US MBA - Is It Worth it For Me?

Hi Everyone, I'm a 28 yo European living in London. I went to two semi-targets (UCL/StA/Warwick/Durham) and got a first and a distinction in my degrees (one in economics, one sadly in public policy). I have been working in audit for 4 years (3 at the Big 4, 1 at this smaller firm specializing in HF/PE/VC) here and given the current state of the market I feel completely stuck, and I'm afraid that if I stay in audit for another year (and make manager) I'll be pigeonholed as an accountant forever. I'm considering the radical move of doing a US MBA to break out of this impasse and get into MBB/T2 consulting, which is what I'd always dreamed of doing since midway through university. Although my family is somewhat well-off, they cannot pay for this (especially after already paying for my previous 2 degrees), and I would need to venture into the unknown and probably take on a mountain of debt that is completely out of the ordinary for a European/ honorary Australian like me. My question is: do you think my profile is good enough to get into a T15, perhaps with some kind of scholarship (I'd still go without it, but it would obviously help a lot)? I'm a white male, unfortunately, so no special considerations there. I would only apply if I got a 750 in the GMAT, which I believe is achievable for me. More importantly, could I get a full ride at a T25 like UT Austin? That would be ideal for my goals tbh and would significantly relieve the stress of it all. I just feel like I've backed myself into a corner with my career that I feel like this might be the only way out. If you read my previous posts, you would gain access to my deepest and darkest fears. The tldr of it is that i don't think my upbringing is realistically replicable (wealthy sydney and on the lake geneva). Using the hunger games as an analogy, I grew up in the centre of the Capitol, and I've now been kicked out into district 5. I don't even necessarily want to go back to the Capitol - I'd be fine with District 2 (a chill radiologist in Chicago or smth) - but I don't see any way to get a semblance of a decent life other than taking this massive, insanely stressful step (unless I stay in audit forever but fuck that). I don't really have any thoughts on living in the US, as long as it's not new york (yuck), but I'm fine with it if it needs to be done. I look into the future here in London and see mediocrity (Balham? Kent?) and I'm excited for the Rollercoaster the US could bring.. My longer term plan is to move back to Australia when I'm 40 to raise a family, ideally in a great position, but anything except that is negotiable. Does anyone have any thoughts overall? Thanks.

2 Comments
 

Enim laborum quae placeat doloremque. Eligendi aut qui numquam voluptate. Voluptate sit sunt unde et.

Aliquam cum aut a quia laboriosam non autem. Illo necessitatibus non hic unde in repellat.

Nihil numquam necessitatibus incidunt beatae molestiae perferendis possimus minus. Sint ut reiciendis et. At debitis sint dolorum.

Provident optio id dolores autem. Laboriosam dolorem qui quasi nobis quaerat dolor sit. Praesentium explicabo veritatis eum repellendus dolorem sed odio recusandae.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

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 (66) $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
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
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...”