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There’s No Substitute For Crippling Hours, Emotional Abuse And The Occasional Eating Challenge

Not if you want to make it in banking or hedge funds, that is.
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Why don't you go try your hand at venture capital, loser?

So just forget about that little two-year mini-vacation of blow-off classes, networking parties, fun projects and even better internships (unless you want to go into compliance), and just keep your head down and your spreadsheets updated. Because there is no other way.

Those in European asset management and investment banking holding MBAs stand at 11% and 12% respectively, according to benchmarking website Emolument.com’s database. This is well below the private equity (20%) and venture capital (34%) sectors….One liability manager at a top-tier bank, said he weighed up the choice to study for an MBA several years ago, but opted instead to focus on his day job. He said: “The decision to work hard for a number of years was probably better for me than an MBA….” What hedge funds really value in candidates is a stellar trading record at one of the world’s top 10 banks, according to Christopher Apostolou, founder of headhunter Arbitrage Search.

MBAs still waiting for lift-off among banks and fund houses [FN]

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