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If I were in your shoes I’d reject the offer, apply for as many off-cycles as possible and study for 7xx GMAT in the meantime.
If securing any off-cycles does not work out, I’d do something totally unrelated that will stand out in the recruitment process - building schools in Africa or South America for a few months? Tutoring kids somewhere in Southeast Asia? Great discussion starter.
You will be much better positioned for every role in the field of your interest with any of the top finance degrees (Oxford MFE, LSE MFin, LBS MFA, Cambridge MPhil Fin and HEC MIF, and probably a few others). That being said - if you network the right way, you can definitely make it work with a Kings / QMUL degree - but it will be an uphill battle.
One year makes a difference for you at the moment, but in the grand scheme of things it’s just one year, and you will kick your career off from a higher level. If you question it right now, you will question it once you start your degree.
Hey appreciate your answer!
I have two key issues here. First, I'm unable to move or travel without a clearance from the military. I can't leave unless it's for studying, otherwise I have to be a conscript for 18-24 months. If I do not leave this fall, I won't get another chance. Very strict laws.
Second, my undergrad school is unranked. I don't think firms (even on the lower end) would consider my CV to begin with.
I'm not really looking for something big right now. I recognise I'm coming from a place of inherent disadvantage and would have to take it easy.
Thanks for putting it into perspective - that changes the dynamic quite drastically. I have a few Greek and Korean friends (strict military policies) and know where you are coming from.
Based on what you said, your current degree is your only option, since there’s no real alternative like a gap year. Go for it.
As a hedge I’d still spend 3-4 weeks to prep for GMAT and apply for those top tier masters for next year if stuff does not work out in the fall recruitment season.
I completed one of those programmes and I’ve seen some people doing it as their second masters (it’s an expensive option, but still a second chance).
That's what I'm thinking as well. I'll be paying £17,000 for this program. The plan is expensive but it's worth it.
Astonishingly though there's quite a lot of students from my uni who work at boutiques as well as big firms, though the majority are from undergrad. Given how useless networking seems to be in London, what could make recruitment work assuming I take the offer?
PS I'm actually studying for CFA level 3 but might snub it for the GMAT.
Less people are chasing roles on the public side (but also less spots) in those masters cohorts. There's no downside in networking (unless someone has a dumb / too aggressive approach) so it's still worth the effort, especially with the alumni - coming from a lesser ranked uni it's important to stand out in some way.
Right now there's zero pressure on scheduling physical meetings in a random Pret / Starbucks for obvious COVID reasons - much easier to scale and connect with more people at a time. It still is a lot of effort for potentially no tangible outcome - that's why it's key to be in a top programme to get over that random part (not an option in the current setup, as you described), but some individuals make it work.
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