FAQs

The Masters in Finance gives you a thorough and focused training in finance. Choose the Masters in Finance if you're interested in:

• Advancing your career in finance;
• changing your role within the finance area, or;
• deepening your existing financial knowledge.

The MBA gives you thorough training in general management. Choose the MBA if you're interested in:

• building a career in general management;
• studying specialist subjects like organisational behaviour, operations management and marketing;
• studying finance as part of a broader degree.

This is not a common route for our MiF graduates, as the course is applied and practical - and aimed at finance practitioners. However we have known candidates that have followed a career in academic research.

No, you can do a general Masters in Finance and tailor the programme to your interests and goals through selecting electives of your choice. Concentrations allow you to focus your academic and practical learning in a specific area, helping you to progress as a specialist in that area.

Yes, Finance@Work is available to everyone. It is designed for you to gain practical knowledge and experience from companies in London that you otherwise may not have exposure to, so that you can understand real life issues facing companies and how they deal with those issues.

Students who are qualified accountants or who hold a professional certification in accounting (e.g. CPA) can waive out of the preparatory accounting course.

Students who are confident of their statistics knowledge and pass a test can waive out of the Data Analytics for Finance introductory course.

LBS Careers provides support in 4 ways:

• Career Development – you will develop the skills necessary to manage your individual career strategy; whether that is conducting an effective job search, accelerating in your organisation or setting up your own entrepreneurial venture.
• Career Coaching – one-to-one tailored support to give you a better understanding of who you are, what you have to offer and what is right for you.
• Career and Networking Opportunities – you will have the opportunity to explore and examine different sectors, companies and roles through meeting practitioners and professionals.
• Career Insights – you will build on your own research by accessing up to date information on employment trends, hiring practices, as well as geographic, sector and company insights.

The programme prepares you for a financial career in any professional organisation. It's of particular relevance to those working in:

• investment management, security analysis and broking
• capital markets, trading and risk management
• venture capital or private equity
• hedge funds
• retail and commercial banking
• regulatory roles and central banking
• supranational banks, such as the World Banks
• corporate finance and restructuring
• corporate planning and consultancy
• investment banking
• specialist advisory and/consulting
• finance in public-sector organisations, the finance function, controller's department or treasury operations of industrial, commercial, and service organisations

Yes. We have relationships with a wide range of top-tier financial institutions and corporates who are looking for finance talent from LBS. Many firms will conduct recruitment activities via presentations or networking events to engage with MBA and Masters in Finance students. You can find details on the employers who hired MiF students in the past in the Employment Reports section.

Whether for internships or full time jobs, there are typically two different paths MiFs follow in recruitment - structured recruitment and direct hire recruitment. Companies who want an ongoing, existing pipeline of mid-career students have structured “Associate / Finance Leadership Programmes.” Because they can plan ahead for their business needs, these roles tend to be more visible and competitive. The route to getting a structured internship is more predictable but the timing is less flexible.

Student may also pursue direct hire recruitment. These are roles offered throughout the year when a business need arises. Some are advertised and in addition there are many “hidden” or unadvertised opportunities. They are driven by your networking efforts, offer flexibility and recruitment happens closer to the actual start date.

London Business School's prepares you for a global career. You will be able to make use of the School's global network of more than 58,000+ alumni wherever you seek work. The Career Centre also collaborate with the Student clubs to organise annual sector specific Career Treks in international locations (e.g. New York, Silicon Valley, Hong Kong, Germany, Ireland) to help you gain international career insights and connect with local alumni. We also have a wide range of online resources, job boards and insights to support your international job search.

As a member of our alumni community we hope that you continue to engage with us for your career development needs.

We run an annual programme of webinars, events and workshops to support you in your career and professional development. These cover a range of topics, from developing your personal brand to becoming a Non-Executive Director.

We provide access to a range of resources and also offer alumni the opportunity to work with a career coach.

We don't normally consider applicants with fewer than two years' relevant work experience. This is because: you will get a great deal more out of the programme if you come to London Business School with prior relevant work experience. Candidates with past experience in finance enrich the programme for the other participants. If you are a new graduate you may wish to consider our Masters in Financial Analysis.

Work experience should be in finance or a closely related field (such as corporate law, finance journalism or IT in a financial institution). Candidates will need to have experienced enough financial transactions to be able to contribute to cases discussed in class.

Applicants working in IT will need to show significant exposure to finance-related products. The programme is not designed for people without prior finance experience who are planning to effect a career change into finance (for this, a general management programme like our MBA is more appropriate course of study).

It is an excellent choice for people who want to switch areas within finance or generally expand and deepen their finance knowledge. We are looking for individuals for whom the programme is a good “career fit”, and who have the potential to have successful future careers.

We can only process one application for one programme per candidate at any one time. If you apply for two programmes you will be asked which one you prefer. The preferred application will proceed and your second choice will be placed on hold. If your preferred application is unsuccessful, your second choice application will be reactivated. If you are shortlisted for interview the interviewer will be happy to discuss your programme choices.

We look carefully for: academic record; work experience and track record; application and personal statement; reference, GMAT/GRE score; interview performance.

The admissions committee makes a careful, balanced judgement based on all these criteria, both on absolute grounds and also relative to the other candidates being considered.

No. Your application is very important, and only the best applicants will be invited for interview. No one is offered a place without a personal interview.

Yes. If you are shortlisted for a place on the programme, we can arrange for you to talk to one of our alumni and hear about their experiences of the programme.

Please see visa requirements for more information.

We aim to treat all applications to our programmes fairly and equally, in accordance with our published application policies and procedures. Competition for places on our programmes is very intense and the quality of the applicant pool is extremely high. Consequently, we are not able to offer places to a large number of qualified candidates.

In the great majority of cases we are unable to give individual detailed feedback as the decision is the result of the high degree of competition. Our initial review of each application checks that the candidate has met our basic admissions criteria. All candidates are reviewed. In some exceptional cases we actively encourage applicants to improve their application and reapply with some feedback on how to enhance their competitiveness as a candidate.

The School does not have any arrangements for students to transfer between its programmes or to/from a programme at another institution.

If there is new information that adds significant weight to your reapplication, the Admissions Committee will consider this. Examples include an increased level of responsibilities, a new role, a new qualification or a substantially improved GMAT or English test score. If there is no new information, no purpose can be served by reapplying. You will need to submit a new application through the LBS website.

Appeals will only be considered against an admissions decision on the following grounds:

• There is substantive evidence of bias or prejudice against the applicant
• There is substantive evidence that the Admissions Committee have departed from published policies and procedures.

In the first instance appeals should be made in writing to the admissions team. The admissions team will acknowledge the appeal within 5 working days and respond fully within 20 working days.

If, following this step, the applicant is dissatisfied with the outcome they may petition the Executive Director of the programme to review their case. This decision will be final.

We offer waivers for GMAT/GRE to a very small number of applicants. To qualify, candidates will need to exhibit previous academic excellence. GMAT/GRE waiver decisions are made at the discretion of the MiF Admissions Committee. When the Admissions Committee are considering whether or not to grant a waiver, they will be looking for strong grades in previous university studies, especially in quantitative subjects, and outstanding professional experience in finance. In addition, professional qualifications will add weight to the case for a test waiver. Holding CFA II or above gives you an automatic GMAT waiver. If you are a non-native English speaker, we will also be seeking to establish that you are fluent in English. It is important to note that having insufficient time to prepare for GMAT/GRE (for example, due to work commitments) is not one of the grounds on which a waiver will be granted.

You are welcome to submit your application without a test score. After reviewing your complete application we will advise you that:

• 1 - we have decided to waive the GMAT/GRE requirement OR
• 2 - we have decided to move forward to interview, but our offer may still be conditional on a strong GMAT/GRE score OR
• 3 - we have decided to wait for a test score before making a decision to call you for interview OR
• 4 - we have decided not to consider you for this intake.

In all cases the Admissions Committee reserves the right to require a strong score in GMAT or GRE before confirming a place on the programme.

The earlier you apply, the more time we will be able to give you to take the test, if we make a conditional offer. Conversely, if you apply very late in the cycle, you will have a shorter time frame to meet the test requirement of a conditional offer, and it will be unlikely that you will be given the option to resit if your first test siting does not go well.

Practice the GMAT test with London Business School's GMAT simulator and prepare yourself for the test.

As a first step, you should submit your CV for review. If we believe the programme is a good fit for you, we may then give our view on your test options, however in most cases we will need to assess a full application before making a decision on whether to grant you a GMAT/GRE waiver.

All applications submitted without a GMAT/GRE score will be automatically considered for a waiver.

If you are offered a GMAT/GRE waiver you may still wish to take the test in order to make your application more competitive to the Admissions Committee. We receive a large number of applications for the programme and it is a highly competitive selection process. A high test score is important to some recruiters, so you should be prepared to take it to maximise your future employment potential.

Most students on the programme are self-financing, but about 25% are sponsored by their employers. Many companies recognise the benefits of an employee attending the programme. For example, for their project many Masters in Finance participants carry out research and analysis into a particular area of interest to their sponsoring company. See our Fees and Financing page for information on creating a business case for company sponsorship.

There may be opportunities to earn as a full-time student through securing an internship or a company sponsored project. If you are fully sponsored by your employer they may continue to pay your salary during the course. If you choose the part-time format, we expect that you will remain in your job and continue to receive your normal salary.