How is BB/MBB recruitment REALLY like at Oxbridge?
Trying to decide between a T20 in the US and Oxford Law for undergrad.
I keep hearing people on this forum say that it's on par with HYPS in terms of prestige and placement, but I have a sneaking suspicion most of these are Americans on the outside looking in.
I've heard how kids who do "literae humaniores" and other humanities courses are still able to break in from Oxbridge, and how many take this as a sign that it's on par with HYPS in terms of recruitment.
But I've also spoken to various alums and heard how Oxbridge doesn't give as much of a leg up over non-targets vs T20 schools in the US due to the lack of networking and so on. In fact, one even told me that many of his STEM friends at Cambridge failed to break into top BBs even after working their butts off due to how heavy the courseload is and the general lack of career-focus at the school. I've also heard many people say the recruitment in the UK is very "random".
All this makes me conclude that it's easier to break into top firms from ANY T20 in the US than Oxbridge due to the established pipelines and closed networks, + the easier courseloads and plethora of resources that these rich schools provide their students to handhold them. On top of that, US is generally regarded to be the superior market for finance due to deal flow and sheer number of opportunities, and studying there would be a direct route to working in the US instead of having to transfer after 2 years in LDN (which I've heard is extremely difficult). Based on my research, PE in LDN is also notoriously hard to break into if you don't speak a European language.
As a result, I'm leaning towards going to the US purely based on career prospects, not even taking into account other lifestyle factors. I should also add that cost is not a factor as I have received full-ride scholarships for both.
I'd like to hear from some people in both LDN and NYC who have walked the path and can share an insider's perspective because I am genuinely worried that I'm doing a terribly stupid thing by turning down what many people consider to be the most prestigious university in the world.
Thanks in advance.
del
I thought I wanted to be a lawyer. Realized recently that biglaw is boring and doesn't pay enough money.
Curious though, how does Law rank in terms of perceived difficulty compared to STEM & the other humanities?
At Oxford law isn't as prestigious (in general and for recruitment purposes) as say Classics but still a top degree and if you have 50% of the technical skills of a successful LSE student, you won't have trouble getting interviews from BB/EB banks (and PE shops after a BB/EB internship), then it's all your interview/technical skills
This is so wrong it's almost embarrassing. Oxford Law is one of the most prestigious UG degrees - classics students have a way tougher time breaking into industry.
Im sorry bro this take is rubbish. Law is eons above “Classics” (whatever this means)
Personally it was an amazing talking point. May even be an advantage for Credit/RX roles (have leveraged this before).
Definitely the most prestigious humanities subject - your intuition should generally be trusted. Who’s more competent, a Law student or Classics/sociology etc student?
Regarding STEM/Econ/Finance comparisons it really depends. One thing I’ve picked up genuinely overtime is that they genuinely dont know more finance than you, provided you study a lot. A lot of academic study is quantitative and theoretical. A Law student that grinds out 4 WSO advanced courses on modelling will be more adept than a Finance major who hasn’t.
You get my point
From Oxbridge you will have no problems getting into a BB/MBB in the UK. Recruiters put Oxford and Cambridge in a tier above all other schools, so you'll be secured interviews as long as you put some effort into it. It is true that you will be worked a lot harder academically compared to the US where courses are generally a lot easier. I don't know much about the networking processes for a T20 school in the US, but not getting interviews as an Oxbridge student should not be a concern
Would you say the Oxbridge advantage continues beyond the initial stages?
Honestly, yes. Even in the interview, when interviewers see Oxbridge you're already in another tier than any other university.
Also, you're interviewers probably went there so it's an easy talking point. So many banks organise breakfast / dinners at Oxbridge to lure talent in, since not everybody at Oxbridge wants to do High Finance, compared to LSE for example.
Oxbridge is by far and away the best place to recruit from for MBB (typically the majority of the analyst class is Oxbridge) and EB (who have a huge Oxbridge and European business school bias).
Top BB is still pretty random, even from Oxbridge. Maybe this is because of all the diversity intake at SA level. From my economics class, lots of EB and MBB offers but not a very high conversion to top BB
I have no comments other than I love the amount of times "rubbish" has been said in this thread. Need more rubbish usage on WSO
Gotta teach those rabble-rousers across the pond to use proper English.
it was said once
OP clearly wants to work in US so I'm not sure why he's doing all this mental gymnastics instead of just going to school in the US.
DM me -- went to Oxbridge undergrad and am about to start a MF PE job in the US.
We don't see too many Oxford grads in the US, and that may be a slight disadvantage compared with top schools in the US. It's just, it doesn't go into the same mental bucket with the US top 4 schools, or however you're bucketing them. But in other ways it could make you stand out and people do look at that.
In my opinion it really comes down to the quality of your accent, and whether you sound more like hugh grant or a 19th century chimney sweep.
I'd thought UGs in unis outside America can't be recruited for US internships fullstop
That didn't really stop the people I've met from those schools. I thought the question was more about the perception of the degree than the structure of OCR. If you specifically want to recruit for analyst programs in the US, it is a big advantage to be at a target school in the US, but this OP can also recruit in the UK.
It is harder because IB/MBB market sucks in Europe (compared to the US), not because of the school. Imagine how much of a nightmare recruiting is for non-Oxbridge people lol. Just stay in the US if you can, you will have a better life in every aspect.
Hi, OP here, do you have experience with both sides?
Oxbridge grad so can't say I have definitive proof on the US side of things but I do have Google so I am pretty sure directionally the above holds true
There's like 100 spots total in MBB per year in London. Oxbridge take like 30 of those each. There's far more spots in the US
They take closer to 60-70% of those
What do u think each means
Taking a non T-10 over Oxbridge is ludicrous with how restrictive US immigration policy is
Did a similar degree at Oxbridge. If I was in your shoes now, I would've taken most of US T-20 schools instead of Oxbridge.
Recruiting is not as easy as everyone here claims. Only few Oxbridge students get interviews for BB / MBB and even T2 IB / consulting slots. There is also no Oxbridge advantage during interviews as far as I or friends recruiting with me noticed. However, I never recruited for SW. Perhaps SW is a safe and reliable route.
Where Oxbridge truly shines is in private and not corporate life. Telling others you studied at Oxbridge, particularly outside the UK and US, almost always piques their interest and is a great conversation starter.
Not sure who you were around at oxbridge but in my cercle most people got at least interviews at mbb/ib… During interviews the playing field is more even but this applies to all universities
This is different for PE recruiting tho, some shops are half-full with oxbridge grads, with some joining directly after finishing their studies with limited work experience in the field
Pan European Monkey Could you provide any insight on this please?
Bump
I frankly think you got all the answers you needed hence i didn’t respond to the thread - it’s as simple as do you want to be in the US or Europe. That’s it. Both will set you up well for a career.
Thanks for helping out. Any thoughts on US vs UK recruiting differences? My understanding is UK is less technical but more random & competitive due to sheer number of applicants & fewer seats. Otoh, US has visa issues for internationals. Feels like a wash overall, but when considering the sheer workload at Oxbridge leaving much less time for prep/networking, then it seems to tip the scales in favor of the US. Would you agree with my assessment?
Oxbridge grad here - I know of people that recruited from Oxbridge straight to sell side and buyside in NY from undergrad. Definitely hard but not impossible. Within the UK, Oxbridge is a cut above the rest. Whilst in the junior ranks the selection of universities are more random, the higher ranks of most top jobs in the city is still very Oxbridge dominant. Personally when speaking with my US counterparts, the Oxbridge brand stands out head and shoulders above virtually all US unis on par with HYP.
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