UCD Econ, Maths, Stats vs Durham Finance vs Nottingham Financial Maths

UK student applying for unis in Ireland, and unsure of Ireland placement for IB/PE recruiting in London. I’ve heard that UCD Econ/EconFinance is a target course for london, but I wonder how their Bsc Econ,Maths,Stats degree places for IB especially since I would prefer to do a slightly quantitative degree to keep my options open for the future. Also not sure how UCD compares to UK semi targets like Durham Finance and Nottingham.

6 Comments
 
Most Helpful

As background I am Irish. I didn't go to UCD or through the IB pipeline but I do no how the Irish courses stack up. Ireland doesn't rank people based on what uni they are in like the UK; we only have 6 or so in total. We rank people based off what courses they do. 

In UCD Ec & Fi is a highly rated course. In 2024 you had to get 625 points in your leaving cert to get in; this is the maximum points you can get in the Leaving Cert. 

For straight Econ the minimum score to get in was 532 points (a decent but not great score). I am not in IB but I would be very suprised if it was viewed as highly. 

It is much harder for an UK student to get into an Irish Uni compared to an Irish student so your probably better off going for Durham or Nottingham.

 

Yes, it is relatively difficult to get into a top degree in Ireland, but a main benefit is that there is no reliance on predicted grades, part of the reason I want to apply. Would recruiters in London care about the subject studied of an Irish degree/competitiveness of the degree as you say Irish employers do, or would they not really care?

 

Can’t really provide any colour on UCD although have seen some alumni in Ldn IBD.

Would advise Notts Maths + Finance over Durham Finance. Reason being Notts/Durham are both equally semi-targets (no big difference in career prospects from the uni brand) but the maths element at Notts will open more doors (HF) + make you seem smarter over doing pure finance.

From an academic standpoint IMO you should spend your undergrad studying a traditional degree as opposed to pure finance, where there are plenty of vocational-style MSc Finance courses you could do if you wanted.

 

Impedit libero rem voluptatum vel. Accusantium aut libero minus. Dolore aliquam fugit et ut eligendi.

Sit esse ipsam perspiciatis facilis facilis doloribus et. Beatae itaque consequuntur et. Dolore harum aspernatur porro sed libero ipsum cupiditate. Libero in voluptas molestias autem modi ipsa. Laudantium neque ullam cupiditate necessitatibus laborum dicta deleniti. Et est et officia unde voluptatem.

Reiciendis rerum dignissimos cumque doloribus quidem. Eveniet repellendus eius amet aut id nemo ex. Reprehenderit provident maxime quis eius sint blanditiis qui. Nostrum reprehenderit autem cumque enim sunt necessitatibus voluptate ratione. Qui sit itaque perferendis rem saepe.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • 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 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (78) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (72) $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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
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...”