I am hoping to secure a job in investment banking in london
Currently received three master's offers, including
Cambridge MPhil Real Estate Finance HEC Paris MSc International Finance Imperial MSc Finance
which school should i attend in order to fulfil my goal?
i went to a semi-target for undergrad in the UK
thanks for your advice in advance
| +190 | Americas M&A League Table Q2 Updated | 76 | 1h |
| +142 | New Article: Dramatic Slide as UBS #22 (US) & New Leadership Desperately Needed | 36 | 11h |
| +118 | Restructuring: Anti-climactic Experience | 31 | 13h |
| +91 | IB Net Worth / Savings Check | 42 | 1h |
| +78 | A COMPLETE GUIDE TO SUMMER INTERNSHIP RECRUITING | 12 | 2d |
| +65 | Woman who emptied Knicks trashcan on street then stole it was DEI exec, worked at JPMorgan Chase | 12 | 16h |
| +51 | Boutique firm wants access to my LinkedIn? | 40 | 2d |
| +38 | Investment Banking is Hard | 17 | 1d |
| +34 | 2026 VAULT PRESTIGE RANKINGS | 24 | 3h |
| +31 | PWP vs BofA | 24 | 9h |
Career Resources
Get instant access to lessons taught by experienced private equity pros and bulge bracket investment bankers including financial statement modeling, DCF, M&A, LBO, Comps and Excel Modeling.
Obviously Cambridge and don't look back.
I myself went to Oxford and work at a boutique IBD in London. If we look at a CV, Oxbridge is our category one above everyone else, then other targets are secondary if we don't find enough good and nice people from Oxbridge.
I'd say in the UK it would be
1) Oxbridge ... big gap ... 2) Imperial, UCL, LSE, Edinburgh, Warwick and other targets 3) Others
In terms of EU universities I have not clue but I can tell you that if you study at Oxford/Cambridge everyone knows that they are the best universities in the world. If you go outside Europe no one ever heard of HEC or Imperial.
You’re either at GHL or CTV to a lower extent or not an analyst. At the masters level Cambridge is much weaker and less selective than Oxford/LSE/LBS.
Imo HEC>Cambridge>Imperial. Unless you want to do real estate.
can you please explain how cambridge is weaker at postgraduate level?
i am aware of the oxford mfe and LBS mfa, which i got rejected i applied to Cam's MPhil Real estate fin instead of the Mphil fin programme though
LSE and LBS is pretty close to oxbridge
It’s pretty much the same. For MSc Oxford > LSE/LBS >= Cambridge, but you’re pretty much in the same tier 1 bucket and representing 50% of IB analysts at top firms in London.
i would go to HEC finance than Cambridge real estate though. HEC is probably same tier as the 4 above, it places extremely well and people have much better off cycle exp + speak multiple languages usually so can start straight as FT analysts
I don’t think it’s a no brainer Cambridge esp it’s a Real Estate Finance course?
I’ve heard a lot of good things and have worked with a few very good people from HEC Paris.
I would say all these are very good names and will get your foot in the door. Now it’s about looking at which course offers you more relevant understanding and the course material is something you actually enjoy.
ya, of course i know the cambridge brand name sounds more prestigious but the Real Estate finance course itself is less relevant to what i want to do.
I am leaning towards accepting the hec paris offer, but i am not sure, am i crazy to give up cambridge for hec?
people know the difference. banks in general has very international demographics, and they will know the prestige of HEC. on top of all that, you get to enjoy better food what is not to like :)
HEC Paris is the best program for IB
No more comments needed (:
thank you HEC alumni for your input
bumppppp
Think you've already gotten some solid advice, but for what it's worth I will add my own:
If you want to IBD in London --> go with HEC, even if it is not in the UK. HEC places an incredible amount of people in IBD in London. Only do the Cambridge course if you want to do real estate (but if you want to do real estate I have seen people from the Cambridge course getting jobs at top real estate funds).
HEC > Cambridge > Imperial
In in interview: "Why a masters in Real Estate? Why not in Finance?" Then what the fuck are you gonna say.
I know the Cambridge brand is hard to pass up, but if you have 100% decided on IB then I would pick HEC. Personally, I would only pick Oxford MFE/LBS MFA/LSE MFin over HEC.
It's a bit oxymoronic. Why someone would invite you to a non real estate job interview just to grill you why real estate?
Dude I'm doing the master in HEC and I can tell everybody who targets a career in IB is getting internships in EU and Asia. Not that much in the US
that’s cool. Is the placement of the course as incredible as they describe? is it common for a student to get a bb ibd internship ?
HEC Paris is the obvious answer in my mind. Coming from someone who works IB in NY, so not sure how things work in London though.
Congrats on the offers and good luck.
You’ll have absolutely no trouble getting into IB from HEC. In fact, they even have a day where students go to London to visit bulge bracket banks and private equity funds’ offices. The Cambridge brand does carry more weight outside France though, but I would pick it only if you’re interested in real estate or can justify it in some way.
Also take into account the different atmosphere. HEC is a place where people party and a portion of French students aren’t actually passionate about business while Cambridge is probably more intellectual.
And definitely HEC > Imperial
Where did you get this idea from ?
By attending a French business school and seeing the HEC guys not doing anything (except international finance)
Hey not really much help to you in choosing a masters but could I ask what you got in the gmat? Going to apply to HEC next year for international finance
i got 760
Cool thanks for letting me know, great score by the way !
Anything 700+ is enough to get you and interview (assuming that the rest of your profile is stellar).
cool thanks good to know !
Got offer with 680 though also have BB SA M&A offer for this summer.
You surely had really good grades to make up for it.
I'd recommend going to HEC as nearly anyone above. It is the best programme to get into IB in Europe imo.
HEC is a business school not a university (you will figure the difference by the 2nd semester). There is a lot of emphasis put on placement and networking vs reading academic papers.
MIF is an international programme and 50% of your class will move to work in London. The school encourages you to coopeare during the recruitment (share questions, help each other with letters) which is not the case for most of the target schools.
It is a two-year programme (you graduate 2022) so you can take part in recruitment twice.
Culture is more laid back than Oxbridge or any London school - mostly because of campus experience and the fact that it is in France.
There is a big difference between the core modules in the courses offered in Imperial and HEC. The former is very quantitative and much more academically rigorous. While this holds true for HEC, they have much more practical angle of teaching, and a lot of emphasis on IB. both have their pros and cons, as perhaps HEC is a bit stronger, but lacks the London networking opportunities. If you want to do IB, don't go to Cambridge for the sake of going to Cambridge. At the end it comes whether you want to recolate to a different country, whether you are keen on learning a new language or you just want a leg in recruitment.If you know what you are doing both HEC and Imperial should land you interviews, from there it's on you. Good luck and congrats for getting the offers!
Congrats on you offers! I would recommend Imperial over HEC as HEC's flagship program is Grande Ecole MiM. In France, we call any other Masters programs HEC for dummies. Cambridge is also a stellar school but I think the program at Imperial is cutting edge! Most important, go where you want to go, Cheers
Would second that. The French system is extremely rigid and those that did not go the prépa route will be looked down upon.
Nobody cares, at least in London. Both people from GE and those from the MSc get plenty of offers.
Prepa is so BS. I'm french and studied abroad for my undergrads and joined the MiM right after. Nobody cared. It was even better cause I already had a bit of work experience. I hope prépa will disappear one day, it's such a narrow-minded and non-international system
Maiores ipsum necessitatibus porro totam dolores voluptas. Sed magni reprehenderit ipsa dolores velit alias. Vel ipsa dolore aut architecto officiis. Voluptatum nemo explicabo occaecati aliquid et. Consequatur sunt esse quia at illo inventore officiis. Placeat vitae nesciunt hic eos.
Quo optio inventore quasi fugit similique. Minus sunt non cupiditate autem. Excepturi architecto et eum quo non in. Molestiae debitis laborum amet reprehenderit officia magni. Debitis sit id quam accusantium eveniet vero et. Ad tempore cumque id enim quis dolor cupiditate dignissimos.
Eum qui impedit voluptatem minima ullam velit aliquid. Porro est et impedit soluta officiis. Perspiciatis vero dolores est dolor ab distinctio ut. Velit blanditiis ut architecto amet. Mollitia praesentium voluptate cupiditate.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Harum qui sed sint quos aperiam pariatur. Illo laudantium incidunt quas nihil iusto eaque quaerat ex.