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COMPARE 2022 Fall Cornell MFE vs Imperial RMFE vs LSE QMRM

Alexander XU

Joined
2/11/22
Messages
2
Points
13
Hi, I am a student coming from Statistics background currently in UK. I have received offers from Cornell MFE, Imperial RMFE and LSE QMRM. I'm having trouble deciding between these three. I feel no particular preference to quant positions and risk management, asset management, consulting roles.
Since I am international student, I do care about brand name of the institutions and its impact on career development. Among these three schools, Imperial ranked highest both in QS and US NEWS ranking.
In regards to costs, Imperial and LSE are almost identical, while Cornell is more expensive (1.5 years program with the last semester in NYC).
I attended the info session for Cornell MFE admitted applicants yesterday and felt that Cornel MFE has invested a lot of resources in their candidates (they have smaller class sizes compared to LSE and Imperial) and has a great career service. However, according to the Quantnet ranking, Cornell MFE candidates appear to have the lowest employment rate (48 percent) at graduation, which is quite perplexing. I believe this is because the programme is based in Ithaca during the first year, while the majority of job opportunities are in NYC.
Any comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
I come from a finance program and also applying for similar programs with you. If you prefer to learn more about business or finance stuff, I would say Imperial RMFE is better. (also better if you target for a consulting role. I think LSE QMRM is way more statistical for you since you majored in statistics as an undergrad. I think many courses at LSE QMRM is overlapping with what you have studied. I think Cornell MFE is good but I personally really don't like the arrangement of half-semester in NYC. I think it is not worth the cost. If you want to work in NYC in the future, you are already qualified with a degree at either Cornell or Imperial or LSE. I think for asset management, risk management, and consulting, companies usually don't care about what your majors are. (big companies do care about school, tho). If you want to do quant in a big company, I think you need more than an MFE degree. If you want to be the top, you need to get a PhD in science or engineering. (preferably CS, Math, Physics).
 
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