What is the Finance Master target ranking for IB in UK? Is it possible to secure IB summer internship as a qualified accountant before going for the Masters?
I've seen several discussions of the rankings but I noticed many of the rankings are for UG. I've seen some people list the masters ranking roughly as follows:
Tier 1: Oxbridge, LSE, LBS
Tier 2: ICL, UCL
Tier 3: Warwick
I've also seen some people say that Msc in Finance is useless to secure placement with most positions going for UG students, and others saying that many more roles are available for people going to non-target such as Edinburgh, St. Andrews, Exeter, etc.
I'm an Irish qualified accountant who did UG at a local, unknown Uni, and worked in a local accounting firm doing mainly tax and some audit.
I'm preparing for my GMAT (projected to score around 710 - 730) and currently my highest level of maths certification is an A* in A level maths. I also did the financial elective for the final level of my ACCA papers.
Now I'm just wondering which 2026 Master I should apply for (assuming I can get in) and what are the chances for me to secure a summer internship for 2026 before the Masters.
I’ve done a fair bit of research about this and it seems like there isn’t really a great MFin in the UK.
LBS is probably the best in the uk but their placements don't seem great unless you have a good amount of prior experience and/or are diversity.
Oxford’s MFE seems pretty good, but there are too few people to judge from. I would expect places well but it is highly quantitative and also a 1 year course.
LSE doesn't seem to place really well either (compared to undergrad lse)
The rest of the uk mfins don’t place well.
HEC Paris seems to be the one that places the best and I think the reason is that it is a 2 year course as compared to 1. You can apply for summers again.
Bocconi and St Gallen are pretty good too.
What makes you say there aren't many good MFin programs in the UK?
Are you saying one has a better chance of breaking into IB from HEC, Bocconi, and Saint-Gallen??
Yes, pretty much
Oxford MFE and LBS MFA are the only mfins worth doing.
Even then, if you don't have good work experience before, you will struggle.
HEC places the best. It is also because it is a 2 year programme where you can apply for summers vs grad schemes. HSG is also very good for similar reasons.
I’m not too sure about bocconi though
HEC MIF is 1 year FYI, MIM is 2
I thought so too, but look at anyone who has done it on LinkedIn
They always put 2 years eg 2025-2027
Thanks for your reply. I had guessed I would need the relevant experience to secure a role. That said, would I be able to secure a summer internship for next year before I start my masters since the applications would open around Aug/sep this year? At this time, I wouldn’t have applied for my Masters yet and would rely on my current CV (ACCA qualified, 5 years accounting experience, and GMAT in the 700s).
academic segment of the course runs Sep-Jun, but then with expectation that you secure SA/OC in period between finishing in June and spring of the following year. So essentially you're 'done' after a year, in practice it's 1.5 years
I1. Oxbridge (only because of the brand name)
2. LBS/LSE/Imperial
3. Anything else
These expensive MFin’s are risky because the ROI is so unpredictable. Most people who do well have prior experience in IB/PE.
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