Bocconi Msc Finance - Can’t Speak Italian. Worth it?
UK strong semi, 2:1 and taking GRE soon (PT 165-167). A couple boutique IB internships at no name shops and internship buyside exp. at small PE shops - all in my home country (think Aus,Nzd,Can etc). Also am an Italian dual citizen.
I don’t speak any Italian. I’m open to learn but for the sake of this let’s say I have 0 Italian language skills. Is Bocconi Msc Finance still worth it? I have some personal and family reasons to want to be in Milan for the time i’d be doing my Msc, but would prefer to work in London (or an equivalent high paying market like Zurich, but I assume language barrier too significant).
Will not being an Italian speaker hurt my chances for London IB/PE/ER etc recruiting from Bocconi Msf? How does Bocconi Msf place relative to UK and other EU msf programs?
My understanding was for London placements from Msc Finance it was:
- Oxford MFE/LSE Msf/LBS MFA
- Other LSE Msf (ie. F + A)/Bocconi Msf/HEC Paris Msf/ Imperial Msf(?)
- Warwick Msf/Other EU Msf (Spanish/other French unis, SSE, St Gallen etc)
- Everything else
Please let me know if i’m way off and/or where Bocconi would or should fall.
EDIT: Also what other locations in Europe can I work in with just English?
The place in the rank should be about right. I am unsure about bocconi as academically is too difficult. Can’t add colour on the other questions
Have heard that Bocconi is overly stressful but can you provide more insight?
Bocconi MFin has a good placement in London but is extremely competitive and academically intense.
If you really don’t speak any Italian I would go for a UK Masters or HEC MFin.
Would HEC Paris yield a better result as a non french speaker (again, I only speak english)?
Could be a concern for their MiM but not for the MFin.
HEC MFin mainly targets foreign students, with a lot of German/Italian in the cohort.
100%. HEC is on par with the UK targets, even if you don’t speak French. It’s the only uni in Continental Europe like that.
Can you work in the UK without the visa sponsorship/have the (pre) settled status? That's very important in this case imho If you don't need sponsorship, go for Bocconi with no doubts.
My story is a bit similar to yours and I'm gonna do Master's outside of the UK with the aim to find a job in IB in London afterwards. For me it's about costs, but people have different reasons to make such decisions. Bocconi is a well-respected uni, and there are people from Bocconi in IB in London. You will be at a disadvantage because you don't speak Italian (though it's not very difficult, and I guess you can learn the basics quickly). However, since you already know you wanna work in the UK and not aiming at the Italian market, it still makes perfect sense to me to choose Bocconi (or whichever non-UK uni you like as long as it's a target/semi-target) and shoot for London. The only thing I guess is suggested here is extensive networking with people in London's IB (choose Bocconi grads first) and talking to them about their path to IB, suggestions for recruitment process etc. In London, referrals aren't a thing but it will massively help you to learn more about specific banks/groups, and some of those people might be the ones screening your CV/giving you an interview.
Re the places where you can work in IB with English only, I think Amsterdam and Paris are the best bets. Though London's IB scene is way bigger for English speakers, because in both the Netherlands/France the IB English speaking roles are limited, mostly at analyst/associate level.
Thanks for the clarity, very helpful. I have a work visa opportunity for 2 years at any time before I turn 30 but would need sponsorship after that, so can at least get the job and figure out things later. Similar to you cost is a concern but I don’t want to shoot myself in the foot by going to Bocconi as a non italian speaker vs a more expensive but sure fire option in the UK.
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