Masters in Finance students with their laptops and chatting outside at WBS

Beyond the rankings: MSc Finance students benefit from Warwick Business School's close ties with top firms like PwC

“From refining my CV to preparing for interviews and connecting me with alumni, their guidance gave me the edge I needed,” says MSc Finance graduate Filippo Guerrieri on the importance of a strong careers department. 

Filippo is now a Quantitative Researcher at Goldman Sachs and credits the help of Warwick Business School’s MSc CareersPlus & Employer Relations team for his new role. 

“I especially appreciated their personalised approach,” he says. “They took the time to understand my goals and helped me map out a realistic path to get there.” 

While rankings like the Financial Times Master’s in Finance Ranking offer valuable insights into academic quality and global reputation, one factor increasingly shaping graduate success is industry connectivity.  

At WBS, its specialist Master’s careers service not only provides one-to-one advice, workshops, and industry events, but connects top businesses like American Express, Morgan Stanley and UBS to aspiring students thanks to its deep ties to the financial sector. 

Introduction to Master’s in Finance rankings 

It is important to understand the distinct methodologies behind the QS Business Master’s Rankings and the Financial Times Master’s in Finance Ranking. The QS rankings, which saw WBS ranked 19th in the world for Finance, emphasise academic reputation, employer reputation, and faculty research impact, with 40 per cent of a course’s final score based on global surveys of academics and 10 per cent from employer feedback.  

QS also considers faculty/student ratios, international diversity, and research citations. This approach favours institutions with strong global visibility and brand recognition but may not fully reflect career outcomes or industry engagement. 

In contrast, the Financial Times rankings focus specifically on business education outcomes, using data reported directly by schools and alumni.  

Key metrics include salary increase after graduation, career progression, value for money, and international mobility.  

For example, Warwick Business School’s MSc Finance ranks in the global top 20 in the FT list, reflecting its strong career outcomes and industry connections. 

Importance of industry connections 

As well as being accredited by the top three global bodies – EQUIS, which is the quality inspecting body for the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD), the Association for MBAs (AMBA) and US-based Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) – WBS is a CFA Affiliated University, so its MSc Finance curriculum is closely tied to the investment management industry and can help prepare students for the CFA Program exams. 

Kebin Ma, Associate Professor of Finance and Course Director for the MSc Finance, says: “Rankings only tell part of the story. What truly sets a finance course apart is how well it connects students to the real world of finance.  

“At WBS, our curriculum is designed in collaboration with industry leaders, ensuring relevance and rigour. From guest lectures by senior executives to live consulting projects with global firms, students gain exposure to the challenges and innovations shaping finance today. 

“Finance is a relationship-driven industry. Whether you are aiming for investment banking, asset management, fintech, or corporate finance, who you know can be just as important as what you know.” 

To help with making the right connections WBS offers networking opportunities through finance-focused career fairs, alumni mentoring schemes, industry panels and a speaker series, plus global networking events in cities like London, Dubai, and Singapore. 

These experiences help students build meaningful connections that often lead to internships, job offers, and long-term career growth. 

WBS MSc Finance alumni have gone on to work at firms such as: 

  • Goldman Sachs 
  • JP Morgan 
  • BlackRock 
  • HSBC 
  • PwC 
  • McKinsey & Company 

Professor Ma says: “Our strong ties with these companies are not just symbolic - they are strategic. Through partnerships, internships, and recruitment pipelines, WBS ensures students are not just job-ready, but career-ready.” 

Evaluating courses based on industry connections 

These industry links are how graduates can get their foot in the door in an extremely competitive jobs market. Often, gaining an MSc Finance is just the start for graduates; they need to do so much more to secure their dream career, including using the alumni network of the business school. 

This is why prospective students need to find out if the school is actively engaged in mentoring and recruitment, and how engaged the alumni network is. The more engaged and primed the alumni network is the more helpful it will be as there will be many already at top companies. 

Also, WBS has this year introduced the option for MSc Finance students to swap the end-of-course dissertation with an internship that includes a written report.

Another key factor that students need to discover is how much the curriculum is aligned with current industry needs. To progress in finance graduates will need to take professional exams with bodies like the CFA Institute and so courses that align with them provide students with a head start.  

WBS alumni have launched careers in London, New York, Dubai, and Hong Kong, with the School’s MSc Employment Report finding that 63 per cent of those in work are employed overseas. An excellent 91 per cent of WBS graduates are in a job six months after completing the MSc Finance, with 75 per cent of them working in the finance sector. 

WBS collaborates with institutions like the Bank of England, Barclays, and Deloitte to offer real-world learning, research opportunities, and career pathways. 

Professor Ma added: “Choosing a Master’s in Finance course is a pivotal decision. Rankings matter, but so do relationships. At Warwick Business School, our MSc Finance course combines academic excellence with industry immersion, helping students not just enter the finance world, but thrive in it.”

Discover more about the School’s MSc Finance. 

Learn more about Warwick Business School’s Change Makers.