The Tulane University Freeman Consulting Group has kicked off the 2012-2013 year with a great slate of projects and events designed to give graduate-level business students access to real-world, hands-on consulting and industry experience, as well as networking and job/internship opportunities. Our membership is at an all-time high of nearly 80 Freeman students, including MBAs (part-time and full-time), and Masters students in the Accounting, Finance, and Energy programs. This year, we’ve expanded to include rising undergraduate juniors and seniors to the club as well.
FCG’s flagship program is the Consulting Challenge, in which teams of students across disciplines and programs work on live projects for a range of clients for the length of approximately one semester. We recruited 9 client organizations that reflect the diversity of career and industry interests across the school, including projects in energy, finance, consumer goods, government, and media. Our clients range in size from a pre-revenue energy drink start-up to a €38 billion global energy services firm.
The projects themselves vary across functional expertise, including financial components as well as strategy development and marketing plans. In January 2012, the Consulting Challenge will culminate in the FCG Consulting Challenge Showcase, in which the student teams will have the opportunity to present their projects to the Freeman community, the clients, and working consultants and professionals.
In the interim, FCG works closely with the student teams to keep them engaged, including team meetings, town halls, and happy hours to foster a close-knit community and enhance networking opportunities.
In October, FCG will host a Consulting Speaker Panel, featuring speakers from well-known consulting firms, such as Deloitte, Ernst & Young, Huron Consulting Group, as well as the CEO of local financial consulting firm Equitas Capital Advisors.
Dividends are already paying off for FCG members in terms of new internship and job opportunities. One of the FCG project teams has been offered the chance to apply for a finance internship before the opportunity goes public; FCG officers are working to set up a recruiting opportunity with a Houston-based Energy Consulting firm; and are exploring potential internship opportunities for students with an international student-run non-profit consulting organization.
2012 is already off to a great start for FCG…we look forward to seeing what the rest of the semester will bring, and to celebrating the excellent work our members deliver to their clients in January! To learn more about FCG, please visit the website at http://www.tulane.edu/~fcg/ or follow “Freeman Consulting Group” on facebook.
Nicole Munsey
MBA, MGM Candidate