I think you need to look at the *course* and not only the school. Of those four, only Durham gets into the FT ranking for MSc degrees: http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/masters-in-management .

As business schools, the FT ranks them in this order: Durham; Manchester; Edinburgh: http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/european-business-school-rankings-2010 . Any of those three schools will be great.

If you want to work in finance, is it too late to switch into an MSc in finance? The MSc's at Edinburgh and Durham are especially well respected for finance (http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/masters-in-finance-pre-experience-2011). They and Manchester have MSc finance programmes which are CFA partner programmes http://www.cfainstitute.org/partners/university/Pages/cfa_program_university_partners.aspx

UCL is not ranked, and it does not have a notable business school. The fee is preposterously high in comparison to the other, better know business schools. I guess that's the premium for studying in London, even if the quality of the experience and the networking will be weaker.

PS If you are limited to the MSc's in management, I do think the Edinburgh options look really strong for finance.

Duncan. Thank you! Your are a great asset.

I have no relevant work experience, fresh graduate and come from a non-quantitative background making it difficult to be accepted into a respectable Finance program. I did try at a couple of schools but I was rejected. I think the management is more suited to my background.

I'm looking at perhaps pursueing Wealth management as an entry level position and then trying to leverage that into Asset Management through work exp/networking. However I will gain exposure to other Management area and marketing is also an interest ( and is more relevant to my humanities undergraduate).

I like Edinburghs courses. I have recieved a more detailed breakdown of the modules showing week by week topics - giving me a greater understanding of the content than the other schools. Manchester has large alumni network I believe and also has a great reputation. Durham I wasn't keen on their electives so I'm discounting them really.

Point taken about UCL.

Honestly Duncan I'm leaning towards Edinburgh. I see you are expert in MBA recruitment and your knowledge is admireable (judging from your previous posts in different topics). Whilst a broad which University holds the most weight Internationally between Edinburgh and Manchester. iF I WERE YOUR CLIENT ASKING FOR CONSULTING ADVICE BETWEEN MANCHESTER MBA AND eDINBURGH MBA WHICH ONE WOULD YOU BE MORE INCLINED TO FAVOUR (hehe sorry caps lock mistake).

Thank you.

Hi there,

Well, it's important to pick the course and not just the school. You are not choosing between the MBAs, but between the MSc ;-)

As an MBA, the Manchester programme is much better for your goals: it allows internships and an international exchange. Those would be great opportunities for you to get into the Asian finance scene. Manchester also has a better MBA alumni network than Edinburgh in places like Hong Kong.

However, those are not the choices available to you. If I was you, I would check with each of the schools you;re in touch with about whether it might be possible to take a more quantitative course. Edinburgh has slightly more flexible criteria. I know you're not keen on Durham, but it has the biggest range of CFA partner programmes in the English-speaking world and a huge range of courses. Looking at the MSc degrees in management you're admitted to, Edinburgh seems to have the best fit, especially with the optional course but also because Edinburgh is more of a financial centre than Manchester.

One final thought: why not find an MSc in investments, accounting, economics or ideally finance in Europe or Asia which starts in January, and then spend the next term somewhere else (cheaper) taking quantitative courses? In Europe I think there are January or February starts at the CATÓLICA-LISBON, CIIM, ESGF, Luxembourg, Nottingham, Skema and Westminster business schools for MSc's in finance, for example.

Look at the International Trade & Finance (M.A.) at Leeds Metropolitan University; it is offered both in Leeds and in Hangzhou, China, in partnership with Zhejiang University of Technology.

Why not try

+ MSC Finance in Stirling
+ MSc Finance Accounting in St Andrews. ( this is the easier course in the management school and not economics one)

They accept no finance or quantitative background and cheap and easy to get into.

St Andrews is posher than any other above. Even life there is little pathetic

Donho, are you thinking of the MLitt in Finance and Management at St Andrews?

Hi Duncan,
I am having 4.5 yrs work ex. I am thinking of going for a Msc in Human Resource Management from University of Sheffield. Will that be a good option in terms of ROI and placements?

Why not do an MBA?

Duncan, Actually I am planning for a course in HR. What would be the difference between an Msc in HRM and MBA in HR in terms of placements? If I have two choices,Msc in HR against MBA in HR, which should be the best option? Thanks in advance.

Well, if RoI is a consideration then the difference matters. MBAs are very well paid, and HR managers are averagely paid. The differences in course fees is smaller, so an MBA has a faster and better RoI.

If you want to work in the UK as an HR administrator, then you should look for a masters course that leads to the advanced level CIPD diploma (http://www.cipd.co.uk/qualifications/where-qualified). I can recommend Kings' College London from personal experience, but the other schools will be good as well. I'd especially recommend looking for a schools that either has an AMBA-accredited MBA (since that will have good careers services) and is not a former polytechnic. Aston, Birmingham, Bradford, Sheffield, and Leeds looks good, while Manchester and Warwick are strongest.

If you want a more senior role, then an MBA will cover much of the core curriculum of the CIPD. A few schools, such as Edinburgh, Leicester and Liverpool, even have a formal concentration in HRM. They will have much better placement results.

Dear Duncan,

I have seen your posts on this forum and found them very useful. I want to share my profile to seek your advice on selection of right MBA.

I am 32 years old Chartered Accountant from Pakistan and currently working in a company based in Dubai. I have post qualification experience of almost 8 years that includes experience with Deloitte and PwC as a manager audit for more than 5 years both in Pakistan and UAE. Currently I am working as a Finance Manager in a very large company in Dubai for last 3 years.

Now I want to move from accounting and financial reporting function to a more broader finance function and my plans post MBA are to join financial advisory / consultancy of any of the big 4 accounting firm either in UK or Middle East.

I am flexible between executive or full time MBA but i believe for a career change full time MBA would be more suitable. Location wise I prefer UK but flexible for any other country in Europe.

I will highly appreciate if you can guide me as to selection of right MBA program keeping in view my career aspirations and profile.

Regards
Nirmal