A Level & Pre-University Guide

[Mr. Exclusive1]

Hey everyone,

This stage is the point where most people start to seriously consider what degree they wish to pursue and in turn, what careers they are most likely to pursue. So here is some of the stuff I would have liked to have known when doing my A Levels – you should take particular note with regard to subject and university choice. Feel free to comment on this and add any other advice you may have below, would be interesting to hear some people’s experiences on this.

Subject Choice
This will be one of the most important issues you will have to deal with head on at A Level along with your university choice. To be clear, you should avoid soft subjects and stick with more traditional subjects where possible. For example, one mix of A Level subjects might consist of: Maths (and maybe Further Maths), Economics, a Science (such as Physics) and a Humanity subject (such as History). If you decide to drop one after AS Levels, you should continue those that you are performing best at. You should also ensure your choices are not too narrow. For instance, a subject mix of Business, Economics, Accounting and Maths is too narrow and this will restrict you when it comes to applying to university through UCAS. This is a common mistake by individuals who have not had the correct guidance at school. If given the option (while it is generally not recognised by employers or university) doing a subject such as Critical Thinking or General Studies will enhance your performance on Verbal/Critical Thinking psychometric tests that are used during recruitment – if possible, you can do this to AS Level. By doing well at your A Levels, it will in turn allow you to apply for top universities - this must be your fundamental aim at this stage.

University Choice
First of all, I must emphasise that unlike other career paths, for investment banking: it does not matter what subject you study at undergraduate level. Investment banking is a very open career path and banks like people from a diverse range of backgrounds.

You should also note that banks have the so-called target universities where the majority of candidates are recruited from for front office roles. These are: Oxford, Cambridge, LSE, Warwick, UCL and Imperial. You should also note the relevant application deadlines for these various universities as Oxbridge, for example, tend to have much earlier deadlines for your personal statement. If you cannot make it into a target university for whatever reason then other desirable universities (the so-called semi-targets) are: Bristol, Bath, Durham, Nottingham, Cass Business School, York, KCL, Edinburgh, Birmingham, St Andrews and Manchester. These universities tend to only get a handful of candidates, if that, into front office positions year on year however they get many more into industrial placements as well as middle and back office roles.

Don't assume that because you study at a Russell Group university not listed above that your university is also a target/semi-target; this is usually not the case.

You should also be aware of how competitive the UCAS process is and be realistic in your choices.

Extra-Curricular Activities
Having stellar academics will no longer suffice in getting a job or getting you into a good university. You should use this time to be building your soft skills as well as academic prowess. Banks place a very large focus on demonstrated leadership ability as well as team work and communication. The ability to speak a foreign language is also growing in importance.

For example, I would recommend any of the following: learning a foreign language; becoming a mentor in your school; learning a computer programming language; joining a school sport team; joining the debating society; the Duke of Edinburgh Award; starting a small business, website or society; volunteering; study/work abroad; entering academic competitions; winning scholarships or other awards that show your work ethic and editing or starting a school blog or newspaper.

You should not underestimate how important these activities are – you should place equal, if not more emphasis on these.

Gap Year Programmes
If you want to improve your UCAS application or take a year out for whatever other reason then Gap Year Programmes can be an option (or you can just travel or volunteer – grow and have fun, but do make sure you are doing something meaningful). You should bear in mind these programmes are again popular at the Big 4 but not so much banks. However, any form of experience at this stage is incredible and should not be underestimated in positioning you well. You would be surprised how many apply for First Year Spring Weeks at university with significant experience already under their belt. Some opportunities include:
• Accenture
• Bank of England
• Deloitte

Again, do not necessarily worry about the division or institution, the key here is to build your professional corporate experience. These programmes are all paid.

Keeping Up To Date
By following the news regularly (ideally everyday) you will start to gain a sophisticated and intuitive understanding of the business world which will impress in interviews and on applications. You are never too young to do this and it is so simple you should start as early as possible. The other reason for doing this is that if you come across a term or concept you do not understand, you should look it up and this will also increase your overall knowledge. I recommend the following resources for staying up to date:
• BBC News (Business & Economics Section)
• Bloomberg
• Financial Times
• CNBC
• Wall Street Journal
• Deal Book
• The Economist

Some of those sites are subscription based but all include free content which should more than suffice at this stage. However, there is no harm in asking your school or parents if they have some form of access to these sites as well as trying the school library. In most cases, students are entitled to a discount so look out for special deals.

Increasing Your Awareness
To reiterate, if you want to work in this industry then you need to understand it. Otherwise, how can you be sure you are making the correct choice? To help with understanding technical terms and concepts I recommend the following resources:
• Investopedia
• Mergers & Inquisitions
• The E Financial Careers Guide
• The Goldman Sachs Capital Markets Guide
• Goldman Sachs Overview of Divisions
• The J.P. Morgan Jargon Buster
• Market Place Videos
• Money Week Videos
• Khan Academy

Part 2 is here.

 

[Trigger1]

I'm not sure if this can be generalized, but if you study in Eastern Europe + will be paying Home/EU fees + study towards national exams of your country and applying for undergrad: LSE is out of question. Of course if you are an IMO medalist or something similar caliber obviously go for it because you gonna get the offer, and if you aren't still you should try anyway.

But otherwise the reality is that you can have great things on your PS, if the four things above apply to you, you got nothing coming (except those who study towards IB). Hell, even I had some pretty decent things on my PS and got rejected straight away. Same applies for another guy who was top of his class in the best high school in my country and even had a Harvard guy helping with his letter (guy anyway won a gold medal at one of the olympiads and even though this wasn't on his PS at the time he was applying, I guess you can imagine the overall profile he had). I could give three similar examples to that over the years and I'm yet to meet with a fellow national who got into ugrad at LSE and wasn't completing IB. Just saying.

 

[Aspiring member1]

I have my few doubts regarding 'university degree choice'. I spoke to this senior investment banker, who explained that they often hire those from a financial-related degree subject (maths, economics, etc.) and they hold a considerable advantage against those who studied a humanities subject for example. I found it odd, as most banks state in their criteria, that they hire applicants from a wide range of degrees.

Regarding universities, they explained that unless you have not attended Oxford, Cambridge, LSE or Imperial, then you are on an uphill battle. Was interesting to hear this.

 

[Trigger1]

I have my few doubts regarding 'university degree choice'. I spoke to this senior investment banker, who explained that they often hire those from a financial-related degree subject (maths, economics, etc.) and they hold a considerable advantage against those who studied a humanities subject for example. I found it odd, as most banks state in their criteria, that they hire applicants from a wide range of degrees.

Regarding universities, they explained that unless you have not attended Oxford, Cambridge, LSE or Imperial, then you are on an uphill battle. Was interesting to hear this.

Course choice does not matter. For trading, it surely helps to have a strong background in a quantitative subject but it's not a requirement (it's a different story with quants though, obviously); in banking, since the actual job could be done by a monkey, it doesn't matter whether you have studied Economics or Music. Even if you have some kind of a related degree, you'll learn basically everything on the job itself.

Saying that unless you have attended Oxbridge LSE or Imperial you are standing an uphill battle is also bullshit - UCL and Warwick place very similarly. Outside of those six, yes there is a big gap - especially for those who have a weak background anyway.

 

[Mr. Exclusive1]

I have my few doubts regarding 'university degree choice'. I spoke to this senior investment banker, who explained that they often hire those from a financial-related degree subject (maths, economics, etc.) and they hold a considerable advantage against those who studied a humanities subject for example. I found it odd, as most banks state in their criteria, that they hire applicants from a wide range of degrees.

Regarding universities, they explained that unless you have not attended Oxford, Cambridge, LSE or Imperial, then you are on an uphill battle. Was interesting to hear this.

It's worth pointing out that what is written above is designed to generalise as you have to when writing something like that.

I am in no doubt that particular senior banker is correct. However, it really does vary from institution. There are some institutions that are very much closed to those outside the top six and others which are more than welcoming. Likewise, there are some which do not like people with unrelated degrees and others which are much more welcoming (if you can justify your motivation). But, the majority of banks are open to a reasonable variety of universities and degree choices.

The senior banker you spoke with also may have been reflecting his own personal preferences when hiring for his team rather than the bank as a whole.

Some divisions such as Quantitative Analytics and Trading though have a very large preference for quantitative degrees. Other areas such as IBD do not.

 

[Aspiring member1]

Course choice does not matter. For trading, it surely helps to have a strong background in a quantitative subject but it's not a requirement (it's a different story with quants though, obviously); in banking, since the actual job could be done by a monkey, it doesn't matter whether you have studied Economics or Music. Even if you have some kind of a related degree, you'll learn basically everything on the job itself.

Saying that unless you have attended Oxbridge LSE or Imperial you are standing an uphill battle is also bullshit - UCL and Warwick place very similarly. Outside of those six, yes there is a big gap - especially for those who have a weak background anyway.

I thought that too, as I thought emphasis was placed on all the Russell Group universities themselves, not just those select few. Perhaps this banker was expressing his own personal views than of the bank he represents.

 

[CTRL ES1]

The key isn't whether a bank prefers the target 6 or whether they prefer a particular degree choice.

It's all about aptitude (for a better word but you could insert smarts, intelligence, ability to learn/do well), simples. When 'Amazing BB' took Jeff, the Classics student from Cambridge, it wasn't because it was just Cambridge and his diverse degree alone. Jeff had to show a certain level of aptitude. People had to be convinced that he could be moulded into a...banker.

Similarly, Karl, a Classics student who studies at Bristol has to prove that aptitude, as well.

When GS took a guy from Surrey university a few years back, it wasn't because they were targeting Surrey and his degree. He just happened to tick the boxes.

There is a caveat for a few select roles. Quants being one and trading being another to a certain extent. If you see a Classics grad on an options desk, chances are that he's probably Oxbridge, apt Mathematician and chose to do something at university that he enjoyed.