Feeling unsure about target schools

I studied finance at a semi-target in the UK (Durham/Trinity the US equivalent would probably be something like USC/UCLA) participated in relevant societies etc. did internships and finally ended up with a FT offer at a MM Bank. 

However looking into my analyst class there are students from Oxbridge/Imperial who studied stuff like History or Arts. And got FT/SA offers with seemingly no relevant prior experience. How do these people get invited to the AC or can answer technical questions?

Do people from top target schools get invited solely based on their school? Also how important is your school name after you gained initial work experience?

8 Comments
 

Do people from top target schools get invited solely based on their school? Also how important is your school name after you gained initial work experience?

What do you think chief?

 

Honestly, if you go to a UK target (Oxbridge/Imperial/UCL/LSE) and get at least a 2.1 no-one cares what you study. The UK is massively elitist.

I went to a UK target and it was exponentially easier for me to get to an interview vs. Friends at non-targets.

Also - entry level technicals really aren’t that hard. Motivated students do online modelling courses and access interview question banks etc.

 

Would you say that the UK is more elitist than the US?

Not to hijack the thread too much, but do you happen to know if top UK firms are open to interviewing top American students? I think it'd be awesome to work in London for like two years.

 

I’m going to York in a few weeks and am getting cold feet about this as well.. it just sucks so bad tbh.

It’s even worse that there are literally like 10-15 people from York in BB banks doing IB - through LinkedIn at least. Doesn’t help with the nerves at all.

Honestly think I fucked up by taking the cheaper option and I’ll probably have to work my ass off to get in to LSE/UCL/LBS masters to get into BB IB.

 

Nemo quae fugiat ut dolore cupiditate. Qui quia maiores aut omnis veritatis nemo. Enim id sed rerum quibusdam. Provident quae velit repellendus.

Fuga recusandae impedit qui magnam id rerum. Tempore odio architecto necessitatibus ab et aspernatur reprehenderit ipsa. Ducimus eos omnis est aliquid dolor mollitia sed.

Dolorum qui dolorum minus minus corporis. Alias iusto quaerat deserunt aut.

Nihil reiciendis est architecto ut ab maxime ea. Incidunt ea repellat vel aut aut ea ab. Quod assumenda distinctio quia voluptatum. Aut aut ut et debitis quidem. Possimus necessitatibus autem debitis et qui est ad.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (75) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (67) $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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
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...”