Important advice needed

I am posting here as well.

Hello ladies and gentlemen. I would need some advice on what to do next regarding my career. I am anxious to hear from you and would like to thank you in advance for your help.

I graduated in 2017 from a top (British) university (think Oxford/Cambridge/Imperial) with a first class honours degree (I am not quite sure how British grades compare to American ones, but I suppose it is equivalent to a GPA of about 3.7 or 3.8 out of 4) having read a "hard" science (think mathematics/physics/a combination of the two). I was accepted to study for a PhD at another top (British) university (think Oxford/Cambridge/Imperial yet again) in my last year, but decided to postpone my studies shortly thereafter for one academic year. The reason was very unfortunate: my dear brother was diagnosed with a very serious disease. Consequently, I wanted to spend a year with him in our home country (a small European country- think Baltics/former Czechoslovakia/Balkans) as it was clear that he wasn't going to stay with us for very long. My brother passed away in August 2017. I spent the remainder of my gap year trying my hand at various jobs (including journalism in my home country, working at a major intergovernmental organisation abroad (think UN/EU), working as a personal assistant for a local MP) before deciding that academia wasn't my cup of tea and accepting a job offer at the largest asset management company in my country (working on alternatives) in July 2018.

The thing is, I don't really like my job (or rather my company) and would like to change and move abroad soon. The company I am working at is well known in my country and in some neighbouring ones, but probably unknown beyond that. I do believe that I have quite a lot of responsibilities though (more than my peers at similar jobs in England) and some more free time. I believe I can climb the ranks quickly and get promotions ahead of time. Furthermore, I made a number of significant contacts during my gap year, and I am confident I will be able to work on some interesting side projects in the next couple of years.

I wonder whether to: 1. apply for analyst level jobs in England (or similar) next year, 2. apply for a Master's degree in Finance (or similar) at LSE/LBS/Oxford/Cambridge/UCL and apply for jobs in England the year after (late 2020) or 3. work in my home country, get good letters and apply for a top MBA in late 2021.

I would really like to work in England (or America) as soon as possible, but even at the earliest I will be some 2-3-4 years older than my colleagues, which I don't fancy. On the other hand, I am unsure how my application for an MBA will be assessed by the admission committee since my company is unknown in the United States and Europe at large.

I would add that very few people from my country attend (and apply) to top MBAs, though the CEO of my company went to an M7 school. I haven't taken the GMAT yet, though I am cautiously optimistic.

I would like to know what you think about my situation, and what wisdom you have to share!

3 Comments
 
Most Helpful

With your performance in university, I would say you have a solid shot at getting a high score on the GMAT.

Once you gauge your performance using the GMAT as a metric, I would then apply to some of the top MBA schools in the U.S.

Schools here would definitely like the look of your CV. Based on the recent trend in university acceptances, as an international student, you would definitely have a leg-up over alot of domestic candidates.

Schools you could consider: * Wharton (UPenn) * Booth (Chicago) * Sloan (MIT) * Ross (Michigan)

If you aren't enjoying what you're currently doing and have more of a technical mindset, I would consider getting an MSF or a MFE, both masters programs, finance and financial engineering respectively.

You definitely have a lot of options and I wouldn't sell yourself short with the CV you have.

"He who makes a beast of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man" - Samuel Johnson
 

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