Several schools show a proclivity for placing graduates within the asset management industry, points out an eVestment report.
eVestment Research’s May 2014 Education Report titled: “Representation of Universities and Colleges Across the Asset Management Industry” is based on a data set of over 35,000 active professionals, from over 4,500 asset management firms, who represent over 900 universities and colleges globally. The education report depicts the representation of universities and colleges across the asset management space.
Ivy league schools’ strong representation
The eVestment report points out that by and large, overall university prestige seemed to correlate strongly to placement within the asset management industry. Ivy league schools are heavily represented across the asset management industry, accounting for 24.9% of all undergraduate degrees and 30.8% of all MBA degrees based on data reported to eVestment. The following graph captures the trend:
As can be seen from the following graph, almost two-thirds of all professionals in eVestment’s data set held a degree.
The report also notes given the recent explosion of programs tailored to those interested in advanced finance degrees such as the master’s in finance and master’s in financial engineering, this proportion is expected to trend higher.
Proclivity towards asset management industry
The eVestment report highlights that some schools show a knack for placing graduates within the asset management industry, beyond what potential matriculants may anticipate given the perceived value of the ‘name of the school’ and claims made regarding their campus recruitment office.
The following exhibit captures the top U.S. schools by product strategy:
The top schools globally by product strategy are highlighted in the following exhibit:
The report highlights that the financial services industry continues to be one of the leading fields of interest for business school students and recent graduates, and asset management in particular may play a larger role going forward.
The eVestment report also notes that given the nature of investment manager databases, their information on asset management professionals skews heavily in favor of front office roles. The following graph elucidates this trend:
