Big 4 Audit → TS (FDD)/Valuation → Master of Finance → IBD (US/Asia)? Or grind TAS then MBA?
Background: just under a year of full-time Big 4 audit (Canada), CPA in progress. End goal is IBD ideally in Asia (HK) or US.
Right now I'm interviewing for a TS (FDD) + Valuation seat at another Big 4 and trying to figure out the smartest route in. For the Master of Finance path I am considering CBS MSAFA and LBS MFA
Two paths I'm weighing:
- Take the TS/Val offer, do it for a bit, then a Master of Finance at a target US school and recruit into the US/Asia summer analyst pipeline as a reset.
- Grind TS/TAS at Big 4 for 2-3 years, then go the MBA → associate route.
Questions for anyone who's actually done the jump:
- Does the Master of Finance → summer analyst reset really work from a Big 4 TS/audit background, or do banks view you as too old for analyst by the time you finish?
- Is TS/Val meaningfully better positioning than staying in audit for this move, or is the real differentiator just the master's + network?
- For anyone who recruited HK/Asia specifically - does the Master of Finance analyst path translate over there, or is it mostly a US thing?
- If the honest answer is MBA → associate, is the extra 2–3 years worth it vs. resetting younger through an MoF?
Appreciate any candid takes, especially from ex-Big 4 folks who broke into IBD. Thanks.
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