Advice needed from IB employees in regards to eligibility of UK universities into the investment banking world

Hey any help would be appreciated,

I am currently in a bit of a dilemma trying to decipher and decided my future university in the UK. I was made aware of the IB world during my senior year and have found quite a bit of interest in it. However it was too late as I had already applied for my 5 universities, I am wondering which of my choices makes a better impression on a big firm; it is between the university of manchester, the University of Glasgow, and the University of Leeds. I understand that these may not be targets for employers, but do they have a fair chance? which of them gives a better impression? I understand the university of manchester claims in their website graduates have gone on to work at Morgan Stanley, Barclay's etc... . However I don't really know the ratio of that as it may have been a single student. 

Now I was also wondering if applying to a master's degree at a more prestigious university would be a better plan than getting into the IB world right after graduating from university?

Again I appreciated and clue that would shed some light on the issue.

5 Comments
 
Most Helpful

The very simple answer is that it depends.

If you’re from a less represented background e.g black female then yep you have a chance 

If you’re a white private educated male then it won’t happen. If this is you then you need a target or a very strong semi target and an insane profile. 

 

agreed. if you're white private school male, take a gap year and reapply for targets and semi targets

 

not too sure how this works, i know there are specific diversity pipelines, as in separate applications/opportunities but are they also favoured in regular spring week applications? I'm doing a lot to build my CV and stand out when I apply this autumn and assumed that would be the only relevant thing. Although I am an LGBT male of south asian descent (british) so I doubt i qualify for that. From what my limited research (SEO london and other pre-U work ex) has yielded it tends to only really focus on females or black individuals. Though I could be wrong but to be safe I assume that I'll be treated the same as a straight white male. I'm state-grammar-school educated and from the North of the england if that is worth anything.

 

Aut ut sunt corporis voluptatibus. Deleniti quod corrupti ut dolorem et labore nihil et. Magni numquam deleniti commodi quis atque quis quisquam. Ipsum consequatur perspiciatis et enim non placeat vitae.

Qui veniam similique et quo. Eos dignissimos qui et harum vero a consequuntur. Fuga beatae dolores incidunt quidem deserunt quis iste. Quasi consectetur officia labore et non voluptas iusto.

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 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (46) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
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...”