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
This was about the same for me
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.
Thanks for the reply. From what I've seen doing a couple reputable IBD internships, and from peers with similar experience, the main skills are developed relatively quickly on the job. It seems that, asides from total reps and general speed, each additional IBD internship has diminishing marginal utility, and even if there are small skill differences, these are usually ironed out quickly as it often comes down to not having done a certain work stream before or used a specific application, rather than a fundamentally different on the job experience. I understand that in spite of these nuances, preference is usually given to a student with just more experience overall, but wouldn't banks be mostly shutting off a big talent pool by thinking maximally like this?
So, let’s say a British student who speaks only one language: should you prioritise a conventional European master's program (HEC) over a target British master's program (LSE/LBS/Oxford/Imperial), since you're able to complete more off-cycle courses and gain more experience?
Absolutely not
There's a reason that there are satellite offices to cover specific languages when the founder and mgmt has no grasp of English
If done fairly, the London office should be hiring a minimum 40-50% British students given it's the domestic home of British students
One thing people also fail to address is that in my experience, the European masters' also have a less-than-native grasp of English if they did not have native English parents, so I don't understand how they can sustain a role where English is spoken 80% of the time especially if they are also handling UK clients
Also when your at these target master in the uk do you prioritise grads or summers/off cycles
Would be true if London would only cover the UK market but that is not the case. UK unis should have more flexible courses (like the European ones) where you can do an off-cycle internship as part of your degree. Anyone who has done an off-cycle internship knows that you learn much more than a 8-week summer internship where you work in the least busy period of the year and have to attend random HR events every week
Whilst their English may not be native level, they’ve been studying and working in English for several years at that point. Their English is good enough to do the job. Should Brits be prioritised? Perhaps, but not directly. Hiring based on nationality is ofc discriminatory and doesn’t guarantee best results
No, but places like GS/JPM have a large number of Europeans, so it's quite likely that, for instance, a French or Italian candidate who went to Bocconi/HEC/ESCP and has done multiple off-cycles gets screened and ends up being matched with an interviewer from a similar background.
Luck plays a big part in the selection process. If you and your interviewer went to the same school or come from the same hometown, you'll naturally have more to talk about, which can work in your favour.
I think that's more likely than ACs being deliberately organised by nationality.
1000% I think luck at the end of t day plays a huge part. And really makes or breaks the recruitment process.
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