What Australian/International uni option would be best for me?
Hi everyone, I've tried a few Australia specific forums, but I haven't had much luck with them, so I thought I would give WSO a go. I am a year 12 student in Australia looking to get into Investment Banking, and I am currently looking into what my university options are, and would really appreciate some feedback on what options would be best for me.
The options I currently am considering are:
UNSW Comm/Maths
I particularly enjoy maths and I've heard that STEM recruiting for IB is on the rise. Additionally, if I change my mind/don't get into IB a maths degree would give me slightly better optionality in terms of career transitions. That said, I don't want to pre-emptively sacrifice my chances at IB for the sake of optionality, and I am also wary that it might be a bit harder to get a high WAM (GPA) with a maths degree which might be a bit more challenging than pure commerce. UNSW also seems to be the best option in terms of balancing better location (Sydney vs. Melbourne) with a good ranking/quality of education for STEM, but I am eager to hear your thoughts
2. USyd Comm/Law
Seems to be the most traditional route into IB. Shares the same location benefits as UNSW, but I am not super familiar with what Law in uni would look like, which makes me apprehensive as to whether I would be able to achieve good grades, so it depends if the risk if worth the upside in terms of recruiter appeal.
3. UMelb Commerce (Honours)
UMelb only offers single degrees, so this is probably the degree with the less optionality. Honours adds an extra year so it would still give me a respectable 4 years to find internships (compared to the other options thus far which would be 5 years). Location might be a bit worse (wouldn't require me to move as far from home however, as I live in Melbourne currently). Ultimately, I am wondering whether the UniMelb prestige makes up for the single degree and poorer location.
4. Bocconi BIEF
Maybe a slightly random suggestion, but I have EU citizenship so I thought I would throw it out there. Much better international prestige and opportunity for EU IB. Would require me to do a masters (possibly at LSE/similar if I do well enough) and look for internships and such like in London/Amsterdam (I speak Dutch, but not Italian), which I am willing to do. The bachelors alone wouldn't come at a premium to the other options I have provided, but the requirement for a masters would bump my costs up by about 50,000 AUD in total. I am somewhat confident in my ability to be accepted here as I am on track for relatively strong Year 12 results and the first practice SAT I did clocked in at a 1570, which I believe makes me competitive for admission if I can maintain/improve that level by the time I take the actual test.
Any feedback at all would be greatly appreciated, including universities I haven't mentioned here (UQ BAFE?). Thanks in advance.
Based on the most helpful WSO content, here’s a breakdown of your options and considerations for pursuing Investment Banking (IB):
1. UNSW Comm/Maths
2. USyd Comm/Law
3. UMelb Commerce (Honours)
4. Bocconi BIEF
Additional Consideration: UQ BAFE
Recommendation
If your primary goal is to break into IB in Australia: - USyd Comm/Law or UNSW Comm/Maths are your best bets due to their strong reputations, Sydney location, and access to networking opportunities.
If you’re open to pursuing IB in Europe: - Bocconi BIEF is an excellent choice, especially with your EU citizenship and willingness to pursue a master’s.
If staying in Melbourne is a priority: - UMelb Commerce (Honours) is a solid option, though you’ll need to be proactive in networking and securing internships.
Ultimately, your decision should balance your career goals, financial considerations, and confidence in excelling in the chosen program.
Sources: What's the best school for investment banking?, https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forum/investment-banking/qa-australian-ib-life-etc?customgpt=1, Help me choose the right university for Investment Banking, Investment Banking University Recruiting Report – 7 Key Takeaways
Bump, also FYI you should search the site too. Pretty sure there has been some great Aussie Q&A in the last 6mo which likely covers this
I’ve had a look at some of the previous threads about this and most don’t seem to really discuss the option of Comm/Maths so I was hoping for some specific feedback for that option. Other than that though they have been really useful for developing my shortlist.
If u want the “optimal” path to IB degree wise - would firstly say high school students overestimate Comm / Law degrees. Having done it at one of ur aforementioned unis it doesn’t rlly differentiate ur profile too much, and the grades drag and time opportunity cost from law classes (way more time consuming) is stark.
Option 1 I would recommend as first choice out of ur options - UNSW has a strong pipeline and STEM opens Macquarie’s winter program, which is a good pathway into Macquarie.
Option 2 I would personally not recommend for the aforementioned reasons. Plus many candidates extend four year degrees to five years anyways but they will have less units and hence uni work than this degree (yes IB recruiters don’t care about this - only rlly care about ur WAM and school). U learn nothing at uni compared to a real internship imo in Australian unis so this is a negative.
Option 3 is way harder to recruit for Sydney and the scene in Melbourne is tiny compared to Sydney, but if u like it then this could be a choice.
Option 4 cannot speak to.
Have heard BAFE is getting weaker and less selective, but it’s still I would imagine pretty strong.
If I were u I’d try everything to get into UNSW’s finance co-op program - it gives u BB internships on a silver platter so u r almost guaranteed a BB grad role. I think u can also transfer from accounting co-op into finance co-op in ur second year if u don’t make finance in ur first, so thats also an option.
Thanks so much, this is super helpful.
It seems most probable that I will be going to Sydney, I think the tradeoff for staying in Melbourne is simply too high.
In terms of the UNSW finance co-op program, are there any things I could do at this stage to set my application apart more?
I should be on track for somewhere around a 99.50 ATAR if everything goes well. I do Tennis and Debating as ECs and I have two part time jobs (tutoring + sport coaching). I'm a bit worried about the fact that I don't have many finance specific things on my resume, because my school has very little opportunity for me to explore that (it's a very STEM focused school).
Should I try to find some competitions etc. to do before applications close?
Thanks, and sorry to bombard you with so many questions 😅
No worries at all.
I personally didn't apply to finance co-op but I note a few common traits re the people I know who got in -
If I had to guess I think the 3rd trait would've been the biggest differentiator given you need to go through interviews for co-op. It's noteworthy as is for a university student to speak and present in a corporately impressive manner, but it's uncommon for a year 12 student to do so - and unlike high school where students are atuned to maximise grades, in IB recruiting you will notice your ability to speak well and present yourself well is your lifeline, and I can only guess this would extend to the co-op interviews. Not too sure how much doing comps would help but I know these people didn't do it to my knowledge.
My advice would hence be to prepare for basic behavioural and motivational interview questions - the ones they usually ask in IB interviews (not sure if they will ask these in co-op interviews but I feel like the questions could be similar) would be -
I highly doubt they would ask any technical questions, but they might ask some very basic commercial questions like "What do you know of the current macroeconomic climate".
Echoing the below poster this is extremely competitive to the point where luck plays a massive factor (if there are 20 qualified candidates and they can only take 3, then luck based factors on the day could easily determine the decision), and you will notice this is something that will be present in IB recruiting as well, except there are like 25 IBs in Sydney you can apply to so you minimise variance over each individual application, but there's only one co-op program.
Hence would say this is more like a "cherry on top" kind of course to be admitted to. Otherwise doing Commerce and Maths / any STEM degree or major at UNSW / USYD is perfectly fine imo. Just keep an eye out for finance societies / clubs like FMAA and UNIT which literally start recruiting first years during o-week - would say these clubs provide a good network for not only like-minded people but also notes for your units which will make your life easier.
That being said non of the above is necessary to break into even the best IBs, and I've seen so many people who had normal degrees and weren't in clubs, break into IBs because they had excellent grades, relevant experiences, and was well presented socially & probably spoke well during interviews, knew their technicals back to front etc. It's especially hard because in first year these clubs tend to be quite cliquey, and you might get the feeling that you are falling behind if you aren't in one of them, but I can guarantee you that's not the case if you do the aforementioned.
Not well positioned to give my .02 but might be worthwhile taking an alias or anonymising your name. Best of luck with your decision!
Yeah good idea I forgot the names are public 🫣
A few cents on the Australian degrees for IB:
Option 1 - Would recommend as well, especially if you're interested in math, definitely gives you more optionality with finance careers for which STEM is a hard requirement and which are arguably more intellectually stimulating. IB doesn't need more than primary grade math and focuses more on applied concepts, EQ, soft skills that are sharpened with accumulated experience / internships. I'd suggest checking some LinkedIn profiles of students who've secured IB internships for an idea of their profile and past experience, and aim higher when you begin university. That would be a good start.
Option 2 - Echoing above poster on not tacking on Law purely for IB. Comm/Law is still well represented, and core skillset in legal writing, contracts and commercial law does come in handy in M&A. Those I've seen do well in IB do evidence a strong legal skillset (i.e. at least one top law internship, 75+ law WAM) which isn't really possible if there's no low interest in law. Else it's just a longer degree with advantage coming from having more years to stack experience - some people extend the degree to 6+ years for more shots at IB, though I think it's quite unnecessary and 4 years is more than enough to get your act together.
Option 3 - IB intern / grad intake for Melbourne are several multiples lower vs. IB for Sydney, though it's not difficult to start in Sydney and transfer to Melbourne later.
Thanks for your comment, this is really detailed.
Melbourne is definitely looking less and less appealing (especially considering I would still have to move out to attend since I live so far from the city), so at this point I think Sydney is basically guaranteed.
In terms of law, I wouldn't say I'm entirely uninterested in it (for the last few years I have been considering a some type of law degree) but I just feel I have less proven ability in the field than in Maths, which makes it that bit more risky for me. Since it doesn't seem to be an enormous boost (especially with the tradeoff it carries of a possible lower GPA/time drain) I think my options are currently a toss up between Comm/Maths and the Co-op scholarship the other commenter suggested (which is by no means a guarantee. From what I have seen it seems incredibly competitive).
Thanks again for the advice, it's really helpful.
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