Career opportunities for our latest MBA graduates

Each year, we proudly share the career outcomes of our MBA graduates, showcasing their journeys beyond Cambridge Judge Business School. This year’s data underscores the resilience and adaptability of our graduates as they navigate an increasingly complex global job market.

Despite ongoing political and economic uncertainty, 83% of job seeking graduates secured full-time roles within 4 months of graduation. Among those who changed countries from their pre-MBA positions, 75% chose to continue their careers in the UK.

Sadia Cuthbert, Head of Careers at Cambridge Judge Business School

The landscape of career preferences continues to evolve. “Technology emerged as the top choice, attracting 31% of the class, while finance remained strong, with venture capital and private equity leading the way,” Head of Careers Sadia Cuthbert says.

From finance and strategy to consulting, entrepreneurship and tech, our graduates share how the MBA empowered them to secure new roles, pivot careers and make an impact across industries, sectors and borders.

Career shifts in finance and startups

Finance continued to dominate as one of the largest sectors of employment for our graduates. Twenty-six percent of our most recent graduates are working in the finance sector, 79% of those graduates now working in finance switched from another job function, occupying roles in VC, fintech, investment banking, impact investing, alternative finance and beyond.

Ella Xing, founder of fintech startup X-Launch, came to Cambridge for its dynamic blend of finance, business, and science, building on her experience as a Project Manager at Siemens Advanta Consulting in Beijing, where she advised on complex M&A transactions.

Cambridge provided the ideal environment to further sharpen my skills and nurture my entrepreneurial ambitions.

“Given my experience in finance across the US, Europe and China, and my academic background in mathematics and computer science, Cambridge provided the ideal environment to further sharpen my skills and nurture my entrepreneurial ambitions,” she explains.

Ella’s MBA experience inspired the creation of X-Launch, a fintech startup using AI to support family offices and private equity firms in investments and stock market analytics. Its quantitative trading and wealth management projects were directly influenced by her time in the University of Cambridge Algorithmic Trading Society.

The collaborative approach and experiential learning across projects like the Cambridge Venture Project and the Global Consulting Project, also provided invaluable preparation for the launch of her finance sector business.

“My 5-person GCP team brought together experts from the world of healthcare, finance and strategy to develop an economic model for the World Health Organization (WHO), demonstrating healthcare across different countries. This fascinating experience in both diversity and team focus was mirrored in the collaboration behind X-Launch.”

For Calvin Liew a finance sector career was the reason he chose to pursue an MBA in the UK.

“I wanted to enhance my financial acumen and expand my understanding of topics beyond traditional finance, gaining insights into energy markets, economics, AI and deep technology,” he explains.

Now a Senior Finance Manager at Agoda, he applies advanced financial modelling and investment analysis to navigate complex market dynamics.

Originally from Malaysia, Calvin worked as an Associate Director in Finance Strategy at KPMG in Melbourne, Australia, prior to pursuing his MBA.

He credits the MBA with helping him transition into a more hands on role.

“At Agoda, I’m now directly involved in decision making, executing strategic initiatives first hand rather than advising from the outside,” he says. “There’s real satisfaction in seeing my work have a measurable impact on the organisation’s growth.”

Forging a tech startup with an MBA

The entrepreneurial and tech driven spirit of our graduates continues to shape industries worldwide. Thirty-eight percent of our most recent graduates who entered industry chose the thriving tech sector, leveraging their MBA to drive innovation and transformation. Meanwhile, 8% of graduates took the leap into entrepreneurship, launching startups that push boundaries and redefine markets.

Among them are 2 visionary tech founders who harnessed fresh MBA skills and a global network to build Kalavai, a multi-award-winning AI startup. Their journey exemplifies the power of bold ambition, cutting-edge expertise, and the unparalleled opportunities unlocked by the Cambridge MBA.

Annie Wang chose to study for an MBA after nearly 5 years working at Google in the San Francisco Bay area. Carlos Fernandez Musoles was the former Head of AI at Universidad Internacional de Valencia and had already run and exited his own IT consulting company.

I chose Cambridge over other UK schools for its superior tech and entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Coming into the MBA Carlos was looking for a co-founder, he explains:

“I wanted to improve my own business skills but also find someone who already had a complementary skillset. And, of course, share my passion for AI. I chose Cambridge over other UK schools for its superior tech and entrepreneurial ecosystem.”

Carlos and Annie had both received support in the form of the Cambridge MBA Scholarship for Technology, but it wasn’t until halfway through the first term that they met in person.

“We started talking about how the future of AI would play out. It was just such an interesting conversation, and it led to Carlos pitching his idea for Kalavai. Soon after he suggested we work together. It was a great leap of faith from him. At the time I felt like he was proposing to me!”

Carlos expands: “The aim of Kalavai is to reduce infrastructure overhead, speed up development cycles and empower teams to go live faster. I wanted to develop a piece of tech that could truly make AI accessible.”

Management Praxis Associate Professor, Simon Stockley, was a key champion, helping connect them to UK investors, and they also received great support from Management Praxis Associate Professor, Chris Coleridge.

Both Annie and Carlos used every opportunity to leverage the Cambridge ecosystem, entering competitions wherever they could. With results.

Carlos says, “From the very beginning I knew I had to put myself out there, however uncomfortable it might be. There were lots of other MBA students also looking for business partners for a start!”