If it was just the higher starting salary (which can be translated to a couple of hundrend pounds extra net income per month if i am not wrong), none would spend a fortune in terms of direct costs and opportunity costs to pursue an advanced degree. Its mainly the expectation of a faster career progress, and the expectation of higher glass ceilings.Dont see things in static setting. Career is a dynamic setting and should be seen within a 30 yrs horison at least. Regarding my last post of "brains" versus "hands", be sure i dont confuse education (academic or professional) with IQ. Universities do exist essentially to produce an elite. The higher the level of studies the more restricted this elite is. By "brains" i was refering to the sort of person with a vast and valueable skills set and in depth know how on a field of knowledge who is hired mainly to think and provide solutions to complex problems. Typically such persons have high expert power thus can enforce some rules and are less expendable. I hope i am clear.

It is easier to get a heavy duty, technical advanced degree straight after your studies than once you have started to be involved in managerial bullshit... In which one may drown themselves.Most pathetic characters in investment banks are, I believe, members of low level management that will go nowhere because of a lack of both technical skills and sense for the bigger picture. They often made a first and last jump up because they have been sitting there for ever. Then they have to hold to it desperately because they are de facto more or less unemployable - yet maybe not bad enough to be fired. Needless to say, their staff suffers from it. This is blinding in one of the group I am providing a service for.

And yet those guys never get made redundant. When I was at JP Morgan, during one of the many mergers, they made all the graduates on the desk redundant. Laughable, since they were all on about £40k and most had potential. But the managerial cadre kept their jobs. That place was mad, though - one group of say 15 traders had 8 managers.

QuoteOriginally posted by: Alphabet2004And yet those guys never get made redundant. When I was at JP Morgan, during one of the many mergers, they made all the graduates on the desk redundant. Laughable, since they were all on about £40k and most had potential. But the managerial cadre kept their jobs. That place was mad, though - one group of say 15 traders had 8 managers.Thing is during the "downsizing wave" a lot of those old guys were made redundant - and it caused HUGE damage. they actually carry a lot of the knowledge and understanding of how a firm works around with them in their heads. As such while they look like they only know how to do one thing (and you can make a good case for having good 2nd division players there who do one thing well and have no ambition to do more) in actual fact they know how to do one thing in your environment and that's a vital skill.