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Baruch College Master in Financial Engineering program
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Can you tell us a bit about your background?
No previous experience in finance.
I studied part-time in the program from 8/2004-12/2006
Did you get admitted to other programs?
No. The only program I applied to, and was admitted to, was Baruch MFE (known as Applied Mathematics for Finance)
Why did you choose this program (over others, if applicable)?
I audited a class and was immediately attracted by the way the instructor interacted with the students. Moreover financially it made the most sense for me at the time.
Tell us about the application process at this program
After submitting my application and being interviewed by Dr. Stefanica, I was informed of my admission to the program.
Programs like Baruch MFE, UCB MFE have refresher courses for incoming students. Does this program offer such courses? How useful was it?
Yes, attended Baruch's three refresher courses: linear algebrea, advanced calculus and probability. Absolutely a must as the MFE program builds on these courses.
Tell us about the courses selection in this program. Any special courses you like?
Elective courses that I particularly enjoyed:
Risk Management class taught by Dr. Lev Borodovsky (Guest lecturer and co-founder of GARP). Why? the course focuses on the PRACTICE of risk management taught by a leading practitioner.
Structured Finance by Dr. Sylvain Raynes. Why? taught by a practitioner who believes in making a science out of finance, particular structured finance.
Required courses that I particularly enjoyed:
Advanced Computational Methods in Finance by Dr. Salih Neftci. Why? Dr. Neftci made seemingly difficult suggest accessible. One of the best professors I ever had. Will be dearly missed.
Numerical Linear Algebra and Numerical Methods for PDEs in Finance by Dr. Stefanica. Why? The foundation of financial engineering numerical methods and computation.
Required courses that I particularly appreciated:
Probability and Stochastic Calculus by Dr. Elena Kosygina. Why? appreciated the rigorous teaching handed down by Dr. Kosygina.
Tell us about the quality of teaching
Program had a nice blend of practitioners and academicians. TA's for the most part were helpful.
Materials used in the program
Standard textbooks in financial engineering were used.
Programming component of the program
C++ and VBA. Except the probabililty and stochastic calculus classes, almost all courses had a programming/computation element.
Projects
These were mostly group projects. The exception being the probability and stochastic calculus courses.
Career service
1. Program director and faculty referral (extremely helpful)
2. Alumni referral (extremely helpful)
3. The standard school career service (somewhat helpful)
4. Career fair (not so helpful)
Most of the students got placed via the first two routes. I have also heard of people getting internship via school career service.
Can you comment on the social interaction between students of different ethnics, nationalities in the program?
People from different ethnicities got along extremely well. There were no divisions along nationality or ethnic lines.
What do you like about the program?
The high degree of interaction between the faculty (including the director of the program) and the students. Every student receives individual attention from the director.
Leading industry practitioners such as Peter Carr, Jim Gatheral, as guest lecturers in the program.
What DON'T you like about the program?
Hard to say since the program has improved significantly since I have graduated.
Suggestions for the program to make it better
Establish direct and formal recruiting relationships with more leading financial institutions (this has been the focus for a while and significant progress has been made through persistent efforts from the director and growing alumni base)
What are your current job status? What are you looking for?
Working for the current employer since graduation.
Other comments
Joining Baruch's MFE program has been one of the best decisions in my life.
No previous experience in finance.
I studied part-time in the program from 8/2004-12/2006
Did you get admitted to other programs?
No. The only program I applied to, and was admitted to, was Baruch MFE (known as Applied Mathematics for Finance)
Why did you choose this program (over others, if applicable)?
I audited a class and was immediately attracted by the way the instructor interacted with the students. Moreover financially it made the most sense for me at the time.
Tell us about the application process at this program
After submitting my application and being interviewed by Dr. Stefanica, I was informed of my admission to the program.
Programs like Baruch MFE, UCB MFE have refresher courses for incoming students. Does this program offer such courses? How useful was it?
Yes, attended Baruch's three refresher courses: linear algebrea, advanced calculus and probability. Absolutely a must as the MFE program builds on these courses.
Tell us about the courses selection in this program. Any special courses you like?
Elective courses that I particularly enjoyed:
Risk Management class taught by Dr. Lev Borodovsky (Guest lecturer and co-founder of GARP). Why? the course focuses on the PRACTICE of risk management taught by a leading practitioner.
Structured Finance by Dr. Sylvain Raynes. Why? taught by a practitioner who believes in making a science out of finance, particular structured finance.
Required courses that I particularly enjoyed:
Advanced Computational Methods in Finance by Dr. Salih Neftci. Why? Dr. Neftci made seemingly difficult suggest accessible. One of the best professors I ever had. Will be dearly missed.
Numerical Linear Algebra and Numerical Methods for PDEs in Finance by Dr. Stefanica. Why? The foundation of financial engineering numerical methods and computation.
Required courses that I particularly appreciated:
Probability and Stochastic Calculus by Dr. Elena Kosygina. Why? appreciated the rigorous teaching handed down by Dr. Kosygina.
Tell us about the quality of teaching
Program had a nice blend of practitioners and academicians. TA's for the most part were helpful.
Materials used in the program
Standard textbooks in financial engineering were used.
Programming component of the program
C++ and VBA. Except the probabililty and stochastic calculus classes, almost all courses had a programming/computation element.
Projects
These were mostly group projects. The exception being the probability and stochastic calculus courses.
Career service
1. Program director and faculty referral (extremely helpful)
2. Alumni referral (extremely helpful)
3. The standard school career service (somewhat helpful)
4. Career fair (not so helpful)
Most of the students got placed via the first two routes. I have also heard of people getting internship via school career service.
Can you comment on the social interaction between students of different ethnics, nationalities in the program?
People from different ethnicities got along extremely well. There were no divisions along nationality or ethnic lines.
What do you like about the program?
The high degree of interaction between the faculty (including the director of the program) and the students. Every student receives individual attention from the director.
Leading industry practitioners such as Peter Carr, Jim Gatheral, as guest lecturers in the program.
What DON'T you like about the program?
Hard to say since the program has improved significantly since I have graduated.
Suggestions for the program to make it better
Establish direct and formal recruiting relationships with more leading financial institutions (this has been the focus for a while and significant progress has been made through persistent efforts from the director and growing alumni base)
What are your current job status? What are you looking for?
Working for the current employer since graduation.
Other comments
Joining Baruch's MFE program has been one of the best decisions in my life.
- MRoss
- 5.00 star(s)
I joined Baruch straight out of Bachelor’s (Math/Finance). I had one finance internship prior to joining.
Baruch was the obvious choice over other programs for a variety of reasons: cost, close-knit classes, excellent professors, and exceptional job placement.
The refresher courses offered (mandatory) are essentially sped up pre-MFE courses. They are incredibly difficult with a class and homework every day of the week. But they really prepare everyone and put them in the right mindset for how difficult the actual courses are.
The course selection is truly amazing. There are classes for everyone from Market Microstructure to Risk Management. All courses are taught by real life practitioners which is very evident; you can almost smell their passion for the material they are teaching. Dan Stefanica himself teachers the two Numerical Method courses, and he is a fantastic teacher as well. Most of the professors are engaging and exciting. Homeworks are mostly completed in groups but that does not change how difficult they are. People with full time jobs should absolutely not do this program full time.
While the only requirement in joining is some C++ knowledge, students leave this programming knowing C++, VBA, Python, and R (at least). Since most of the teachers are practitioners they require that their homeworks be submitted in their native programming language. This leaves the students having exposure to a much wider variety of languages then is found elsewhere.
As far as job placement is concerned. It is not just that “Baruch has excellent placement”. It is that Baruch molds us all into “place-able students”. We are literally taught everything from what shoes to wear to how to conduct ourselves at interviews. While most programs focus 100% on course material, Baruch understands that no matter what job one is applying for there will always be a large soft-skills component. I can say firsthand that this feature alone has changed my life.
But perhaps everything aside what stands out more than anything in this program is how close all the students are with one another. Each student cares deeply about the wellbeing of the other (as does the Dean!). My friends not having an internship became my problem as well. When I was having difficulty with a particular programming project I had no less than five other students working with me for hours in order to ensure I submitted my project on time. I will most likely keep in touch with these guys for my entire career.
Baruch was the obvious choice over other programs for a variety of reasons: cost, close-knit classes, excellent professors, and exceptional job placement.
The refresher courses offered (mandatory) are essentially sped up pre-MFE courses. They are incredibly difficult with a class and homework every day of the week. But they really prepare everyone and put them in the right mindset for how difficult the actual courses are.
The course selection is truly amazing. There are classes for everyone from Market Microstructure to Risk Management. All courses are taught by real life practitioners which is very evident; you can almost smell their passion for the material they are teaching. Dan Stefanica himself teachers the two Numerical Method courses, and he is a fantastic teacher as well. Most of the professors are engaging and exciting. Homeworks are mostly completed in groups but that does not change how difficult they are. People with full time jobs should absolutely not do this program full time.
While the only requirement in joining is some C++ knowledge, students leave this programming knowing C++, VBA, Python, and R (at least). Since most of the teachers are practitioners they require that their homeworks be submitted in their native programming language. This leaves the students having exposure to a much wider variety of languages then is found elsewhere.
As far as job placement is concerned. It is not just that “Baruch has excellent placement”. It is that Baruch molds us all into “place-able students”. We are literally taught everything from what shoes to wear to how to conduct ourselves at interviews. While most programs focus 100% on course material, Baruch understands that no matter what job one is applying for there will always be a large soft-skills component. I can say firsthand that this feature alone has changed my life.
But perhaps everything aside what stands out more than anything in this program is how close all the students are with one another. Each student cares deeply about the wellbeing of the other (as does the Dean!). My friends not having an internship became my problem as well. When I was having difficulty with a particular programming project I had no less than five other students working with me for hours in order to ensure I submitted my project on time. I will most likely keep in touch with these guys for my entire career.
- Noam Mendel
- 5.00 star(s)
1. Dr. Stefanica, the program director is one of the most devoted and dedicated people I've met. He genuinely cares and helps the students to be successful.
2. The program provides a variety of opportunities ranging from specific opening to general professional development.
3. The alumni network is very strong with Dr. Stefanica being the central node.
4. I always received help whenever I reached out to my classmates.
One of the best decisions I've made in my life.
2. The program provides a variety of opportunities ranging from specific opening to general professional development.
3. The alumni network is very strong with Dr. Stefanica being the central node.
4. I always received help whenever I reached out to my classmates.
One of the best decisions I've made in my life.
- Tianyu Li
- 5.00 star(s)
The program which giving you full support and all you need for success:
Most devoted director + top tier faculty + strong and reachable alumni network + close connection to academic and industry + very high placement rate + part-time student friendly + affordable tuition
Most devoted director + top tier faculty + strong and reachable alumni network + close connection to academic and industry + very high placement rate + part-time student friendly + affordable tuition
- Xiangyu Gu
- 5.00 star(s)
One thing that Dr Dan Stefanica mentioned in the pre-MFE class is that the program is planning to launch a "accent reduction" program, since a great port of the student body is from non-English speaking countries. I can hardly imagine that any other program would even think about issues like this, and believe it or not, this might be surprisingly useful. And beyond that, only programs as caring as the one at Baruch would come up with ideas like this.
I think that among all the programs out there, Baruch has one of the strongest group of faculties. They are excellent on both academic and industrial side, and more importantly, they are extremely considerate.
I think that among all the programs out there, Baruch has one of the strongest group of faculties. They are excellent on both academic and industrial side, and more importantly, they are extremely considerate.
- Aubree
- 5.00 star(s)
Amazing program. Smaller community makes everyone really close in the program. I can always get warm help from our alumni. The network is really strong. Well-designed and practical courses are truly useful for the future career. Dan and faculties genuinely try their best to help students.