The Student Room Group

UCL, KCL or Cass ?

Hi everyone, I’m a French student and I received offers : UCL, BSc Statistics, Economics and Finance
KCL, BSc Accounting and Finance
Cass, BSc Accounting and Finance as well but I ask to change with Investment and Financial Risk Managment.

Do you know which degree has the best reputation and gives me better perspectives if I want to study in the USA for my Master degree for example ? Thanks!!
(edited 3 years ago)

Scroll to see replies

They are all good universities. Technically speaking they all belong to the same university as they are all colleges of the university of London (UoL). UCL and KCL are founding colleges, City joined the UoL in 2016. Cass is the business school of City university.

Now UCL and KCL are founding colleges of the University of London and enjoy excellent reputation. City is a plate glass university and enjoys a very good reputation especially in the business subjects (Cass Business School).

In terms of the entry criteria they are similar, for example in terms of IB points (I use IB points since they are fine scaled and easy to compare):
1) UCL demands 36-39 IB points for the BSc BSc Statistics, Economics and Finance
2) KCL demands 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance
3) City (Cass) demans 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance and 35 IB points for the BSc Investment and Financial Risk Management.

Given that they entry criteria are very close I would rank them more or less equally for these specific degrees. I would personally have a slight preference to UCL because of its overall name. But no matter which course you choose they are all very well respected in the industry. The UCL course will have more mathematics since it has statistics in its name, the other courses are more finance oriented.

Do have a look also at these two articles maybe you will find them useful
https://news.efinancialcareers.com/uk-en/218782/the-top-universities-for-the-analyst-class-for-2015-at-goldman-sachs-j-p-morgan-and-morgan-stanley
https://news.efinancialcareers.com/us-en/154088/the-top-30-masters-in-finance-for-getting-a-job-in-investment-banking
Reply 2
Which one will you enjoy most? All good unis, I doubt going to one or the other will significantly change your job prospects providing you get a good grade.
Reply 3
Thank you so much for your answer ! Do you think the UCL Bachelor gives me more chance to join a top school for my master degree such as LSE afterwards ?
Reply 4
Original post by ppapanastasiou
They are all good universities. Technically speaking they all belong to the same university as they are all colleges of the university of London (UoL). UCL and KCL are founding colleges, City joined the UoL in 2016. Cass is the business school of City university.

Now UCL and KCL are founding colleges of the University of London and enjoy excellent reputation. City is a plate glass university and enjoys a very good reputation especially in the business subjects (Cass Business School).

In terms of the entry criteria they are similar, for example in terms of IB points (I use IB points since they are fine scaled and easy to compare):
1) UCL demands 36-39 IB points for the BSc BSc Statistics, Economics and Finance
2) KCL demands 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance
3) City (Cass) demans 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance and 35 IB points for the BSc Investment and Financial Risk Management.

Given that they entry criteria are very close I would rank them more or less equally for these specific degrees. I would personally have a slight preference to UCL because of its overall name. But no matter which course you choose they are all very well respected in the industry. The UCL course will have more mathematics since it has statistics in its name, the other courses are more finance oriented.

Do have a look also at these two articles maybe you will find them useful
https://news.efinancialcareers.com/uk-en/218782/the-top-universities-for-the-analyst-class-for-2015-at-goldman-sachs-j-p-morgan-and-morgan-stanley
https://news.efinancialcareers.com/us-en/154088/the-top-30-masters-in-finance-for-getting-a-job-in-investment-banking


Thank you so much for your answer ! Do you know if the UCL bachelor gives me more chance to join a top school (such as LSE) for my master degree ? Because in the articles you sent, King's College is not mentioned anywhere.
Reply 5
Original post by Claisen
Which one will you enjoy most? All good unis, I doubt going to one or the other will significantly change your job prospects providing you get a good grade.

Actually, I don't really know. Both are interesting but they are so different. The problem with the UCL bachelor is that we start finance courses from the third year. But on the other hand, I love maths and I want to study something concrete. I'm afraid that in King's or Cass I will go round in circles and not learn anything.
Reply 6
Original post by ppapanastasiou
They are all good universities. Technically speaking they all belong to the same university as they are all colleges of the university of London (UoL). UCL and KCL are founding colleges, City joined the UoL in 2016. Cass is the business school of City university.

Now UCL and KCL are founding colleges of the University of London and enjoy excellent reputation. City is a plate glass university and enjoys a very good reputation especially in the business subjects (Cass Business School).

In terms of the entry criteria they are similar, for example in terms of IB points (I use IB points since they are fine scaled and easy to compare):
1) UCL demands 36-39 IB points for the BSc BSc Statistics, Economics and Finance
2) KCL demands 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance
3) City (Cass) demans 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance and 35 IB points for the BSc Investment and Financial Risk Management.

Given that they entry criteria are very close I would rank them more or less equally for these specific degrees. I would personally have a slight preference to UCL because of its overall name. But no matter which course you choose they are all very well respected in the industry. The UCL course will have more mathematics since it has statistics in its name, the other courses are more finance oriented.

Do have a look also at these two articles maybe you will find them useful
https://news.efinancialcareers.com/uk-en/218782/the-top-universities-for-the-analyst-class-for-2015-at-goldman-sachs-j-p-morgan-and-morgan-stanley
https://news.efinancialcareers.com/us-en/154088/the-top-30-masters-in-finance-for-getting-a-job-in-investment-banking

Thank you so much for your answer ! Do you think the UCL Bachelor gives me more chance to join a top school for my master degree such as LSE afterwards ?
Reply 7
Original post by keksjabs
Thank you so much for your answer ! Do you think the UCL Bachelor gives me more chance to join a top school for my master degree such as LSE afterwards ?

Definitely, make sure you do respectable activities whilst at university. Enter competitions, volunteer, join societies and get a hobby. Give yourself talking points that will interest admission tutors too.
Original post by keksjabs
Thank you so much for your answer ! Do you know if the UCL bachelor gives me more chance to join a top school (such as LSE) for my master degree ? Because in the articles you sent, King's College is not mentioned anywhere.

If you finish your bachelor degree with good grades in any of these universities you have good chances of getting accepted at LSE. As I mentioned earlier technically all three of them (Kings, UCL and City) are colleges of the university of London (UoL) so technically LSE (which is also a college of the UoL) should value the curriculum of these three universities.

When you say master degree at LSE you need to be more specific, which Master? If it is a general Master in Finance degree than all of them are good enough. If it is a MSc in mathematical finance than you will need an undergraduate degree with a significant mathematical component such as the one UCL offers.

Kings is mentioned in the second table the article " The top universities for the 2017 analyst class at Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan and Morgan Stanley. For the 2017 analyst class at J.P. Morgan in London it is ranked 21st out of 25 universities. Not bad in my opinion.

So bottom line they are all good with a slight preference for UCL due to its name. The entry criteria are roughly equal which reinforces my argument. It makes no difference, just have a look at the courses and pick one you find most interesting. If you finish it with a first you have very good chances of getting accepted at LSE.
(edited 3 years ago)
Reply 9
The UCL course looks very different to the two accounting and finance courses. Which do you prefer to study?
Reply 10
It is really different indeed. I think I prefer the UCL program because of the maths. I really like the program of King’s and Cass but these are things that I can learn during short courses and online programmes right? And finally, from what I heard in France, UCL has a better reputation and is academically more prestigious. For the french baccalaureate, UCL asks me 17/20 in maths and 16 overall whereas King’s asks 15/20 in maths and 14 overall. What do you think ?
Reply 11
Original post by ajj2000
The UCL course looks very different to the two accounting and finance courses. Which do you prefer to study?

It is really different indeed. I think I prefer the UCL program because of the maths. I really like the program of King’s and Cass but these are things that I can learn during short courses and online programmes right? And finally, from what I heard in France, UCL has a better reputation and is academically more prestigious. For the french baccalaureate, UCL asks me 17/20 in maths and 16 overall whereas King’s asks 15/20 in maths and 14 overall. What do you think ?
Original post by keksjabs
It is really different indeed. I think I prefer the UCL program because of the maths. I really like the program of King’s and Cass but these are things that I can learn during short courses and online programmes right? And finally, from what I heard in France, UCL has a better reputation and is academically more prestigious. For the french baccalaureate, UCL asks me 17/20 in maths and 16 overall whereas King’s asks 15/20 in maths and 14 overall. What do you think ?

I think the UCL course leaves far broader options and is a more academic course. I would go for that unless you are very sure of what you want to do in the future.
Original post by keksjabs
It is really different indeed. I think I prefer the UCL program because of the maths. I really like the program of King’s and Cass but these are things that I can learn during short courses and online programmes right? And finally, from what I heard in France, UCL has a better reputation and is academically more prestigious. For the french baccalaureate, UCL asks me 17/20 in maths and 16 overall whereas King’s asks 15/20 in maths and 14 overall. What do you think ?

Cass has excellent reputation in finance and business degrees. Kings and UCL have very good overall reputation.They are all good universities. As I already mentioned technically speaking they all belong to the same university as they are all colleges of the university of London (UoL). UCL and KCL are founding colleges, City joined the UoL in 2016.

From their website I see the following:
In terms of IB points (I use IB points since they are fine scaled and easy to compare):
1) UCL demands 36-39 IB points for the BSc Statistics, Economics and Finance
2) KCL demands 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance
3) City (Cass) demans 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance and 35 IB points for the BSc Investment and Financial Risk Management.


You mentioned that for the french baccalaureate UCL ask 17/20 in maths and 16 overall, Kings asks 15/20 in maths and 14 overall, how much does Cass ask?
Reply 14
Cass asks 15/20 in maths and 15 overall, almost like King's. But Cass asks for 13/20 in english whereas King's asks for 7.0 IELTS score. What I didn't mention is that I'm still waiting for a decision for the Maths, Stats and Business at LSE. If I have LSE I will definitely go there. If not, I will go to UCL. I know someone who did this program at UCL and is now at MIT... so I think it is a pretty good one.
Reply 15
Original post by ppapanastasiou
Cass has excellent reputation in finance and business degrees. Kings and UCL have very good overall reputation.They are all good universities. As I already mentioned technically speaking they all belong to the same university as they are all colleges of the university of London (UoL). UCL and KCL are founding colleges, City joined the UoL in 2016.

From their website I see the following:
In terms of IB points (I use IB points since they are fine scaled and easy to compare):
1) UCL demands 36-39 IB points for the BSc Statistics, Economics and Finance
2) KCL demands 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance
3) City (Cass) demans 35 IB points for the BSc Accounting and Finance and 35 IB points for the BSc Investment and Financial Risk Management.


You mentioned that for the french baccalaureate UCL ask 17/20 in maths and 16 overall, Kings asks 15/20 in maths and 14 overall, how much does Cass ask?

Cass asks 15/20 in maths and 15 overall, almost like King's. But Cass asks for 13/20 in english whereas King's asks for 7.0 IELTS score. What I didn't mention is that I'm still waiting for a decision for the Maths, Stats and Business at LSE. If I have LSE I will definitely go there. If not, I will go to UCL. I know someone who did this program at UCL and is now at MIT in MSc Finance... so I think it is a pretty good one.
Reply 16
Original post by keksjabs
Thank you so much for your answer ! Do you think the UCL Bachelor gives me more chance to join a top school for my master degree such as LSE afterwards ?


Original post by keksjabs
Hi everyone, I’m a French student and I received offers : UCL, BSc Statistics, Economics and Finance
KCL, BSc Accounting and Finance
Cass, BSc Accounting and Finance as well but I ask to change with Investment and Financial Risk Managment.

Do you know which degree has the best reputation and gives me better perspectives if I want to study in the USA for my Master degree for example ? Thanks!!

Hey I study at Cass so I hope that I can help you for that,

Student experience is very nice, academic support is amazing and the campus' location is very good. Concerning your choices, I think that going from Cass would easily let you join top business schools. Many of my classmates hold offers from LBS, LSE, NYU or Columbia. The difference between Cass, King's and UCL is that Cass is famous and specialised for business (within city that is not very prestigious). On the other hand both UCL and King's have a good (excellent for UCL) global reputation making them rely on the name more than the academic performances. They teach business without relying on these subjects to higher their overall ranking. So and especially if you do King's expect to be in a department that clearly does not have as much funds, acknowledgement and recognition within the school. However, in the "external world" people tend to perceive a school as an overall and not a faculty so take that into account as well.

Now if you were to only take an undergrad program without pursuing your studies I would say UCL for its excellent global reputation and rate of employability. However, if you wish to undertake postgraduate studies, I would advice Cass as it really has an excellent reputation in business within this circle (of people that work in business and know business as a field and a market, not random people that only follows league tables). Also the teaching style is nice and the degree is stimulating.

UCL and King's are also very nice for student life, campuses (king's in waterloo is **** but it's a subjective judgement) for what I know (because there are other factors than academic excellence, judging on the prestigious choices you have, to take into account).

Hope that what I said is useful
Reply 17
Original post by am1lamt
Hey I study at Cass so I hope that I can help you for that,

Student experience is very nice, academic support is amazing and the campus' location is very good. Concerning your choices, I think that going from Cass would easily let you join top business schools. Many of my classmates hold offers from LBS, LSE, NYU or Columbia. The difference between Cass, King's and UCL is that Cass is famous and specialised for business (within city that is not very prestigious). On the other hand both UCL and King's have a good (excellent for UCL) global reputation making them rely on the name more than the academic performances. They teach business without relying on these subjects to higher their overall ranking. So and especially if you do King's expect to be in a department that clearly does not have as much funds, acknowledgement and recognition within the school. However, in the "external world" people tend to perceive a school as an overall and not a faculty so take that into account as well.

Now if you were to only take an undergrad program without pursuing your studies I would say UCL for its excellent global reputation and rate of employability. However, if you wish to undertake postgraduate studies, I would advice Cass as it really has an excellent reputation in business within this circle (of people that work in business and know business as a field and a market, not random people that only follows league tables). Also the teaching style is nice and the degree is stimulating.

UCL and King's are also very nice for student life, campuses (king's in waterloo is **** but it's a subjective judgement) for what I know (because there are other factors than academic excellence, judging on the prestigious choices you have, to take into account).

Hope that what I said is useful

Hey ! Thank you so much for your answer. It is really helpful and useful.

Cass programmes are really interesting. I have been accepted for the BSc Accounting and Finance. Do you think I should change it for the BSc Investment and Financial Risk Managment ? Have you heard of them ? Thank you so much
Reply 18
Original post by keksjabs
Hey ! Thank you so much for your answer. It is really helpful and useful.

Cass programmes are really interesting. I have been accepted for the BSc Accounting and Finance. Do you think I should change it for the BSc Investment and Financial Risk Managment ? Have you heard of them ? Thank you so much

Hey,
Both programs are highly regarded in the school. I have done some Finance and Accounting modules and it is very challenging.
Your program is more turned towards managing a portfolio of companies and making sure to value their effectiveness through analyzing their cashflows. The second one you want to do is more like a game of probabilities where you have to make a portfolio (meaning to invest in a variety of companies, that have different level of risks and payback) by analyzing the market, stakeholders, assessing the risks and forecasting the revenues that you’ll get. This is a very quick sum up but it’s kind of the vibe. To be honest, I would say that it depends on your profile. The first one is very systematical, it’s like algebra but more practical meaning that you have to understand the situation and apply theories efficiently. The second one is a bit more theoretical and relies on more macro and micro economic analysis of frameworks. First one is more practical, second one more theoritical (but still very practical.

In terms of $$ you’ll be very rich if you do any of the two programs lol, because Cass is famous for these branches. Especially Financial like it’s literally what allows us to say that we are a top business school.

If you do any of them, you’ll have many occasions to talk with companies and we have many internship opportunities to join top firms on your Career profile. But it depends on you, you are not guaranteed to get the place but they help you A LOT to integrate them. (Example : you don’t go through the companies’ websites to apply but from Cass partner recruiters, so it is faster) It’s especially easy for finance but it is because companies know that does who get 60+ are very smart, like usually the average is between 48 and 55. So, it is very hard and especially if you don’t like it.

Another point is that if you want to be a postgraduate it doesnt matter which one you want to do, it is more about being excellent to send top grades at top schools (think about that, long run plan). Keep in mind if u wanna do a masters in business related programs that it will be very challenging. However Cass students are lowkey assured to do MSc in Imperial or UCL because that’s where everyone goes in general but if you want higher like LBS, LSE you gotta excel.

From what I know, I have a friend that did what you will do and went to LSE. Another one studied Investment and Financial Risk and is at Cambridge. This is to say that both are very highly regarded by these schools as well. Applied to when you have 65+ and go to internships every summer from next year. (Trust me it helps, it’s my case and I’m going to LSE)

From my point of view Accounting is easier in a way that it is information processing and translation in tables. Finance and Investment are much much more hard (for me!! Because it depends on your profile) also because I didnt like it so didnt make efforts. I’m more a marketing profile so it was more about survival than enjoyment...

But you’ll enjoy both. To sum up (and as I was like you before going to study), you should choose the one where you feel like you will excel. Because as much as it’s nice to say “I do investment” but if it’s to go study and then get a 40 it’s not worth it.
Reply 19
Original post by am1lamt
Hey,
Both programs are highly regarded in the school. I have done some Finance and Accounting modules and it is very challenging.
Your program is more turned towards managing a portfolio of companies and making sure to value their effectiveness through analyzing their cashflows. The second one you want to do is more like a game of probabilities where you have to make a portfolio (meaning to invest in a variety of companies, that have different level of risks and payback) by analyzing the market, stakeholders, assessing the risks and forecasting the revenues that you’ll get. This is a very quick sum up but it’s kind of the vibe. To be honest, I would say that it depends on your profile. The first one is very systematical, it’s like algebra but more practical meaning that you have to understand the situation and apply theories efficiently. The second one is a bit more theoretical and relies on more macro and micro economic analysis of frameworks. First one is more practical, second one more theoritical (but still very practical.

In terms of $$ you’ll be very rich if you do any of the two programs lol, because Cass is famous for these branches. Especially Financial like it’s literally what allows us to say that we are a top business school.

If you do any of them, you’ll have many occasions to talk with companies and we have many internship opportunities to join top firms on your Career profile. But it depends on you, you are not guaranteed to get the place but they help you A LOT to integrate them. (Example : you don’t go through the companies’ websites to apply but from Cass partner recruiters, so it is faster) It’s especially easy for finance but it is because companies know that does who get 60+ are very smart, like usually the average is between 48 and 55. So, it is very hard and especially if you don’t like it.

Another point is that if you want to be a postgraduate it doesnt matter which one you want to do, it is more about being excellent to send top grades at top schools (think about that, long run plan). Keep in mind if u wanna do a masters in business related programs that it will be very challenging. However Cass students are lowkey assured to do MSc in Imperial or UCL because that’s where everyone goes in general but if you want higher like LBS, LSE you gotta excel.

From what I know, I have a friend that did what you will do and went to LSE. Another one studied Investment and Financial Risk and is at Cambridge. This is to say that both are very highly regarded by these schools as well. Applied to when you have 65+ and go to internships every summer from next year. (Trust me it helps, it’s my case and I’m going to LSE)

From my point of view Accounting is easier in a way that it is information processing and translation in tables. Finance and Investment are much much more hard (for me!! Because it depends on your profile) also because I didnt like it so didnt make efforts. I’m more a marketing profile so it was more about survival than enjoyment...

But you’ll enjoy both. To sum up (and as I was like you before going to study), you should choose the one where you feel like you will excel. Because as much as it’s nice to say “I do investment” but if it’s to go study and then get a 40 it’s not worth it.

Hey ! Thank you so much for your answer. It is clearer now. I think I will stay in the Acc and Fin BSc. I will think about all this! Thank you again !!!!!

Quick Reply

Latest