I'm still wondering if "consulting" is shorthand for:

"I don't have a (airquotes) 'job,' but people will SURELY want to pay me money for my opinions anyway."

Which might well explain why so few of the graduates seem to think that they'll be doing "consulting" long term, and so many think that it's a short-term answer.

The successful consultants that I know in the (actual) working world seem to have done things the other way around; building connections over a period of time in industry before striking out as freelancers. Because in general terms, people pay you better if you have a series of work-connections with people who already know that you're competent. wink

Schrödinger's cat walks into a bar. And doesn't.