repayable if you leave early?
- Are relocation benefits cash or reimbursement?
- When does compensation review happen?
Notice what you are doing.
You are not negotiating yet.
You are reconstructing the offer.
Only after that can you compare it properly.
For the distinction between the guaranteed and variable pieces, see Base Salary vs Total Compensation for Management Consultants.
Your Master’s degree matters... but perhaps not where you expect
You may assume the degree itself should create a large compensation premium.
Sometimes the more relevant question is what recruiting level the firm assigns to your profile.
That level can shape salary bands, expectations, promotion timing, and how much discretion the recruiter actually has.
Now your degree is part of a larger question:
Where are you entering the system?
A candidate joining through one structured pathway may have less room to negotiate base pay than someone hired individually for a specialist role.
That does not make negotiation pointless.
It makes precision more important.
Before you compare the offers, remove the logos
This is an uncomfortable exercise.
Write each package on a blank page.
No McKinsey.
No BCG.
No Bain.
No prestige cues.
Just:
Compensation.
Location.
Role.
Start date.
Development.
Progression.
Then ask which differences actually change your first two years.
You may still prefer the same offer.
But now you know why.
Because an offer is not attractive simply because one number is larger.
The real question is which package changes your trajectory.
And that line is rarely printed in bold.