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Consulting · 3 entry points

Economic Consultant

Use economic theory and data to answer legal, regulatory, and commercial questions that shape real decisions.

What is this role

Economic consultants use economic theory and data to answer questions that shape legal cases, regulation, and business strategy. One week you might estimate the damages in a competition dispute; the next, model how a merger would affect prices. You spend your time gathering data, building models, and turning the results into arguments that a court, a regulator, or a board can act on. It sits between academic economics and management consulting: rigorous like the first, commercial like the second.

Entry points

Common ways in. Each pairs a qualification with the role you would usually start in.

Bachelors (Economics/Math)Research Analyst
Masters (Economics)Analyst
PhD (Economics)Senior Consultant

Career progression

The climb from your first day to the top of the practice. Salary bands step upward with each rank.

Where it leads
5

Director / Partner

10+ yrs
£150k+
Client relationships · Practice leadership
4

Associate Director

8-10 yrs
£95-130k
Case leadership · Business development
3

Manager

5-8 yrs
£70-95k
Project management · Team leadership
2

Consultant

2-5 yrs
£50-70k
Modelling · Client delivery
1

Analyst

0-2 yrs
£38-48k
Data analysis · Research
You start here

Core skills

Quantitative & analytical

Econometrics, data analysis, and modelling to turn messy data into clear evidence.

Communication

Explaining complex findings simply to lawyers, regulators, and clients who are not economists.

Commercial awareness

Understanding the legal and business context behind each question you are asked.

Top firms

Specialist economics consultancies
FEFrontier EconomicsOxOxeraNENERACRCRACLCompass Lexecon
Big Four economics teams
DeDeloittePwPwCKPKPMGEYEY

A sample day in the life

09:00
Morning stand-up
Align on the day's priorities with your case team.
09:30
Data and modelling
Clean datasets and build the econometric model.
12:30
Lunch
Usually with the team, often away from the desk.
13:30
Client call
Walk the client through early findings and open questions.
15:00
Analysis and drafting
Turn results into clear slides and a written memo.
17:00
Peer review
A senior colleague sense-checks your work before it goes out.

Interview prep

Walk me through how you would estimate the size of the UK coffee market.
Explain a regression to someone with no statistics background.
Tell me about a time you used data to change someone’s mind.
Why economic consulting rather than management consulting?
Interview pro tip

Practice explaining one technical project out loud in under two minutes. Clarity under pressure matters more than the maths.

Watch

Application timeline

Sep to Nov
Applications open
Most firms recruit on a rolling basis, so apply early.
Oct to Dec
Online tests
Numerical, verbal, and situational assessments.
Jan to Feb
Interviews and case studies
Usually two rounds, including a case with data.
March
Offers
Decisions and start-date planning.
Jun to Aug
Summer internships
A common route into a graduate offer.

Key notes

A quantitative background helps, but it is not essential. Firms value clear thinking and communication as much as technical skill, so do not rule yourself out on your degree alone.

Learn from the community

From an Economics degree to my first caseALUMNI VIDEO6 min

From an Economics degree to my first case

Amara O. · now at Oxera

How I passed the case interviewALUMNI VIDEO8 min

How I passed the case interview

Daniel K. · now at NERA

What a first year analyst really doesALUMNI VIDEO5 min

What a first year analyst really does

Priya S. · now at Frontier

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