Reconsidering IB in London as a grad Student. Any advice?

Hi everyone I'm at grad student in the UK at a target school school in London. I always thought about going into IB in London but lately I've been thinking about it again.

I enjoy python a lot and I got offered a position at a prop trading firm in Amsterdam. The salary is about 75k base first year. (125 including bonus and traveling comp). I'm also thinking about maybe applying for the buy-side directly from grad school.

I just don't know if IB is the right move right now. Banks are so overly regulated, salaries are not great and London is very expensive. I'm just afraid of shutting down exit options. (I also don't have a UK passport cos of Brexit.)

Any thoughts, recommendations. 

Thanks a lot!

6 Comments
 

I think that if you’re now starting to reconsider IB you’re pretty late.

Most full time positions and off-cycle internships are being filled (in London the process starts in early August) - if you’re in grad school then you’re not elegible for SA.

You can try the buy side but the pay will be the same as IB or even lower, and you’ll still have the same problem with the visa.

 

in what universe is buyside pay lower than IB? Assuming top shops. The platforms are paying 100k base out of undergrad...

 

Oh, I was talking about hedge funds... don't know anything about PE but HFs like Citadel pay grads 100k gbp base salaries. 

 

Vel modi quia eos cumque at eligendi ullam. Omnis ad ex iure alias molestiae similique magnam.

Numquam a sunt doloribus ab dolor et aut. Repellat quia vero delectus cupiditate. Aut alias qui quidem quam. Autem rerum ipsa sunt aspernatur perferendis in.

Ullam officia ut iste corrupti repellat cumque. Quaerat et totam ad porro. Voluptates voluptatem est inventore id dolorem ut pariatur.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.9%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan No 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (45) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
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...”