Industry standards on schools for post-grad

Hey everyone, I wanted to share a bit of my journey and get some honest thoughts.

I graduated from undergrad last year and recently decided to take the GMAT and apply to MSc Finance programmes in the UK. I aimed for the top London schools, but things didn’t go as planned.

LSE rejected me outright. LBS interviewed me, and it actually went really well (it lasted 75 minutes instead of the scheduled 45), but I was ultimately rejected. I think it was probably down to my GMAT. Imperial offered me a place on their Finance and Accounting course, but since my goal is to work in long/short investing or start off at ER, so I withdrew my application.

I’ve committed to the MSc Finance and Investment at Edinburgh. I know it’s not one of the top-ranked programmes, but I’m genuinely passionate about investing and believe that where I go to university shouldn’t dictate my career. Still, that’s the dilemma.

How much does the school you attend actually matter when trying to break into investing, especially if you’re not coming from a traditional feeder?

Would appreciate any insight from people who’ve made it from non-targets, or who’ve seen others do it. Was the school brand a major roadblock, or did things like networking, stock pitching, and developing a track record matter more?

Make it seem to me or what? I have some people on Reddit telling me I wont ahcieve my career goals without such unis and I like to believe otherwise. What are you guys seeing in the industry and what do you think?

Here is some BG info about my experience:

F&B start-up experience (research-focused but drove good output of 64% sales increase), 6 months IBD offcycle internship @ elite boutique, 6 months data analyst doing comp consulting (sounds super technical, it isnt). For extracarriculars, I have good philanthropic work and also society-work @ UG, chairman and also initiated events at school. Would appreciate input on the course and advice given my BG. Thanks!