Thoughts on philosophy degrees

Hi everyone,

I'm currently doing my bachelor's degree as a finance major which I'll finish next year. Besides finance, I am very interested in philosophy and I've been playing with the thought of getting a graduate degree in this field. For example, the LSE has an interesting one called MSc in Economics and Philosophy (I'm from Europe). I'm just unsure whether pursuing something like this would be a disadvantage in IB recruiting compared to a normal MSc in Finance.

I'd love to hear what some IB professionals here think about philosophy degrees and how you interpret these on an applicant's resume.

Thanks in advance.

4 Comments
 

Taking undergraduate classes in philosophy while you're already getting a relevant degree is one thing.

Spending tens of thousands of dollars on an irrelevant graduate program that literally NOBODY cares about is something different.

If you like philosophy, then go for it, but absolutely nobody will care in terms of recruiting.

 
Most Helpful

At the end of the day: you do you, bro.

If you've got the money, I see no reason why not to do the master's degree. You've got the undergrad in Finance as is, and LSE is a great brand name to add to your CV. Providing you can get through the usual rigamarole of online assessments, it will add something different to your profile that interviewers will be able to seize on and talk to you about.

An interviewer may ask you why, if you truly are so interested in IB, you chose to do the degree instead of going straight into finance, however, providing you have a compelling response, this shouldn't prove an issue at all. You'll also be in good company with George Soros, an LSE philosophy alum.

"Work is the curse of the drinking classes" - Oscar Wilde
 

Big yes. IB is about how you market yourself, correlation does not equal to correlation (you don't need a finance degree to get into IB). If I went back in time, I might have considered doing Arts/Law, and just network harder and attend more finance events.

 

Aperiam deserunt beatae corporis dolores occaecati est. Laudantium explicabo consequuntur veniam vel aut fugit dolor. Quia ipsam natus et sit ipsam temporibus enim aut. Non et aspernatur deserunt harum molestiae.

Autem harum suscipit labore. Et mollitia consectetur sed quibusdam est inventore.

Fuga reprehenderit nulla cum voluptates est ratione. Et pariatur sit ut ipsa. Sint cumque unde recusandae quia. Non qui sit est rerum omnis voluptatem est.

Facilis minima et eos quidem officia ut. In ipsam et quis magnam dolorem voluptatem suscipit asperiores. Sed laudantium porro id repellat pariatur. Nihil et rerum quod dignissimos ipsam libero qui.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (77) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (71) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”