KCL vs Durham for Investment Banking

Hi all,

I’m currently doing a foundation year at INTO Manchester, and I’ve received offers from 4 out of my 5 UCAS choices (I got rejected from Warwick). I plan to attempt to get a job in Investment Banking or Consulting (yes I know none of these are targets, the G5 uni’s don’t recognise the NCUK foundation year - a story for another day).

Essentially I am having trouble deciding which university to go to, because none of them are target universities and as far as I know, as semi-targets mostly offer the same opportunities even if they’re higher/lower semi-targets, please correct me if I am wrong.

I’ve visited KCL and I’ve walked around UOM and seen their facilities, I have never been to Durham or Bristol, just their online undergraduate seminars. I’ve heard from seniors in KCL that getting a job in finance is not hard since the university is established in the finance scene and being in London offers more networking events but I’ve read online that all of them offer equivalent opportunities, which made my initial decision of firming KCL harder. Currently I’m considering KCL/Durham for my firm, and Manchester/Bristol for my insurance.

Any advice would be appreciated since I am essentially at a crossroads with no clear direction to me.

Here is the list of offers that I have:
KCL - BA/BSc Political Economy (A*A*A)
Durham University - BA PPE (A*AA)
University of Bristol - BSc Economics with a year abroad (AAA)
University of Manchester - BSc Economics (AAA)

Reply 1

Vesti La Giubba

Original post by new-sick

Durham, KCL, Bristol in that order. Manchester is not really a semi target.

I don't see why there would be a reason for any particular order among Durham, KCL, and Bristol. All equal. If anything KCL may be a tad more useful since you'd be in London. Otherwise no difference whatsoever. All depends on personal preferences.

Reply 2

JVorJrose

Original post by Vesti La Giubba

(tho I'm biased I firmed king's over durham for ppe, lol)

Reply 3

Gbest

Original post by JVorJrose

(tho I'm biased I firmed king's over durham for ppe, lol)

Good choice

Reply 4

JVorJrose

Original post by Gbest

Good choice

much love my brother😌🙏💫

Reply 5

Sumiko

Original post by cloakandwaffles

Hi all,
I’m currently doing a foundation year at INTO Manchester, and I’ve received offers from 4 out of my 5 UCAS choices (I got rejected from Warwick). I plan to attempt to get a job in Investment Banking or Consulting (yes I know none of these are targets, the G5 uni’s don’t recognise the NCUK foundation year - a story for another day).
Essentially I am having trouble deciding which university to go to, because none of them are target universities and as far as I know, as semi-targets mostly offer the same opportunities even if they’re higher/lower semi-targets, please correct me if I am wrong.
I’ve visited KCL and I’ve walked around UOM and seen their facilities, I have never been to Durham or Bristol, just their online undergraduate seminars. I’ve heard from seniors in KCL that getting a job in finance is not hard since the university is established in the finance scene and being in London offers more networking events but I’ve read online that all of them offer equivalent opportunities, which made my initial decision of firming KCL harder. Currently I’m considering KCL/Durham for my firm, and Manchester/Bristol for my insurance.
Any advice would be appreciated since I am essentially at a crossroads with no clear direction to me.
Here is the list of offers that I have:
KCL - BA/BSc Political Economy (A*A*A)
Durham University - BA PPE (A*AA)
University of Bristol - BSc Economics with a year abroad (AAA)
University of Manchester - BSc Economics (AAA)

Hi, finally what did you choose for your Uni study?

Reply 6

mohsinK

Original post by Vesti La Giubba

Hi everyone,
I’m in Year 13 and finalizing my UCAS application but struggling to decide on my third university choice for BSc Economics. My goal is to get into a top job in finance or investment banking in London, so I need a university that will give me the best chance to achieve this.
Here’s my current UCAS list:

BSc Economics at King’s College London (my most ambitious choice)

BSc Economics at Bath (also ambitious and highly regarded)

BSc Economics at Queen Mary University of London

BSc Economics at York

For my third choice, I’m considering:

•

Birmingham: I like the city and qualify for a contextual offer, which makes it a strong insurance option. If I receive their contextual offer, I could make Birmingham my insurance choice instead of York, allowing me to focus my firm choice on a more ambitious university. I’ve also heard Birmingham is stronger than York in terms of target universities for finance.

•

St Andrews: I don’t like the location, but it’s highly ranked (top five for economics on some league tables) and seems to have a strong reputation, which I’ve heard is very important for investment banking.

•

Exeter: Offers a placement year, which could help with networking and gaining experience, and it’s also well-respected.

My predicted grades are AAA, so I need a university with entry requirements that match this (no lower, no higher). I want my third choice to still be a strong option for my career goals but also realistic to get into.
Out of Birmingham, St Andrews, and Exeter, which is better for getting into investment banking or high finance in London? Or is there another university you’d recommend that’s stronger and has AAA entry requirements?
Thanks so much for your help!
Mohsin

Reply 7

newtonscat

St Andrews and Exeter better than Birmingham for IB. I'm at Bristol, not sure what offers are like but we place well in IB. Bristol is also a better city than those 3 in my opinion :smile:

You mentioned -"strong reputation, which I've heard is very important for investment banking" - just to make things clear, when it comes to applying for ib summer internships, your university prestige/rep is the absolute most important part of your applications. Your subject and grades are important also but investment banks are total prestige *****s unfortunately. If you are dead-set on finance, going to a prestigious uni is the no.1 priority.

One final tip, investment banking recruiting happens through summer internships but when you get to uni, focus on spring weeks - these will give you a big boost when applying for internships. Also try and join relevant societies to get experience.

Good luck!