chance of IB full-time?
Hi there,
i am interested in trying that as well however my weakness lies in that I have no sales internship earlier except a newspapers sales associate during freshman summer. Any comments would be appreciated!!
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Hello. Let me try to help you out.
Let's make a theoretical but fun little model using some basic econometrics:
Y=B1(x)+B2(x)+Bn(x).
Y is your chance of getting a job/internship.
Beta 1 thru n are the explanatory variables.
In this case let's say B1 is school prestige/ranking only.
In this case you are asking us what impact B1 will have on Y. And we all know econometric regressions show the beta value for all else held constant.
The biggest problem on WSO, but also in general, is people get really caught up on B1. It's the easier to compare, contrast, talk about, and so forth. School name has the highest information:cost ratio, where cost=cost of gaining information. So naturally people talk about it a TON.
But in the end, people here invest hundreds of hours into finding out argmaxB1[Set of all Schools]. That's a fancy way of saying they spend lots of time trying to figure out how to maximize B1.
Ultimately, people forget about B2, B3, B4... and so on. They forget about having a sense of humor, reading the newspaper, making friends, being friendly while you're getting a drink so another guy thinks you're cool and helps you get a job 7 months later, being confident (working out dressing well), and being INTERESTING. Not to mention grades, clubs, projects, self-taught skills, and so forth.
Now that I've said my piece, i'll answer your question. I currently am studying for my MSc in a similar 1year degree at the LSE. I love it. Although I admit I'm an academic at heart. I've learned so much, had so much excitement in London, and made so many friends. It's extremely difficult. For some reason people get so caught up in rankings and strategic ways to get a job, they forget grad school can be tough... No, seriously, it's a LOT of work. I have learned a fuck ton. I could TA for any 400 level undergrad Finance course across all schools in the US. Of course, we all know academic finance skills won't help you get into IB. But I am happy for having learned it anyway.
So let's consider Oxford again. Your main concern is will it help you get an IBD job the first year out. That's such a boring way to make choices. You could go study at a beautiful school in another country, make friends from across the world, and truly learn the science of finance. You will have a lifetime of memories, education, knowledge, and experience. You will have a network of Oxford Alums across the world. How amazing! Your career success will forever reflect your academic strengths and accomplishments. Don't let the "one year degree" fool you. It is incredibly challenging and an immense personal achievement. This isn't an MBA finance curriculum. It's first/second year PhD curriculum.
Sigma_time, getting into IBD is often a crapshoot. Of course attending Oxford will get you on their radar, but it guarantees nothing. If your only reason for attending Oxford for the MFE is to get into IBD, don't go. That's not the right reason, and the tears, money, and sweat you will spend receiving that degree do not justify having a marginally higher shot at IBD.
However, I guarantee in the long run having achieved a Master's from Oxford will work to your benefit. No matter what career you ultimately choose.
Thanks for the detailed input jjmoneysupply, really appreciate. I got your point and agree that the one-year degree stands more than the higher shot in IB and etc prestigious firm, let alone the priceless moments spent with classmates, and potential colleagues.
I guess my insecurity about what my Oxford mfe could get me to lies in my attending a non-target liberal arts college in the Midwest of U.S. I mainly come to my undergraduate institution for its generous scholarship offer but only realize how extremely difficult to break into a decent firm as campus recruiting is almost nowhere in sight(information asymmetry), not surprisingly we only have a few alumni in the past 10-20 years who made it to a decent finance firm most of whom I got chances to talk to.
I am not risk-aversed and by no means attending Oxford is risk taking, It pay out in the long-run like you said and other elements associated. I have an academic side but right now more industry-oriented. Anyway, thanks for the nice message, means a lot to me.
Are you trying to get a position in EU or back here in the States? I think it will be incredibly tough if you want to come back to recruit, even for Oxford students. The reasons are obvious: grad school student, fewer network in US and you are not here to interview. For EU, I am not sure how easy it is for US citizens to work in UK, etc. But with this Cyprus shit going on, it might became another bank crisis; if it does, then I imagine recruiting will be tight in EU as well.
I am open to position either in U.K, or Asia Pacific(preferably HK), no plan to be back to the U.S. but always expect the unexpected who knows when is the next global layoff in banking??
What other MFin/MFE programs did you apply to? Why did you choose oxford?
I went to a non target in the US as well due to in state fees. Best school in my state, couldn't afford to go out of my state. Hence my MSc.
The good news is that in Asia/HK they get a hardon for Oxbridge. In the US it's not that they don't like Oxford grads, just that they already have HR networks and connections with all the Ivys/targets, and aren't short on applicants.
Oxford will offer you a higher shot at IBD than your current nontarget. But I suggest you don't worry too much about your first or second job. So many students are myopic in their goals. There is a large exciting world of opportunity out there. It just so happens that they don't intensely market to college students as much as banks, so students don't realize.
You can go crazy trying to get all the perfect information about getting a job in the US from Oxford and so forth. But if you want to do it, and want to learn, just go. Maybe you won't get an IBD job or BB job first year out, whatever. You will still get a great job/career, and will have a wonderful future. You will still get a great job in the US if you want and are able to make it happen.
Frankly, I am not thinking about getting a job in the U.S. and will see how everything else is going once I got there.
Hey,
I did the MFE at Ox back in the days and currently work at a mega fund. The kid who sat to my right in class works at the same fund. The guy who sat on my left is at another fund. We did GS and McK after the degree for 18 months. Now why is this not surprising?
If you have the social skills, the brand is a door opener and youll know what you need to know for any interview. The guys that struggled were the ones who couldnt speak proper english or who didnt have the social aspect sorted out. As you would expect, people would sit together in class based on social aspects.
Curriculum is super chill. Studied hard for a month. Went to about 50% of classes. Rest was rowing, pizza, football and parties. Girls were hideous for the most part. London is close.
Enjoy!
Great to hear from the insider, thanks HotShot! Any tips to survive and have fun at Oxford MFE??
Do you speak Chinese? Felt like it is increasingly a requirement for working in HK IBD. Plus I kept hearing banks are deploying more of their teams from HK to Beijing.
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