Msc Finance in Europe - Liberal Arts Non Target US Student - Worth it?

3 years experience in technology consulting out of undergrad (non target top 50 university). Have had success. International Relations major (3.1) and a 700 GMAT.

Unique candidate: Own successful lifestyle brand on the side, speak 4 languages (intermediate level) and have extensive volunteer experience. Acting on diverse interests and really just despise tech.

For a guy who wants to live and work in Europe (family in France and Sweden) I'm considering the MSC in Finance for a career change into finance. Prefer a 1 year program for time. Looking to land in BB ER, S&T (Global Markets) or possibly RE finance. Not worried about starting as a first year.

Looking at three groups in Europe: Scandinavian Schools (SSE/CBS), French schools (ESSEC/EDHEC/HEC) and then the UK (LSE/Imperial/Oxford). Brexit scaring me with the latter.

Do you all think it's worth it? Or should I look at American schools instead. I live in Boston. Could apply to BC, MIT or another regional school.. also considering an MBA in the States. Reminder, I still want to live in Europe...

3 Comments
 
Best Response

Being local is very important so I would definitely go with a European school. To be honest though, given you already have 3 years of experience, I am not sure these programs are the best fit for you as they are all pre-experience (ie. people typically get into them straight out of undergrad with only internships as work experience and place into entry-level positions). Perhaps look into MBA programs as well. I think LBS / INSEAD will be a bit of a stretch, but IESE / Oxford / HEC / IE should be in your alley. Many of them offer 1-year programs.

When you say your have family in Europe, do you also have citizenship? Getting a work Visa is very different depending on where you want to work and where you studied. As a non-european, it's super easy to get sponsored by a UK firm if you did your Masters there, but really hard if you studied elsewhere (say France or Sweden).

We could also debate about this forever, but IMO, the brexit fears are completely overblown.

 

Et tempora nulla ab aliquam ut mollitia. Sed eos dolores neque est dolorem maxime at. Et et velit sint nulla autem et voluptatem.

Qui autem est est facilis eum est dignissimos. Eum id odio facilis rem perferendis vel. Quia veniam sit perferendis voluptate soluta modi. In velit deserunt velit sit libero laboriosam harum. Itaque hic cumque accusantium explicabo repellendus.

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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
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...”