Does Oxbridge course matter at all for London IB/PE? (Theology)

Essentially the title- will be studying Theology at Oxford/Cambridge. I chose Theology because i've wanted to study it from a young age in university at the best university possible, but have a strong interest in finance post-graduation as well. Does my course matter at all for finance recruiting? I know people say no, but that sentiment is generally prefaced with the understanding that their unrelated course is STEM/Law/Something not as unrelated as Theology etc. 

 

Went to Oxbridge and personally know people that studied Theology, History of Art, Modern Languages etc. and still landed top roles. You have the education part of your application ‘ticked’ - focus on making the other areas strong and you’ll be fine.

 

you will be at an disadvantage vs candidates from other tier 1 schools except for UK focused teams/banks unless you are a diversity hire

the majority of IB staff in ldn are european and are less sympathetic given youre competing vs other candidates who have a relevant ba/msc from a tier 1 business school and speak 1-2 european languages

 
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You will probably be ok - most arts courses at Oxbridge university more than tick the box, and I know plenty of people across the City / West End who studied things like modern languages / philosophy / classics. Ignore anyone telling you that STEM / business / economics is the only route into finance, this doesn't apply for Oxbridge unless you want to go into a quantitative role (derivatives trading etc).

The one caveat is that theology is sometimes viewed as the "easy route" into Oxbridge given the applicant-to-place ratio is much lower than for other courses and you can take the less competitive / back door route of applying to PPHs rather than normal colleges. No chance that comes up in an interview unless you are speaking to someone who also went to Oxbridge however, and even then it's probably unlikely. But worth preparing for that question & having a strong case as to why you picked theology that isn't this.

 

Unrelated – would your course content would be more likely to be similar to those with Divinity / Systematic Theology degrees? Or would it be more similar to those with degrees in core History (say Old Testament, Early Christianity or Ancient Mediterranean Religions)?

 

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