The three degree subjects most likely to get you a job in banking

In theory, banks are open minded inclusive places that are more than happy to hire liberal arts graduates just so long as those graduates can pass a few numerical tests and answer some mathematical interview questions. 

That's the theory. The reality, however, is very different.

We analyzed the degree subjects of 50 analysts (ie. juniors) picked at random working in front office sales and trading or advisory jobs at Goldman Sachs, at J.P. Morgan's investment bank, and at UBS's investment bank. The analysts in question were based everywhere from London and New York to Singapore, Shanghai and Hong Kong.

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Weirdly, however, no matter where they worked and no matter which country they attended university in, almost every analyst had studied one of three subjects at bachelor's degree level. They were:

- Economics

- Economics and maths

- Business

None of the front office analysts in our sample had studied anything even resembling Art History or English literature. The most far out degree subject we came across was Psychology. A few junior traders had studied Computer Science. One member of our sample had studied Philosophy, but it was combined with economics. The dearth of liberal arts degrees held as much for advisory as for trading roles - even though advisory jobs in banks are deemed more charisma-heavy and less dependent on mathematical ability and prior financial knowledge.

Conclusion: banks like to hire people who know about economics and business. If you want to work in front office banking, forget banks' claims to be open-minded and don't risk studying anything else.