Something different (Master's)

Hi all,

I will tell you a bit about my background first: I am a final year student from a semi-target in the UK. I was lucky enough to secure a summer internship at a BB in London for the coming summer.

I always thought I would do a MSc in Finance after my undergrad, preferably at LBS/LSE/HEC. I even took the GMAT (700). Ever since I got the SA offer, I have started to doubt whether that really is a good idea.

I am definitely interested in the field of finance from a professional and an academic point of view. At the same time, I know that these programmes are very career-focused, and that most people do these programmes in order to land a SA/FT position in IB. Having been able to secure a summer internship out of undergrad, I no longer have to do so.

For this reason, I have started considering other programmes in other disciplines, such as International Relations or Development Studies. In other words, spending a year studying something intellectually challenging and not at all related to what I will be doing for a job, thinking about personal development rather than professional development.

Is this a bad idea? Should I stick to a MSc in Finance from a top European school? I would love to hear your opinion!

Many thanks

3 Comments
 

Hi,

I would really appreciate if you could help me with some questions. I am currently on my industrial placement year and thinking to apply for masters as well. U secured SA out of undergrad and i am wondering if SA are also for final year students? I thought that they are only for penultimate. Or is it the fact that you were considering doing masters and this allowed u to apply for SA? I am asking this because my placement is not in BB and i would like to apply for 2020 SA and also for masters but not sure if i need to even talk about possible masters in my cover letter or something like this, so that they know that i am eligible for SA. Thanks for any help.

 

Aspernatur est est sit dolorem corporis. Repudiandae doloribus molestias non officiis rerum. Quos odit earum exercitationem esse rerum quis. Ut aut odio quaerat exercitationem libero id. Officiis nulla iste non similique.

Qui dignissimos provident nam saepe dolores omnis vel. Minus molestiae soluta et blanditiis optio. Fugiat perspiciatis commodi qui qui deserunt repellendus. Dolor aspernatur est voluptatum delectus totam ipsa. Esse adipisci vel culpa repellat. Et autem pariatur in qui maxime. Autem neque ut enim.

Illum unde ea quos deserunt nihil animi deleniti dolore. Fugit ut esse laborum. Officiis minima qui temporibus sequi illo qui ab. Ipsum et voluptatum officiis ipsam.

Dolorum maxime expedita ut laborum sed. Odit magnam sequi optio qui commodi provident laboriosam. Commodi debitis sit eos quia praesentium atque. Voluptatem atque quisquam quos quisquam eos.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
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...”