LSE MSc Accounting and Finance: Why Ken Chose LSE A&F Over US Offers

Updated 2026/10/16

LSE MSc Accounting and Finance (A&F)

Ken graduated in economics from National Tsing Hua University with a high GPA (3.99/4.3). He was admitted to several US and UK business school programs (UCSD, UIUC, WBS Finance) and chose the London School of Economics’ LSE MSc Accounting and Finance (A&F). Ken also runs his own Instagram account (@keninlondon), so feel free to follow him.

The LSE MSc Accounting and Finance is one of the school’s most popular programs. In the 2023 QS subject rankings for accounting and finance, LSE ranked third in the UK and seventh in the world (in 2025 it was still third in the UK and slipped one place to eighth worldwide), so its academic strength is well established.

The program covers a broad range of accounting and finance topics and aims to give students both theoretical and practical knowledge to prepare them for careers in global finance. Its strengths include its reputation in global financial markets, LSE’s history in academic research and policy development, and the school’s close ties with many financial institutions.

Core areas of study include financial statement analysis, portfolio management, corporate finance, international finance and capital markets. Students can choose from a range of electives and take on practical projects and research to build their knowledge and skills. LSE also offers career development and employment support, such as internship schemes, employer outreach and career planning.

Internships, extracurriculars, volunteering, scholarships and honors

Internship: one internship at a futures firm, doing some basic stock market analysis and helping market algorithmic trading products and strategies. Because I had so little work experience, I also listed my military service under work experience to fill the page.

Extracurriculars: the department student association (organizing a joint sports competition between NTHU and NCTU, and a campus and department open house similar to NTU’s Azalea Festival), the department basketball team, and the alumni association

Volunteering: camps for elementary school children, department camps, and a science camp for junior high students

Honors: Academic Excellence Award ×2

Agency, DIY or partly DIY? Why did you choose that route?

An agency. My English was only average and I didn’t break 100 on the TOEFL until December, so getting help from an agency saved time.

Some US schools ask unusual essay questions (e.g. Duke’s 25 random points about you, how you would contribute to the school’s diversity and equity, how entrepreneurship or teamwork has shaped you…). An agency can help with ideas, but you still have to write most of it yourself.

If I’d had the time, I wouldn’t have used an agency. For students applying mainly to the UK in particular, the SOP content is much the same from school to school, so you can write it yourself and then have it edited.

Why did you apply to this field? What did you weigh up?

I applied to both business analytics (BA) and finance. In recent years, BA graduates have had a better chance of staying in the US, but I was rejected by all 3 BA programs I applied to, possibly because my background leans toward finance. I picked finance because I had taken related courses in college and was interested in it. I also preferred to work back home or elsewhere in Asia, and in Taiwan finance has better career prospects than most other business fields.

If you want to stay in Europe or the US, though, fields that use programming and data, such as financial engineering, data, BA and statistics, make it easier.

Why LSE?

It ranks higher and is well known in Asia.

What is it like to study Accounting & Finance at LSE? Is anything different from what you expected?

It’s been a good experience. The school has all the career support and interview practice you would expect.

In the first term there are two required accounting courses and two required finance courses. Finance is taught like in Taiwan, in big lectures of one or two hundred people, while accounting has more discussion. The second term is all electives, with lots of cases to read and more assignments and discussion. It’s about what I expected, but the courses are intense and you have to keep reviewing to keep up.

Among all the criteria for a UK master’s application (GPA, language scores, GRE/GMAT, essays, exchange, internships), how do you rank them and what do you trade off?

For LSE A&F, it’s GPA > language score (clearing 7/100) = GMAT (700) > internships. Essays are probably similar for everyone, so I leave them out.

UK schools care a great deal about GPA. Next, your language score has to clear the threshold, but beyond that it makes little difference. The GMAT/GRE only matters somewhat at the G5 (UCL doesn’t necessarily require it), LBS and WBS, and many other schools don’t ask for it at all.

How much internships count depends on the school and program, I think. LBS and Imperial, or marketing programs, put more weight on them.

Which part of your background helped you outshine other applicants?

Personally, I think it was a good GPA plus some extracurriculars. But I had too few relevant internships, which is why many US schools turned me down.

What are the basic requirements for this program? What kind of profile helps?

LSE doesn’t interview, so it sets a higher bar on grades. A 3.8/4.3 GPA is the baseline, and the school prefers strong academic performance plus some extracurriculars. For test scores, 100/7 and 700+/320+ as above are safer. In return, it doesn’t put much weight on internship experience.

Where would you recommend looking for information on grad school applications?

Zhuimeng (a Taiwanese study-abroad forum), PTT, Dcard, friends, asking alumni on LinkedIn, and Medium articles

How did you balance coursework and applications in the first semester of senior year?

I only had 8 credits left that semester, so I spent two days a week at school and three at my internship. The internship wasn’t very demanding, and I studied a bit of English whenever I had time. If you still have a lot of courses left, I’d suggest interning in the summer before senior year and preparing for your English test one summer or winter break earlier.

How did you handle the wait for offers?

Once the first offer comes in, you relax a bit. You can also keep an eye on when other applicants hear back, and if it’s taking too long, email the school to ask. That made me feel better.

UCSD also kept me on the waitlist for a long time, but I kept replying that I really wanted to go (even though I didn’t go in the end), and in July I got the offer. So I think whenever there’s a chance, it’s worth emailing to ask or to tell them how much you want to join the program. I’ve also heard of someone who was rejected, kept talking to professors there to network, and ended up with an offer.

Application timeline: how should you prepare at each stage, and what do you suggest for each year of college?

In freshman and sophomore years, keep your grades steady and join as many extracurriculars as you can. If your English foundation is average, you can start preparing for the GMAT/GRE in the summer or winter break of junior year. Once junior year starts, you can enter some business competitions. China used to have summer internship programs at banks, which give you international experience for your application and also count as an internship. If they still exist, I’d recommend them.

In senior year, keep interning if your course load is light, and start preparing for the TOEFL and your application materials in the second semester. Whether you’re a man or a woman, I’d suggest not going abroad straight out of college unless you have legal status there or very strong work experience. Otherwise, when you try to stay and find a job, you’ll often be screened out for lack of experience.

Don’t be afraid of going abroad two or three years later. If your GPA isn’t ideal or you haven’t hit your English target, it’s fine to spend an extra year or two preparing and apply once you have the score. The average age in many US BA programs is 25, and they increasingly look at work experience rather than grades.

Do you regret anything about your applications or your time in college?

Too few internships, and starting GMAT prep too late.

Any advice for younger students, or anything else you’d like to share?

Look after your GPA in freshman and sophomore years so you don’t regret it as a senior. Decide on your field early, too. If you want to go into BA, take more statistics and programming. Programming is becoming more important in finance as well, and strong students might even consider switching to CS. Plan early and choose related courses, and you’ll have a better chance of getting into a good school.

Also, your internships don’t need to be very impressive, but 2 to 3 or more is better. Don’t spend them all at the same company, and ideally have one at an internationally known firm (the Big Four accounting firms are relatively easy to get into). That makes your application more convincing. If you’re going to the US, the GRE is a bit easier than the GMAT, and it suits business analytics programs in particular. A 320 is also somewhat easier to reach than a 700.