University of Waterloo - Master of Quantitative Finance

The University of Waterloo Quant Finance Master's program is an excellent program for someone who is interested in learning rigorous maths. The program focuses on statistics, applied maths, and relevant coding skills required to succeed in industry.

At University Waterloo, in the 2 years that it took to do my Masters (you can normally do faster in just 4 trimesters), I've learned more hard skills than in my 4 years of undergrad in business school. Waterloo will really push you to your limit, but the result will be worth it. Classes start off with classes focusing on stochastic calculus, and advanced statistics. For many students without prior background, they will struggle at first because Waterloo doesn't hold your hand at all. My first trimester, I was just barely passing, and getting only around 6 hours of sleep a night. By the end of your time at Waterloo, you'll find that the classes get easier, because many of the same concepts will be retaught/built upon. I like this teaching philosophy, because this way, you'll be given many chances to really remember what you've learned.

In general, the professors at Waterloo are genuinely nice, and will go through the extra effort to help you. Of course, there are some professors who care mostly about their own research, and will make it known that they dislike teaching. However, the number of excellent professors greatly outnumbers the number of "mean" professors.

For job placements, Waterloo is the number 2 program in Canada for quant finance. However, the job market during the time I was there was not great. Don't expect that everyone will place at prestigious big 5 bank in Canada. In my cohort of around 18 people, only around 4 or 5 classmates interned at a big bank. The 100% placement rate for co-op is also a bit misleading. If you cannot find a co-op, you simply start writing your Master's Research Paper over the summer trimester.

I wouldn't recommend U Waterloo for someone is primarily focused on finding a job in the US. The alumni network is mostly Canada based, and students are largely responsible for finding their own co-ops.

Overall, for just the quality of the education, and at the unbeatable price (when compared to US programs), I would strongly recommend Waterloo.

I think it is true that if your goal is to work and live in Canada, this is the right school. Otherwise, I suggest go to US grad school directly. As a grad from mqf, I agreed the above opions and I think it is fairly objective. I asked the director last year, their roughly statistics on grads last year entry salary is 80k.

Pros: low tuition (12K cad for all); nearly perfect intern/fulltime placement rate; small class size, good reputation and network in Bay street
Cons: less likely to find a job in US when grad; entry salary is good but has small potential to increase usually no bonus.