This is no surprise considering the lucrativeness of the finance field, which offers high salaries, bonuses, and opportunities for progression.
For Marie Legrand, this dream became a reality. After her dual degree master’s, she joined J.P. Morgan Chase, one of the best banks to work for, in London as a credit trader and her career flourished.
Find out how she gained a transferable skill set and robust business network during her Master in Management/ MSc in Financial Engineering (MFE) at EDHEC Business School, landing a job at one of the world’s most prestigious banks.
From science to business school: Starting on her path to the finance industry
Before embarking on her journey into finance, Marie was on a different trajectory. After two years in preparatory classes in engineering (equivalent to a bachelor in France), she initially had her sights set on a more traditional route but quickly realized that her career aspirations lay elsewhere.
“Despite doing well in my degree, I realized that it wasn’t the path I wanted to follow as a career. I preferred something more practical, particularly related to financial markets,” she explains.
This realization led her to pursue EDHEC’s Master in Management (MiM)—Finance track and opted for the MSc in Financial Engineering in her final year, which she says provided the perfect blend of quantitative skills and practical market experience.
The program aligned with her career goals of working in the financial industry, particularly in trading, and offered a globally recognized education—ranked sixth in the world by the Financial Times—that would open doors to top firms.
“Entering EDHEC was a strategic choice for me because I knew I’d receive a top-tier education and gain access to a massive network,” Marie says.
The location of the program was another significant factor: "Being on the Nice campus, where so much of the focus is on financial markets, really helped prepare me for the demands of my job at J.P. Morgan," she recalls.
Building a career through real-world experience
One of the major reasons Marie was drawn to EDHEC was because of the school's focus on associations and the mandatory internships that helped her build real-world skills that employers value.
One of the unique aspects of the MFE program is the mandatory gap year, which allows students to gain valuable internships before completing their degree. During her time at EDHEC, Marie completed several internships that provided hands-on experience and laid the groundwork for her future career.
Internships offer lasting personal and professional benefits, including the chance to build a global network. Many students secure jobs through their internships at EDHEC, gaining valuable international business connections during their time in the program.
“The biggest advantage was the internship gap year. It really helped me understand different career paths that we could take, even one that I didn't really picture at the beginning, and which is now my current role.”
Marie leveraged this opportunity and landed an eight-month internship at J.P. Morgan in London. She says that this practical knowledge, combined with EDHEC's academic rigor, gave her a competitive edge in securing a position at the financial firm.
“The focus on internships and the support from EDHEC’s career services were invaluable. It’s important to be proactive and take full advantage of the opportunities the school provides.”
Using her financial engineering master’s to launch a career at J.P. Morgan
Securing a job at J.P. Morgan is no easy feat, yet Marie credits her success to the strong foundation built at EDHEC—from the technical skills to the extensive network of alumni and professionals, and the practical application of those skills during her internships.
The program emphasized key concepts such as financial markets, pricing, asset and risk management, and coding: "I regularly use knowledge from my courses, including VBA (Visual Basic for Applications), Python, and machine learning, to boost efficiency and accuracy.”
These coding skills, alongside advanced derivative and fixed-income courses, gave her a solid foundation, helping her stand out in interviews and launch her career in financial markets.
Now, after three years at the company, she has since been promoted to associate credit index trader, where she works with institutional clients to market credit index products.
Reflecting on her career journey, she notes that the blend of technical skills, networking opportunities, and real-world experience that EDHEC offers were instrumental in her success.
“I couldn't have got to where I am today without EDHEC. My master’s in financial engineering not only gave me the tools I needed to succeed in the world of finance but also helped me grow as a professional,” she concludes.
