- Joined
- 5/12/25
- Messages
- 16
- Points
- 1
Hello All, this is my first of many posts on QuantNet! Purpose of me writing this post was to know how strong/weak my profile is, and the prospective programs I could be considering. I've previously reached out to several folks on linkedin, and judging from their profiles, I was able to narrow down a few programs based on my profile.
My Profile.
Education
1. UG :- IIIT Delhi ( Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Delhi ) - Engineering in Computer Science and Applied Mathematics. Worth mentioning that it is one of the top institutes in India based on research output as per csrankings.org.
2. UG CGPA - 7.47/10.00 ( On the lower side )
Research Experience
3. Research Internship in ISB Hyderabad ( Indian School of Business ) in their Finance Department.
4. Research Undergraduate Project in the field of Computational Creativity under a Professor in my college
Professional Experience
5. 2 years as a Software Engineer (Data Engineer) in NatWest Group (formerly Royal Bank of Scotland)
Test Scores
6. IELTs - 8 ( I grew up in an english speaking neighbourhood and my schooling was done outside my native country )
7. GRE - ( yet to give )
Factors considered before applying for a MS program.
1. Low Cohort Size - Why? because, coming from a small cohort size college myself, I know one thing for sure. That I was more often than not able to get a 1-2-1 attention from a professor. And plus, I don't thrive in large uber-competitive environments.
2. Affordability Why? most of the MFE programs, in my judgement were sort of on the expensive side for me. I most likely would be taking a loan prior to applying for a college so it wouldn't be a surprise that I would have to look at the expenses as well whist at the same time maximising for returns.
Universities and Programs I am strongly considering.
1. Stevens' Institute of Technology - MFE ( Possible Extension towards a PhD in FE as well )
2. Stony Brook University - MQF ( Prospect of extending it towards a PhD in QF is also possible. But funding is extremely difficult, and I learnt that some of the folks who pursued their PhD here also had to self-fund it. )
3. University of Michigan - MQFRM ( strongly considering this course because judging by the students, it is a strong pipeline for students getting into PhD later on. Also because it was listed on the FancyQuant website )
4. UIUC - MFE ( Made a good correspondence with a current PhD student in their ISE dept. and was able to learn a lot more about their FE program, and thereafter students intending to pursue a PhD in their ISE dept. Given UIUC's reputation in CS, and being located in Chicago, I found this to be a good program worth considering. )
5. NCSU - MFM ( one of the best in QuantNet. )
6. NCSU - MSOR ( noted that it has more or less the same design of courses and math rigour as the MFM program )
7. GaTech - MSOR ( ranked 1. in OR in the country )
8. GaTech - MQCF ( again, one of the best. )
Programs I am strongly considering
1. Financial Mathematics
2. Quantitative Finance
3. Operations Research
My LONG term goals
1. To continue working in a Financial Institution. Albeit in a more research oriented role where I'd get to do independent work.
2. I previously connected with a gentleman who graduated from UCB's MFE and he mentioned it would be better and more future proof to consider pursuing a PhD in a quant specific field rather than just an MFE.
Would deeply appreciate your thoughts @MikeLawrence @Leggoo MFE @Andy Nguyen @Andy Zhang @Daniel Duffy @Ken Abbott
My Profile.
Education
1. UG :- IIIT Delhi ( Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Delhi ) - Engineering in Computer Science and Applied Mathematics. Worth mentioning that it is one of the top institutes in India based on research output as per csrankings.org.
2. UG CGPA - 7.47/10.00 ( On the lower side )
Research Experience
3. Research Internship in ISB Hyderabad ( Indian School of Business ) in their Finance Department.
4. Research Undergraduate Project in the field of Computational Creativity under a Professor in my college
Professional Experience
5. 2 years as a Software Engineer (Data Engineer) in NatWest Group (formerly Royal Bank of Scotland)
Test Scores
6. IELTs - 8 ( I grew up in an english speaking neighbourhood and my schooling was done outside my native country )
7. GRE - ( yet to give )
Factors considered before applying for a MS program.
1. Low Cohort Size - Why? because, coming from a small cohort size college myself, I know one thing for sure. That I was more often than not able to get a 1-2-1 attention from a professor. And plus, I don't thrive in large uber-competitive environments.
2. Affordability Why? most of the MFE programs, in my judgement were sort of on the expensive side for me. I most likely would be taking a loan prior to applying for a college so it wouldn't be a surprise that I would have to look at the expenses as well whist at the same time maximising for returns.
Universities and Programs I am strongly considering.
1. Stevens' Institute of Technology - MFE ( Possible Extension towards a PhD in FE as well )
2. Stony Brook University - MQF ( Prospect of extending it towards a PhD in QF is also possible. But funding is extremely difficult, and I learnt that some of the folks who pursued their PhD here also had to self-fund it. )
3. University of Michigan - MQFRM ( strongly considering this course because judging by the students, it is a strong pipeline for students getting into PhD later on. Also because it was listed on the FancyQuant website )
4. UIUC - MFE ( Made a good correspondence with a current PhD student in their ISE dept. and was able to learn a lot more about their FE program, and thereafter students intending to pursue a PhD in their ISE dept. Given UIUC's reputation in CS, and being located in Chicago, I found this to be a good program worth considering. )
5. NCSU - MFM ( one of the best in QuantNet. )
6. NCSU - MSOR ( noted that it has more or less the same design of courses and math rigour as the MFM program )
7. GaTech - MSOR ( ranked 1. in OR in the country )
8. GaTech - MQCF ( again, one of the best. )
Programs I am strongly considering
1. Financial Mathematics
2. Quantitative Finance
3. Operations Research
My LONG term goals
1. To continue working in a Financial Institution. Albeit in a more research oriented role where I'd get to do independent work.
2. I previously connected with a gentleman who graduated from UCB's MFE and he mentioned it would be better and more future proof to consider pursuing a PhD in a quant specific field rather than just an MFE.
Would deeply appreciate your thoughts @MikeLawrence @Leggoo MFE @Andy Nguyen @Andy Zhang @Daniel Duffy @Ken Abbott
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