Am I a competitive applicant for the Oxford MFE?

My profile:

720 GMAT, Incoming IB intern at a BB, previous internships in boutique IB and VC, low 2:1 score in my second year studying at a target UK uni.

I’m wondering if my low 2:1 (64) will lead to an automatic reject and if it’s even worth applying. I have an offer at LBS already but I would prefer Oxford because I think Saïd is a great bschool.

Thank you!

12 Comments
 

Just go to LBS man. Isn't LBS better than Said? That being said I feel like Said is stronger academically and you'd like it better there if you like theory stuff and financial econ. Such is life...

 

OP your GMAT and GPA are likely to get you dinged you are quite a bit below the class average. If you can try retaking the GMAT and scoring in the 760+ range (easier said than done but you need to score high to compensate for the GPA). No harm in applying.

Oxford MFE is well worth the money and way more selective than comparable Masters at LBS, not sure what the LBS shills are on about. That being said you will do just fine by going to LBS of course.

 

I completely agree with your points (and also agree that people overestimate LBS). Some things that are holding me back from committing a lot of time to this application though is that:

1. I already have a place in London so I wouldn't have to relocate to Oxford 

2. I'm worried that I'd perform badly on the MFE because I don't find economics that interesting. I chose economics for my undergrad as I believed it was a better platform than A&F to apply for jobs, but I don't really enjoy it (Hence the low GPA).

I definitely think that I could achieve a 760+ if I properly studied for the test though. I got the 720 after going into the test without any prep since I had booked it for the day after my internship thinking I would have the time to study while working (very wrong). 

Would appreciate your thoughts. Oxford definitely is the better brand but I'm attracted to LBS being more chill and in London, so I'm thinking I might just send in an application with my current stats and see if I get in. 

 

Then it comes down to whether all the extra effort you would need to put in to get into the MFE is worth it

I think overall the gains are pretty marginal but if you are very Type A it cannot hurt to 1. get a very high GMAT score, will help for recruitment in general now and later down the line 2. Get into the MFE which is objectively the more selective/better master in finance in Europe for IB/PE

Then again if you have more productive uses of your time (e.g. cool extracurriculars, internships, etc.) or just want to chill you will do just fine

 

MFE admit last year here. Decided to go to another program instead of Oxford.

Your stats are a little low for the program, especially the GPA. I have heard of kids getting in with a 710 or a 720, but improving your GMAT could offset your GPA I guess.

Why do you want to go to Said though? I get it, Oxford is prestigious and everything, but if you see yourself doing banking/PE, I would say go for LBS, unless you really want to take that many quant subjects! I’m doing a quant program at another university and while the name probably helped me get into PE, I’m not sure I would pick again an academically rigorous program like the one I am doing.

 

Can you tell me where you are doing the more quant role than in Oxford, I know US has many, such as Princeton, NYU, Columbia etc. Or is it in Europe? Also, can you expand a bit on how more quantitative subjects helped you?  I am interested because I also want to do a more quantitative master's and need some advice

 

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