Need Advice for Post Graduation

I will be graduating this year with a BSc PPE degree at a London university. I'm interested in a career in taxation, financial regulation, and public policy, but nothing specific. I never landed any internships/work experience, but I have a lot of student leadership experience. I have poor quantitative grades (mostly <60) but good qualitative grades (mostly 70+, particularly in finance and tax modules), and while I think I'm capable of scraping a 1st overall, I could very well be mistaken about my performance this semester and end up with a low 2:1.

My plan originally was to get a job after university and pursue a masters a couple years into my career. I felt this was the most sensible plan for me considering my urgent need for work experience and for money, as I come from a working class and poorly-connected family. However, I was unable to land any grad schemes, and my limited professional network and quantitative skills makes me feel uneasy about my career prospects. As more of my friends choose to go to a masters, I'm thinking of doing the same (liked the look of MSc Financial Risk Management at Leeds and MSc Regulation at LSE), but my poor quantitative grades limit my options, considering my interests in finance and economics as opposed to politics or business. I don't know anything about masters since I thought if I poured all my energy into applying for jobs I would surely land one - alas.

The options I see for myself are to 1) spend a spend a year living with my parents (in London), working part-time and building quantitative skills (and self confidence) while I apply for 2026 entry, 2) do the same but applying for jobs, 3) apply for a masters ASAP.

I'm looking for any ideas or specific advice around pathways, masters, or opportunities related to my interests to look into.

Reply 1

Kingston Rose

Official Rep

Original post by 06dasein

I will be graduating this year with a BSc PPE degree at a London university. I'm interested in a career in taxation, financial regulation, and public policy, but nothing specific. I never landed any internships/work experience, but I have a lot of student leadership experience. I have poor quantitative grades (mostly <60) but good qualitative grades (mostly 70+, particularly in finance and tax modules), and while I think I'm capable of scraping a 1st overall, I could very well be mistaken about my performance this semester and end up with a low 2:1.
My plan originally was to get a job after university and pursue a masters a couple years into my career. I felt this was the most sensible plan for me considering my urgent need for work experience and for money, as I come from a working class and poorly-connected family. However, I was unable to land any grad schemes, and my limited professional network and quantitative skills makes me feel uneasy about my career prospects. As more of my friends choose to go to a masters, I'm thinking of doing the same (liked the look of MSc Financial Risk Management at Leeds and MSc Regulation at LSE), but my poor quantitative grades limit my options, considering my interests in finance and economics as opposed to politics or business. I don't know anything about masters since I thought if I poured all my energy into applying for jobs I would surely land one - alas.
The options I see for myself are to 1) spend a spend a year living with my parents (in London), working part-time and building quantitative skills (and self confidence) while I apply for 2026 entry, 2) do the same but applying for jobs, 3) apply for a masters ASAP.
I'm looking for any ideas or specific advice around pathways, masters, or opportunities related to my interests to look into.

Hi @06dasein Your degree classification matters, cause most finance roles require at least 2:1 to get in and som of the most competetive roles like Investment banking roles might maybe look for higher grades. That said, your soft skills are even more important when applying, not just in finance but across industries. Strong communication, problem-Solving and leadership experience make up for weaker grades, particularly in role related to regulation, policy and taxation
I think you should focus on showcasing your strenghts: highlight your leadership experience, strong qualitative performance and your willingness to build quantitative skills. Most employers value practical skills and adaptibilty over grades alone, So gaining experience, networking and upskilling will make a big difference landing a job.

For someone who had relative poor grades, of 2:2 I ended up with a job in accounting due to my soft skills and willingness to learn.
I recommed to network a lot, go to alot of networking event to connect with people in the field, you will learn a lot more. Visite Evenbrit webside to see what networking is happening particularly in Finance.

Hope this was helpful, and don't hesitate to ask further questions.

(Rose, Kingston)