The 'cheap' qualification that will get you a job at Goldman Sachs

More senior bankers have MBAs than any other post-graduate qualification, but before you rush out to spend up to $100k at a top business school, you might want to consider other, cheaper qualifications.

Yes, more MBAs are avoiding financial services, but banks and private equity companies have less of an appetite to hire them anyway. What about a Masters in Management? It’s less than half the price and, in theory, increases your chances of getting a job.

Our analysis of the latest MBA class at London Business School, and its 2015 Masters in Management graduates, suggests that banks, private equity firms and investment managers are hiring more of the latter.

27% of LBS’s MBAs went into finance this year, compared to 35% of its MiM class. MiMs were also more likely to go into investment banking specifically - 18% went into investment banking, compared to just 8% of MBAs.

A MiM also looks more likely to get you a job at Goldman Sachs. Goldman hired 5% of London Business School's MiM class in 2015, and 2% of its MBAs.

This is impressive given that the one year MiM is both cheaper in fees and lower in terms of opportunity cost than the two year MBA. A Masters in Management at LBS costs £28.9k and lasts for 12 months. An MBA costs £72.7k and lasts for 20 months – or £43.6k on an annualised basis.

MiM graduates earned much less, however, as most go into the industry on the bottom rung. MBAs, meanwhile, are hired at associate level and often offered guaranteed compensation to help pay off their expensive tuition fees.

A MiM gives you a greater chance of getting into finance, but an MBA has historically offered better career progression.