City of London recovers as finance students’ workplace of choice

Laurence

Finance students are now less likely to consider quitting the UK upon graduation than they were during the depths of the financial crisis, according to the latest survey by eFinancialCareers.com, the leading global careers site for financial professionals.

Eighty-five percent of UK-based finance students surveyed say London remains their preferred financial centre in which to work on graduation. In 2009, only 65% said they wanted to work in London on finishing their studies.

Similarly, far fewer now say they feel awkward telling their friends they would like to have a career in the City – just 17% feeling uncomfortable, compared to more than a third last year.

Determination to get their foot in the door has also grown. Almost all the 315 UK finance students surveyed said they will try again if they fail to achieve their desired job or internship before they graduate, compared to just three-quarters in 2009. And almost two thirds of respondents would be prepared to work for nothing to land their first job in the financial sector – up from just over half in 2009.

But the need to take such drastic steps would appear to be diminishing with an increased percentage of students receiving a job offer prior to graduation. Almost a third of those graduating in 2010 said they had already been offered a job in financial services, compared to just a fifth last year. Internships were also up for those due to graduate in coming years: more than half those who had applied this year had been offered one, as opposed to just 31% last year.

However, a perceived lack of opportunities in the City and higher taxes in the UK remain the dominant bugbears amongst those students considering working abroad on graduation – New York, Hong Kong and Singapore being the leading destinations cited.

And while still the most popular, the gloss seems to have come off Goldman Sachs as the preferred employer - only a fifth nominating it as their first choice of employer, down from almost a third last year. Barclays Capital remained second favourite down from 13% to 12%.

James Bennett, Managing Director, EMEA and APAC for eFinancialCareers.com, said:
“The allure of the City is coming back – confidence and desire amongst financial students is returning, bolstered in part by the healthier graduate recruitment level of financial organisations. However, City HR professionals need to remain vigilant on how best to promote their organisations to ensure the City continues to attract and retain the top talent, given the continued concern about taxes in the UK when compared to other financial centres.”
The eFinancialCareers.com online survey of 315 students took place during July 2010.


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About eFinancialCareers
eFinancialCareers, a Dice Holdings, Inc. company, is the leading global career site network for professionals working in the investment banking, asset management and securities industries. The website provides financial services professionals with job opportunities, job market news and analysis, salary surveys and career advice. Recruiters and employers can post jobs targeting specific sectors within the financial services industry, both buy-side and sell-side, and can search the resume database for highly qualified and specialized professionals. eFinancialCareers has a network of co-branded career sites with industry-leading trade publications and offers local websites in 18 markets and five languages primarily across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. www.eFinancialCareers.co.uk

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