Help me decide between these two UK unis

Hi guys,

So I got two offers, UCL Economics, or Cass Business School's Investment and Financial Risk Management.

I am planning to go into S&T.

I am EU national.

I am in quite a bit of hesitation, and don't know which uni to firm, because of the following:

UCL Econ (target)
advantages
- top university brand; very active university life; lots of smart guys to work and discuss with; great networking opportunities

on the other hand
disdvantages
- i love econ, but the subject might be hard for me (maths is the biggest problem), and also I can say that a quite good amount of work would be required every week.
- the offer is quite higher than Cass's, would take also quite a good amount of work to get in
- no full scholarships (yes I know there might be one, but because of the competitiveness of the university, I stand very little-no chance)

Cass IFRM (nontarget)
advantages
- a subject which is suited to me the most because of my background (won't go into it, but I can say for sure I could cut this degree very good) (and yeah it's mathsy, but still), financial markets and investment management.; therefore, my workload should be also I think significantly lower then UCL's so would have much more freetime
- the full coca-cola scholarship (they give out FOUR! each year). let me just tell that I got great credentials (quite impressive ECs) so I would stand a considerable chance to get it (even so that Cass is not that competitive like UCL). although, of course there is no guarantee that I could land this scholarship, but still, got a reasonable chance.

disadvantages
- the exact opposite of UCL. Not so many determined (and skilled maybe?) students from what I heard, not a top university brand, quite not so an active uni life, and not so great networking opportunities

So basically: UCL is a prestigious top university and it comes with all the advantages (great building, uni life, networking and so on); BUT would have to work quite hard throughout the university and also work quite hard to meet my offer, and there is no chance at getting a full scholarship.
Cass is the opposite of UCL; BUT a greatly suited degree for me, much less workload (could use this freetime for lots of other things!!), and a very real chance of landing a full scholarship.

7 Comments
 

Go for the better university. You will regret having a "lesser" degree if you can't get your dream job afterwards. You will not regret having paid more for the "better" degree once you are working and making a decent salary in S&T.

This of course only applies if you manage to push through the harder classes. Having a 2:2 from UCL won't help you much in finding a good job.

 

Et qui nesciunt quia quibusdam. Aut rerum dolores labore exercitationem veniam eos. Vel natus exercitationem mollitia et beatae. Non enim dolore est deserunt nisi.

Similique eveniet et suscipit sed eum minima et. Qui ullam deserunt nostrum harum.

Molestias tenetur animi quia ipsa. Odit consectetur cum harum. Magni iste ea fuga iure inventore magnam molestiae eaque.

Velit dolores at nobis sapiente qui qui excepturi reiciendis. Alias esse accusantium est commodi sed. Et velit dignissimos veniam quae officiis.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (47) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (74) $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
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
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...”