LONDON - It's a drizzly Sunday afternoon, and 25 prosperous young Londoners are chatting in a wood-panelled gastropub in West Brompton.
But instead of discussing the Rugby World Cup or the hyperpublicized disappearance of Madeleine McCann, the members of the Duke Club of England are buzzing about Blue Devil basketball and the jobs-mostly in financial services-that have drawn them to London in droves.
"There's a lot more activity in the alumni club now than when I first got here," says the club's president, Robin Buck, Trinity '94, who has lived in England since 2001.
Finance has long been a popular career choice for Duke graduates. As London's stock as a world business capital has risen, more alumni have flocked here instead of New York, drawn by the strong British pound as well as the city's genteel pace and access to emerging markets.
John Paasonen, Fuqua '07, is one of seven members of the Fuqua School of Business Class of 2007 who accepted jobs in London. He had interned at the New York City office of American Express in the summer of 2006, but never warmed to the Big Apple, finding it "a difficult city" and "very monochromatic."
When AmEx offered Paasonen a job in its London office, he jumped at the chance to earn pound-denominated paychecks and enjoy a European lifestyle.
"They pay you a little more because London's more expensive, and then when you convert it to dollars it's much more," he adds. "Plus the five weeks of vacation don't hurt. From a lifestyle perspective, it's so much better here."
England also benefits from its relative proximity to growing markets in Eastern Europe and Asia. Paasonen notes that because the British business day falls between those of Asia and the United States, he can call Beijing in the morning and speak with his American colleagues in the afternoon.
"London has the benefit of sitting in the center of the emerging world," says Todd Finegold, Trinity '98, who works in the London office of Maverick Capital. "When I look around the diversity seems greater here.... You're close to a lot of places that are exporting human capital."
London has enjoyed a comparative advantage in importing talent over New York, its traditional rival, since the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. After 9/11 the U.S. government tightened its visa processes, forcing many foreigners to wait months if not years for work permits.
Britain's immigration process is streamlined by comparison, say Sarah Ryan, Trinity '99, and Matt McConnell, Fuqua '04. Both work in London's financial industry under the United Kingdom's Highly Skilled Migrant Programme.
"It's relatively immigrant-friendly here, especially compared to the U.S." says McConnell, who also works for a hedge fund. "It's a problem for New York really. The smartest people don't want to or aren't allowed to work there."
Buck, who works in the admissions office of London's Southbank International School, says her job has allowed her to witness the influx of foreigners firsthand. Her school experienced a 26-percent increase in inquiries from 2006 to 2007, including a 42-percent increase in the number of inquiries from American families relocating to England.
One of the strongest appeals London has for some American expatriates is the chance to live in a foreign country. Colin Curvey, Trinity '93, says he developed "a bit of wanderlust" after studying abroad with Duke in Madrid.
Curvey worked as an equity analyst in Chile before a stint at the Harvard Business School.
"I wasn't done living outside of the States," he says.
Since 1999 he has worked for the private equity firm Duke Street Capital. Sitting in his firm's airy offices near St. James's Park, he is effusive about London.
"As an American, even though I've been here for eight years, the novelty hasn't worn off," he says. "The London culture has a better balance than New York."
Another alumnus who came to England to experience life abroad is Alex Reinhart, Trinity '07, who began working at British firm Barclays Capital in August. Reinhart's role on the men's track team while at Duke kept him from studying abroad, so he says he "jumped at the opportunity to go abroad, especially to an English-speaking country."
As far as the most significant adjustment to living in Britain, Reinhart, a Wisconsin native, writes: "I anticipate the biggest difference in my day-to-day life will be my inability to watch the Milwaukee Brewers botch the pennant race live."
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