deszie wrote:
Hey guys,
I'm posting this in response to Snowden's commentary on the MBF course which I don't think is entirely objective.
please understand that my stand-alone posts are completely objective. I have alluded to personal experiences of both mine and others only when i have answered queries. in my defense those queries were of subjective/personal nature.
deszie wrote:
I don't doubt his/her personal experience at HSG and I agree with some of the observations made, but I will say that my
own experience (as an EU citizen & native English speaker with little or no German and NO other languages) was quite different.
Since you accuse me of not being objective, i was really expecting an objective view from you, not a motivation letter
deszie wrote:
THE MBF COURSE
Regarding passing in 3 semesters, I don't know if its such "a big achievement" to get your courses done in 3 semesters, I did (in addition to 22 supplementary credits & CFA level 1), I wasn't alone, and I didn't have to kill myself working to achieve it. I'm also starting work without having written my thesis which is not uncommon (employers seem to be quite flexible in this regard).
please remember that you have not yet graduated, and at HSG you have to get a minimum of 4/6 on your master thesis to pass it.
deszie wrote:
People who take 4 semesters seem to be the ones who went on exchange to the US or Asia, or those who take 1 or 2 courses in the 4th semester alongside writing their thesis.
It is true however, that some people were unlucky and had to take 40 or more supplementary credits, these people I think may have to take 4 semesters to finish.
i guess you did not really mean that the admissions committee plays super lotto in deciding the number of supplementary credits. otherwise i really dont nderstand where the 'luck' factor comes in. Although it is true that going on exchange extends your study.
deszie wrote:
I believe that the 2014 MBF course is different to my own with regard to supplementary credits. I think you have the option to take a fresher's week which reduces the amount of credits you have to take (not too sure how it works)
this is called 'integration days'. and for the record participation in integration days means you can get a max of 20 credits subject to you passing it. there is no partial pass. so failure in integration days implies full load of 20 credits.
deszie wrote:
JOB PROSPECTS
Generally it seems to be easier to get a job in Switzerland/Germany than London (don't know if this is because of the University's better reputation here or because London is just more difficult overall). However, I do know 7-8 people who were offered front office positions in GS, JPM, Blackrock etc.
For non-EU citizens I believe it is quite difficult to secure a UK visa but if you get a job in Switzerland your employer apply for your visa and work permit on your behalf.
That said, I'm sure it is more difficult for non-EU students to get a job/internship. I don't think this is necessarily reflective of the MBF program, it's probably true of all Master's courses across schools in Europe.
For those students who don't speak German but have another European language, Geneva is also an option over Zurich, and the banks there "love St. Gallen" from what I've heard. In job descriptions they seem to ask for English plus another European language.
this is naive gibberish. please read my detailed post on work-permits and canton specific quota system.
deszie wrote:
I should add, the people who get the good jobs tend to have good grades, probably in the top 1/3 of the class. The best students also tended to be German/Swiss/Italian. So while it may seem like all the Swiss and Germans are getting the jobs it is probably deserved.
This is by far the most prejudiced racist comment I have ever heard. WTF is wrong with you? What do you fing mean by German/Sw/it are the best students...so you mean students from eastern europe, Asia, Africa are not good enough. How can you make this comment? Did you conduct a racist performance fing survey? Is that who you are? ..based on this i can see that you are a Swiss with a fake account, praising your own kind in third person...
deszie wrote:
From my own experience, it is possible to get internship/grad position in Zurich while only speaking English.
True, many positions require fluency in German (especially if you will be client facing) however about 1/15 - 1/20 of front office positions do not (mostly in Asset Management, research, or quant roles). Also, middle & back office roles tend to only ask for fluency in English.
Additionally, the BB banks in Zurich don't follow the Milkround approach as in London. You can apply for grad/intern positions all year round (usually starting within 1 month of applying), they probably post up 2/3 new positions every day, which takes a lot of the pressure off.
That said, London teams also come round in October, all the BBs except BAML for some reason, and they are primarily offering the front office IB or S&T roles, some AM and PWM. They did tend to be the Swiss/German teams so if you apply you might have your first round on-campus interview with the Swiss team before getting forwarded to the team of your own nationality in London for the second round.
redundant , i have already extensively covered this 'insight'
deszie wrote:
Personally, I didn't have much luck with the London teams -
because you are actually Swiss..
deszie wrote:
applied to maybe 7 BBs got 1st round for 2 and then got rejected, got to the final of one MM but got rejected. However I only applied to 4 positions in Zurich, got interviews for all of them and accepted a quant/research position at a BB before completing the other 3 (I think I was going to get 1 other offer).
I think you just need to look a bit harder for the roles that only require English, but once you find them the St. Gallen brand really carries you.
GENERAL ADVICE
I came to St. Gallen as I wanted a 3/4 semester Master's course so I could do a summer internship, and because I guessed (correctly I think) it would be easier to secure a job in Zurich than London.
I also got the impression that St. Gallen was a top school with great students and great lecturers etc.
Overall the experience worked out favorably for me and I got a job after a fairly challenging but rewarding Master's course.
I took quite a big risk coming to Switzerland without German or any other European language and I think others in similar positions should be careful about following suit.
That said, even if I had done a Master's in London/UK, it is a fairly big disadvantage to not have a second or third language.
For students with German who want to work in Switzerland/Germany/Austria, this is probably one of the best places to go.
For those with English and another European language but not German, I don't see much of a problem coming here, London and Geneva seem to pick up quite a number of HSG grads. Actually several people went to Germany/Italy as well.
For non-EU citizens, you should definitely have flawless English, and it does seem to be more difficult to secure a job, either in Switzerland or the UK, I think this will be the case for any European B-School.
no take-away from this para other than idle praise of the uni/region/your experience..
-Snowden