[Aquinas]

(Original post by WHITKA)
This.

Though to be fair UCL wasn't that well represented in my experience so far.. ACs /SWs. Just go to a university out of those 6 or something else in the top 10 and I'm sure you'll be fine OP. Then again your university isn't everything. It takes up 2/3 lines of your CV so whilst you certainly need to attend somewhere decent, you also need work experience, exposure to the industry, a genuine desire to work in IB and understanding of what it's about. Sure it's fine to come on here and say 'I want to do Investment Banking' but you need to think about the division.. the skills required for that division, how you can prove to a bored HR member that you deserve to be in the FO. A girl on my SW went to Loughborough - a university that I haven't seen mentioned anywhere here, because she had good WE, really knew her stuff and actually followed through on the blase line on her CV saying that she read the WSJ and the Economist regularly. But although that top 6 list is good, I know a lot of people up here (St Andrews) with offers for full time placement. Sure it's a semi-target but it just proves if you work hard, know your stuff and get some exposure, most universities in the top 10 will give you a fairly decent chance.

Good post, thanks. I'd +rep you if I had any left.

Just out of curiosity, what's your 'profile' like? What are you studying, work experience etc? If that's not too personal.

I'm thinking about the finance industry and have done some research. Being a History and Politics student I think FO jobs may be out of my reach, but I'm curious about other options.

Crucially, I know a partner of a large hedge fund in London, so that may prove to be an advantage. That's probably the reason I first began to consider it as a career option in the first place, but it seems to get more attractive the more I research it.

[Regent]

(Original post by WHITKA)
This.

Though to be fair UCL wasn't that well represented in my experience so far.. ACs /SWs. Just go to a university out of those 6 or something else in the top 10 and I'm sure you'll be fine OP. Then again your university isn't everything. It takes up 2/3 lines of your CV so whilst you certainly need to attend somewhere decent, you also need work experience, exposure to the industry, a genuine desire to work in IB and understanding of what it's about. Sure it's fine to come on here and say 'I want to do Investment Banking' but you need to think about the division.. the skills required for that division, how you can prove to a bored HR member that you deserve to be in the FO. A girl on my SW went to Loughborough - a university that I haven't seen mentioned anywhere here, because she had good WE, really knew her stuff and actually followed through on the blase line on her CV saying that she read the WSJ and the Economist regularly. But although that top 6 list is good, I know a lot of people up here (St Andrews) with offers for full time placement. Sure it's a semi-target but it just proves if you work hard, know your stuff and get some exposure, most universities in the top 10 will give you a fairly decent chance.

I'd go further. Outside the top 6 just mentioned, the difference between the rest (top 20) have a neglible impact on your chances. For example it isn't really going to matter where you go if your choices are, say, Manchester, Bristol or Birmingham. What you do with your time there will matter significantly more.

[Guy.I]

(Original post by Regent)
I'd go further. Outside the top 6 just mentioned, the difference between the rest (top 20) have a neglible impact on your chances. For example it isn't really going to matter where you go if your choices are, say, Manchester, Bristol or Birmingham. What you do with your time there will matter significantly more.

Wrong choice of uni's there since Bristol will give you significantly better odds than the other two

[Regent]

(Original post by Guy.I)
Wrong choice of uni's there since Bristol will give you significantly better odds than the other two

Says who? And 'hear say' from the infinite number of keyboard jockeys on this forum doesn't count. FYI went to Bristol and have family/friends at the other two. Have not noticed a significant difference between the success of myself and my peers from Bristol and the success of those at the other two in terms of obtaining internships/graduate roles. Anecdotal evidence, but solid nonetheless.

[Aquinas]

(Original post by Regent)
Says who? And 'hear say' from the infinite number of keyboard jockeys on this forum doesn't count. FYI went to Bristol and have family/friends at the other two. Have not noticed a significant difference between the success of myself and my peers from Bristol and the success of those at the other two in terms of obtaining internships/graduate roles. Anecdotal evidence, but solid nonetheless.

Agreed. They're all quite comparable in terms of graduate prospects. Bristol may be a bit more rigorous academically in some areas, but Manchester for example is the #1 University in the UK targeted by employers. Some say it's just because its size, but if you do some research, you'll see that the University of Manchester actually has the highest number of AAB+ students of any university in the country. A telling statistic that will draw employers year on year (hopefully ) Bristol and Birmingham are also both very well respected by employers so it's touch and go really. Many on TSR are obsessed by unreliable league tables and self-imagined prestige that your perceptions can become warped at times.

Also, as employers and careers advisors often point out, it's about the individual and what they've done that counts rather than which university they attended that matters most.

[Txi]

the #1 University in the UK targeted by employers. ?

What kind of employers ? Tescos, iceland, marks and sparx ?

Certainly no top 10 IB wll target Manc.

[Aquinas]

(Original post by Txi)
the #1 University in the UK targeted by employers. ?

What kind of employers ? Tescos, iceland, marks and sparx ?

Certainly no top 10 IB wll target Manc.

Haha!

I'm ignoring you matey.

[Whiskey]

(Original post by Txi)
the #1 University in the UK targeted by employers. ?

What kind of employers ? Tescos, iceland, marks and sparx ?

Certainly no top 10 IB wll target Manc.

FYI
http://www.careers.manchester.ac.uk/...bitor-List.pdf

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education...versities.html

[Txi]

(Original post by Whiskey)
FYI
http://www.careers.manchester.ac.uk/...bitor-List.pdf

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education...versities.html

FYI
Used car salesman

[Txi]

(Original post by Aquinas)
Haha!

I'm ignoring you matey.

You can do what you like.

But that will not change fact that UoM was founded as a university in 1888 not 1824.

Why does UoM's logo have a 64 year discrepancy ? Can the marketing dept. not count ?

And it also will not change the fact that it outside the top 25 in local ranks.

End of.

[Regent]

(Original post by Txi)
You can do what you like.

But that will not change fact that UoM was founded as a university in 1888 not 1824.

Why does UoM's logo have a 64 year discrepancy ? Can the marketing dept. not count ?

And it also will not change the fact that it outside the top 25 in local ranks.

End of.

Lol. What are you, 17? The rankings are unreliable. I'm telling you as a graduate, who has been to nearly a dozen assessment centres that the difference between most universities outside the top 6 is marginal. All these rankings only serve to inflate the egos of those who attend the unis but they have no real bearing on reality or one's leverage within the job market.

Especially when you consider the inconsistencies between league tables.

Bristol is ranked between 10th and 25th in the same year.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Univers...#League_tables

[TomasK]

(Original post by Regent)
Lol. What are you, 17? The rankings are unreliable. I'm telling you as a graduate, who has been to nearly a dozen assessment centres that the difference between most universities outside the top 6 is marginal. All these rankings only serve to inflate the egos of those who attend the unis but they have no real bearing on reality or one's leverage within the job market.

Especially when you consider the inconsistencies between league tables.

Bristol is ranked between 10th and 25th in the same year.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Univers...#League_tables

Main ranking tool - UCAS tariff point average, gives a reasonable idea of competitiveness, which is a good measure to know the overall level of the students/university.

[Txi]

(Original post by Regent)
Lol. What are you, 17? The rankings are unreliable. I'm telling you as a graduate, who has been to nearly a dozen assessment centres that the difference between most universities outside the top 6 is marginal. All these rankings only serve to inflate the egos of those who attend the unis but they have no real bearing on reality or one's leverage within the job market.

Especially when you consider the inconsistencies between league tables.

Bristol is ranked between 10th and 25th in the same year.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Univers...#League_tables

Don't like them ?

Then don't look at them. but it seems everyone @ your Uni is obsessed by them

[Txi]

(Original post by TomasK)
Main ranking tool - UCAS tariff point average, gives a reasonable idea of competitiveness, which is a good measure to know the overall level of the students/university.

No It is not, it does not account for size or offshore campuses.

The mean of a very large sample size will be much less effected by outlying scores, the opposite applies to a smaller sample.

Thus UoM's entry are inflated to simply by it being the largest Uni by student numbers in UK.

Basic stats.

[TomasK]

(Original post by Txi)
No It is not, it does not account for size or offshore campuses.

The mean of a very large sample size will be much less effected by outlying scores, the opposite applies to a smaller sample.

Thus UoM's entry are inflated to simply by it being the largest Uni by student numbers in UK.

Basic stats.

Actually, I'm not defending Manchester, so your above opposition seems a bit awkward. E.g. http://www.thecompleteuniversityguid...nkings?o=Entry arranged by tariff points, don't see Manchester being totally out of order and the list seems like a fairly reasonable representation of the 'top' institutions with a few odd inflated ranks. But the overall top 10-20 picture is fairly right, at least in my opinion.

[Txi]

(Original post by TomasK)
Actually, I'm not defending Manchester, so your above opposition seems a bit awkward. E.g. http://www.thecompleteuniversityguid...nkings?o=Entry arranged by tariff points, don't see Manchester being totally out of order and the list seems like a fairly reasonable representation of the 'top' institutions with a few odd inflated ranks. But the overall top 10-20 picture is fairly right, at least in my opinion.

OK fair enough.

Just to let you know I am not saying the ranks are be all but just one other indicator, but it seems they do attract a lot of attention.

[Regent]

(Original post by TomasK)
Main ranking tool - UCAS tariff point average, gives a reasonable idea of competitiveness, which is a good measure to know the overall level of the students/university.

Competitiveness of uni/course doesn't necessarily correlate with quality, it just means it's popular. When I was applying to uni it was easier to get into certain subjects, like History or Engineering at places like Warwick/UCL than it was to get into Economics at some mid tier Russell Groups.

For example my offer from Bristol (2007) for Economics was AAA, while my friend received an offer from LSE of ABB-AAB for Accouting & Finance and yet based on his uni his chances of getting into IB were much higher than mine.

[Arianto]

Can comment on specifically Edinburgh's situation with regard to doorways into the finance/banking careers?
Also interested to hear what effect it's position as a Scottish university has on anything (i.e. 4 year degree structure/MA degrees as opposed to Msc) compared to all the English Uni's mentioned?

I'll be studying Accountancy and Finance, though might shift around to include Economics/Business Studies when I start.

[TomasK]

(Original post by Regent)
Competitiveness of uni/course doesn't necessarily correlate with quality, it just means it's popular. When I was applying to uni it was easier to get into certain subjects, like History or Engineering at places like Warwick/UCL than it was to get into Economics at some mid tier Russell Groups.

For example my offer from Bristol (2007) for Economics was AAA, while my friend received an offer from LSE of ABB-AAB for Accouting & Finance and yet based on his uni his chances of getting into IB were much higher than mine.

Yeah, I was more referring to the correlation between competitiveness and the level of people rather than the IB industry perception of X University.

Because surely if the course is overly popular they will select the best candidates, and if the entry requirements are at AAA and not even then all the people with AAA get selected that sort of hints that you are placed among top notch people only?

[Txi]

(Original post by Regent)
Competitiveness of uni/course doesn't necessarily correlate with quality, it just means it's popular. When I was applying to uni it was easier to get into certain subjects, like History or Engineering at places like Warwick/UCL than it was to get into Economics at some mid tier Russell Groups.

For example my offer from Bristol (2007) for Economics was AAA, while my friend received an offer from LSE of ABB-AAB for Accouting & Finance and yet based on his uni his chances of getting into IB were much higher than mine.

ABB for A+F @ LSE ?

Must have been a few years back