MSc Finance at Tilburg University or MSc Business Economics (Financial Economics Major) at KU Leuven
Hi Everyone
This is my first post here ever so I'm not to sure how this goes. But I've been accepted onto Masters programs at both Tilburg University in the Netherlands, and KU Leuven in Belgium and I'm really stuck between the two. I did my undergraduate in International Business with Spanish at the University of Birmingham.
KU Leuven has a much higher overall ranking (According to QS, 84 overall compared to Tilburg's 368). However according to QS, Tilburg is ranked top 50 (48) in Finance, whereas KU Leuven is ranked 51-100. Tilburg consistently performs better in all subject rankings actually, including Shanghai ARWU and THE, but Leuven consistently performs better in overall rankings,
With 50,000 students in Leuven compared to roughly 10,000 in Tilburg, I feel like the student and therefore alumni community in KU Leuven may be much higher than Tilburg, but I'm not sure how much that should factor into my decision. I'm wondering if this will translate into a bigger international reputation - Whilst I wouldn't mind it, I don't particularly have a strong desire to work in either Belgium or the Netherlands.
My long term career goals would, in an ideal world, be Private Equity (like so many finance people I guess), Equity Research, Asset Management or Real Estate. Tilburg University has CFA affiliation which is a potential advantage. I'm also worried that the Financial Economics course at KU Leuven will be more theoretical (it being Financial "Economics".
All replies are welcome and I'm happy to answer any further questions or provide more details.
Thanks Everyone!
Honestly, both are small brand names both in the European context. In Belgium KU is one of the best business schools whilst in The Netherlands you have Amsterdam and RSM above Tilburg. Another thing to consider is that KU offers the CEMS course which has access to a broad range of corporate partners (banks, consulting firms and corporate companies). KU may be better known as a local name (by local, I mean BeNeLux) among these firms. I would go for KU.
Hi and Thanks for your response. I think you may be getting mixed up with UC Louvain with regards to the CEMS course. I could only see it offered by KU Leuven as part of a double degree with UC Louvain. That said, I've already applied/been accepted for the above course and as I'm looking to study finance the CEMS course doesn't really apply to me.
As for Tilburg, I think it's nearly neck and neck with RSM, at least according to other places I've posted this question. At least that seems to be the case in the Netherlands. KU Leuven tends to come behind Vlerick and Solvay when it comes to B-Schools as well
Tilburg is the stronger finance school in a near rural area. KU is the stronger humanities school with a broader/bigger reach and urban location.
Tilburg is very academic and their finance facility is much stronger than KU (easy to find in terms of finance journal rankings). However, that being said Tilburg is very niche and much smaller than KU, also you're going for a masters not a doctorate so Tilburg's high powered finance facility may not matter as much to you.
Both place well in Belgium / Netherlands, but language fluency is key. If you want to pivot back to the UK (given you studied there undergrad), I'm not sure how helpful either will be for you.
Just seen your comment and thanks for responding! When you say broader & bigger reach, would you say that generally translates into better recruitment opportunities? And would the difference in finance facilities be that impactful when it comes to graduation opportunities?
Tilburg - better finance professors, more 'known' in finance, less alums but better placed in what you want to do. Prob less recruiters on campus but more targeted.
KU - a bigger school, will have an overall larger pool of recruiters (i.e. not just finance firms) show up.
I suggest you get employment reports from both schools. The challenge is pivoting to an English speaking country after as both schools place more regionally.
I would go with KU. For a smaller brand, have seen quite a few people in London IBD, especially some people on pretty senior positions. If you are keen on networking, it could be advantageous.
Hi thanks for replying
The main put off for me with KU is that so many people who have gone into IBD have done a second masters in Finance at Vlerick, ESCP or another European business school. I don't have the time or money for that and it almost seems like a waste of doing a first masters
Why not apply to RSM? Easily the best BSCH in the BeNeLux.
I missed the deadline for RSM's Finance and Investment masters, they operate on a first-come first-serve basis. Otherwise I most definitely would've. So KU Leuven and Tilburg are my only options now as it would be too late to apply anywhere else for 2020/21. KU performs much higher with regards to reputation and overall ranking, but Tilburg ranks higher in Finance. My worry is that their higher ranking in Finance is due to their research quality and won't really translate into better employment prospects for me
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I did my MSc in Economics in Tilburg and I took a few electives from the Finance curriculum while I was there. So I cannot really speak to the quality of the MSc in Finance specifically, but I can confirm you that the quality of teaching in general was very strong.
The university places a great emphasis on research, which I personally don’t think is necessarily a bad thing even if you don’t plan on undertaking an academic career.
As far as the student community is concerned, it is small and the international one is even smaller. When I was there, quite a few activities/events organized by the school were held only in Dutch...but things may have changed in this regard.
Hey thanks for responding, I'd love to send you a PM with some questions if that's alright? Just about what you liked/didn't like about studying there etc. I'm quite determined to learn Dutch so the more immersed I am the better lol
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