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https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forum/investment-banking/20-most-freque…
You posted this link and then a bunch of other people had a back and forth to arrive at...pretty much the same rankings here lol.
OP and everyone else in this thread NGMI
The top target universities are, in order: Oxford, Cambridge, LSE, Imperial, UCL, and Warwick.
These six institutions are heavily recruited by all top firms, though there is a clear hierarchy among them. For instance, there is a noticeable gap between an Oxbridge graduate and one from UCL or Warwick.
When it comes to semi-targets, the order is less clear-cut, but it typically goes as: Durham, Bristol, Bath, King’s, Nottingham, Edinburgh, St Andrews, and Exeter.
The differences between semi-targets are narrower than those among the top targets. For example, the gap between LSE and Warwick is greater than the gap between Durham and Exeter. That said, there are still slight advantages attending Durham or Bath rather than than Edinburgh or Exeter, but the difference is mostly marginal.
There are some 'prominent non-targets' like Birmingham, loughborough, City(Bayes), York and Leeds.
Also at UG level for UK market only Bocconi would make sense for adding to the list, it would be around the same level with UCL and Warwick.
If you wish a FO IBD role at a BB or EB you should stricly favour the top targets. It is also possible from Semi-target's but you would need to grind much more, at the minimum a first class would be required.
From non-targets its a far-fetched possibility.
how about escp
How about HEC and Essec
well escp is a good b school but I guess their bachelor programs would not be targeted for london, you would have a better shot at france for the top companies. For UK you might land some good interviews but it would be hard for you to better students from target background or the best performing students of semi-targets. Essentially HEC and INSEAD are much more favoured, the best thing you could do is to do a masters at UK at a place like LBS or LSE. Or even a MIM from escp can position you better since that program holds more weight.
For undergrad it's not one yet. MiM MiF only
Oxbridge grads, in my experience, seem to struggle with landing IB jobs when compared to ivy league grads in the US.
Quant/prop trading is a different story, however.
I can tell you we run one of the better paying, higher quality groups in London and tend to very rarely hire Oxbridge and our analysts are overwhelmingly Warwick, LSE, Imperial and Edinburgh with a smattering of the European schools. This is a view shared by many of the more “American” teams and PE firms, where Oxbridge grads are sort of annoying and too nerdy.
escp?
ouch
Wouldn't Imperial kids be viewed as nerdy? Undergrad is almost entirely STEM.
That s nerdy in the service of practicality - we love that
Oxbridge tends to be nerdy for the sake of knowledge - we hate that
Not trying to find truth, trying to get best financial outcomes for clients
Would Warwick BSc PPE (majoring in economics, minoring in politics) be better than Bocconi Bachelor in International Economics and Finance? I’m a non-EU international student and from my friends in both schools, I learnt that some banks sponsor flights to London and all banks would sponsor work visas so bocconi s location won’t be an issue. Have also observed that bocconi students get more spring weeks than Warwick students (esp if we exclude Warwick MORSE n math programs), though I’d say most Warwick students are more chill than bocconi students in terms of recruiting due to the nature of schools
Your nationality and which languages you speak play a big role on where you should study. British nationals will have a much easier time wherever they decide to go. But generally speaking:
Tier 1 (Top UK IB Placement, with regular events and career fairs with top BBs)
The LSE
Oxbridge
Imperial
UCL
Warwick
LBS
HEC Paris
Bocconi
ESCP
St Gallen
Tier 1.5 (Strong, frequent uk IB Placement)
UK semi target undergrad (Durham, Bristol etc.)
ESSEC
SSE
EDHEC
ESADE
RSM
WHU
Tier 2
IE
Mannheim
CBS
Skema
Other European “Grande Ecole” or top local universities
Great list but if your talking masters drop UCL and Warwick a tier
Only tier list that makes sense
Surprised no one has mentioned any Irish schools. UCD and Trinity consistently places students in top BB/EBs
Can chime in for MBA recruiting in London (which is shrinking and becoming harder to recruit in), but really the only Euro tier 1 MBA program is LBS / Insead. Top US schools are also equally prestigious but not seen as much.
For undergrads, I have seen a lot of Oxbridge, LSE, Imperial and UCL. Fit and technical interviews matter too. For MIM, have also seen LBS, Insead but also EU MIMs like HEC, ECSP and Bocconi.
Would probably rank unis roughly like this:
Oxbridge, LSE, LBS, Bocconi, HEC, INSEAD, St Gallen, Ivy League
Imperial, UCL, KCL, Warwick, ESSEC, ESCP, EDHEC, WHU, FS, Mannheim, LMU, ESADE, IE, Nova, Stockholm, Leuven, Rotterdam, ETH
Have grouped them by country and not necessarily in order. There’s probably a few I missed in the second bucket.
Hi, May I ask if Bocconi Bachelor in International Economics and Finance Would be better than Warwick BSc PPE (majoring in economics, minoring in politics)? I’m a non-EU international student and from my friends in both schools, I learnt that some banks sponsor flights to London and all banks would sponsor work visas so bocconi s location won’t be an issue. Have also observed that bocconi students get more spring weeks than Warwick students (esp if we exclude Warwick MORSE n math programs), though I’d say most Warwick students are more chill than bocconi students in terms of recruiting due to the nature of schools.
I personally would not look that much at whether someone is studying the “flagship degree” of that uni.
We probably all have our stereotypes about different degrees, but you’re probably quite safe with any version of Economics/Finance/Management/PPE or even a STEM background.
Both are fine, pick the schools based on other factors.
Would put imperial up a tier
Imperial is only good for STEM the rest is not good
Oxbridge LSE are top targets, Warwick UCL Imperial semi-targets, and most others in UK EU are non-targets for IB internships at GS MS.
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