I am in the process for both these firms
It appears that I am in a different timeline to others (British)
I have been reading the 2021 SA thread where they mention these firms run ACs by nationality
I want to confirm if this is commonplace in London IBD?
I find it highly unusual but given the country coverage it makes sense from a business standpoint.
Want to confirm if this is still the case in 2026!
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Not interviewed for IBD, but GCM (MS) a few weeks ago and I didn’t get the impression we were grouped by nationality. The superday was v international with a few languages present (some more than others), and I fall in a weird British/european mix, but I didn’t feel I was being assessed against some national pigeonhole.
If you’re being assessed in some British only track then it appears your barrier to entry will be lower and much more motivational/behavioural if this were true, as you won’t be expected to have done the 3/4/5 internships the Germans tend to do. But if they do this I don’t know. It could be some myth or excuse some people make up due to not getting offers. However I don’t think something like this is openly allowed, but obviously for teams covering certain sectors and countries, it makes for those speaking a language to be prioritised and for those interviewing them for their team to have their own criteria. I can fully understand and expect a German MD expecting their incoming interns to have done a few internships and thus only looking for interns in that bracket. But if this is truly done I don’t know
Noted, I believe GCM has a smaller intake and is relatively less language focused than IBD. I have been in processes with both firms and they give me the impression that language coverage is more of a priority than in other banks. S&T does not have a specific need, hence I see a lot of British applicants there.
Ye I don’t know about IBD, but from GCM I wouldn’t say there was no language focus as I think from everyone at my superday, all of us were at least bilingual (at most one just English guy) and studying a masters abroad (majority of us). As the department is smaller maybe there is some less obvious language track. But the feeling there and from what I’ve heard from seniors the division a sa whole is very multilingual w very few sole English speakers, with those interviewers probably having some natural preference for their languages and for the languages of the zones they cover.
My experience with GS - ACs were split by languages. I was interviewed by a mix of people from local and London offices but who speak my native language. They also run on different timelines. For instance, the Italian AC was a few weeks after mine
Any offer calls made by any chance? Heard few have gone out for IB but only for Europeans?
MS GCM has offers out, I’d say for both Brits and Europeans but again I don’t think they were splitting us that way. And IB I think has a few out as wel
Sorry I meant for GS
Ye I don’t know about IBD, but from GCM I wouldn’t say there was no language focus as I think from everyone at my superday, all of us were at least bilingual (at most one just English guy) and studying a masters abroad (majority of us). As the department is smaller maybe there is some less obvious language track. But the feeling there and from what I’ve heard from seniors the division a sa whole is very multilingual w very few sole English speakers, with those interviewers probably having some natural preference for their languages and for the languages of the zones they cover.
Curious how standard UK students are assessed compared with Europeans in these processes. Is it expected and accommodated that UK students have fewer internships (1-3) and that their degree programmes aren't built for them? Seems that many of the top BBs/EBs favour European Masters with 3+ IBD internships; tbh, I haven't really seen any British student with very solid experience (and the other pre-reqs, target, top grades, etc.) getting into many of these processes (anecdotally and in these forums)
Depends entirely on the bank and team. Banks on the continent rarely account for accommodate UK students and their lack of experience even if they speak the required language. Theyre a lot more meritocratic in the sense they’ll only take the best. If that’s the student with 3/4 internships then that’s the one they‘ll take. No one is giving special treatment to the uk students because they can’t or haven’t got the required experience because it’d be a hassle to train them.
That being said, I don’t think the Germans or the French make it through uk rounds much easier because they still have to jump through the exact same holistic hoops of online assessments and hirevues and CV screenings where no amount of internships will save you if one thing is missing, but once it comes to the interview stages, I can see how a German candidate with no internships won’t be looked at through the same lens as a British student, given the German had ample opportunity in theory to get experience. So once they’re evening interviewed they’re being compared against a different slate and probably against each other.
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