Can connections and supreme self-confidence get you a job in financial services without going to university?

We're a little late with this, mostly because we've been trying hard to get in contact with 17 year old schoolboy Joshua Moss, who hasn't responded to our advances.

According to a recent article in City Am, Joshua is endeavouring to find a financial services job in London without going to university.

He is doing this by:

- Approaching people on LinkedIn

- Cold calling people

- Having "weapons-grade persistence"

- Being abnormally self-confident

Cunningly, Moss hasn't been cold-calling senior recruiters at large banks: he's been going for chief executives at mid-tier broking firms. Among those he's approached are Arden Partners, Cornhill Capital and Singer Capital Markets.

Nick Bealer, head of corporate broking at Cornhill Capital, says he recalls Moss calling him a few months' ago. It helped that he was able to say that'd Bealer had been referred to him by someone else.

"He knew someone else in the industry who'd suggested he give me a call," Bealer recollects. "I don't remember all the details, except that he was very bullish about himself - not that there's anything wrong with that in this industry."

Moss's bullishness is reflected by his LinkedIn profile, where he quotes Donald Trump and claims to be:

'A highly driven, ambitious, persistent 17 year old looking to blaze a trail in the financial sector.'

For all his ebullience, Bealer didn't offer Moss a job. Whether Moss has found something elsewhere isn't clear. However, Bealer points out that it's not strictly necessary to go to university if you want to work in financial services: "Both of my sons are in the industry and they didn't go," he tells us. "However, I was able to recommend them to people and that does help."