Advice on Admissions to Berkeley MFE and other schools that accept GMAT

[theNazerith]

First time poster long time reader of Quantnet.com...

I am considering applying for Berkeley next year along with several colleges...It is my long shot, but I am very interested in it. Below are my grades for all my math, finance, computer science, and econ grades...

1. Berkeley http://mfe.berkeley.edu/community/students/classprofile.html
2. Georgia Tech
3. USC
4. University of Toronto

Age: 27
School: University of Houston - Main Campus
Degree: BBA Finance, Cum Laude | Grad: May 2008
Specialization: Global Energy Management – Professional Track
Finance GPA: 3.62 Overall GPA: 3.22

Degree: BS Math | Grad: May 2011
Specialization: Financial Mathematics

Below are my grades for all my math, finance, computer science, and econ grades...

Financial Math with Appls A
Investment Management A
International Financial Management A
Probability A
Stochastic Processes A
Energy Risk Management A
Macro Econ A-
Calc for Bus/Life Science A-
Prin of financial Management A
Business Stats A-
Corporate Finance A-
Intro to Comp Sci I A-
Options and Futures B+
Energy Trading B+
Diff Eq. B+
Energy Value chain B
Intermediate Macro B
Cal 2 B 4 3 12 Cal 3 B
Intro to Fixed Income Math B
Intermediate Analysis B-
Calculus C
Micro Econ C
Intermediate Micro C
Linear Algebra C
Abstract Algebra C
Adv Multivariable Calculus C-
Sum of grade hours: 86
Sum of grade points: 269.72
GPA for above classes: 3.136279 |

Knowledge: SQL, VB, VBA, Access, Matlab, Excel, Bloomberg, Reuters, Visio, Word, C++, .NET

Volunteer: American Heart Association, December 2010 - Present

Post grad experience:
Summer Financial Analyst, XYZ Capital Partners, LLC ($500M under management) Summer 2008
Trading Assistant/Analyst, Dimensional Fund Advisors ($150B under management) Sept 2008-July 2010
I moved back to Houston after my mom had a stroke and currently finishing a math degree in two semesters. I have been eying Berkeley's program along with others, but am going to apply to this college as my "long-shot" over NYU and Chicago.

I don't know what you guys think as far as my chances. I haven't taken my GMAT, and going to probably work another 6 months to a year after I graduate this May in Math this May. I plan on appling for Round 1 admissions next year to each of these colleges. I have been studying for the GMAT for about a half year and know I need to score high to have a chance.

Do you guys think I am crazy to pay the 225$ app fee and apply to Berkeley?

I have exposure to all the prerequisites except Numerical Analysis. However, my lack luster performance in linear algebra, multivariable calculus, and some other classes could hold me back. I think GPA is important because Berkeley won't award the degree unless you have a cumulative gpa of 3.0. And considering I am coming from University of Houston and have a 3.2 admissions could view me as somebody that wouldn't make it through the program successfully...

I am going to word my application as a business major that has a strong enough math set to go and pick up the math skillset necessary to complete a MFE program, or something to that effect. Given that I have worked on the trading floor for a premeire quant shop I don't know what to expect as far as my admissions process.

Am I better off applying early or late? I could apply this year by the 3rd round admission for Berkely and make the June 22cd deadline. But, I am thinking about waiting for next year and applying early for Round 1 admissions. I don't know what I should do and asking Quantnet for advice. Any ideas?

Current research interests: Momentum. Also, I have access to WRDS data service through UH so I have been uploading different datasets to SQL to determine outliers in monthly intervals. Going to mess around with different investment strats this semesters

BTW 4 Cs date back to 4 years ago...Also my grade xls is attached...Pretty much I am asking you what would you do as far as applying around. I don't want to take the GRE because I want to get my MBA also within 5 years. So, after the MFE I plan on getting involved with a part-time MBA in the area I am working...

Thank you in advance and god bless!

P.S. the poll is a little skewed I voted yes for myself =)

 

[Andy Nguyen]

I am going to word my application as a business major that has a strong enough math set to go and pick up the math skillset necessary to complete a MFE program, or something to that effect. Given that I have worked on the trading floor for a premeire quant shop I don't know what to expect as far as my admissions process.

That's not going to work. You are not going to convince people that you have "strong enough math" with your Cs in introductory math courses. You have relevant work experience and that's your ace so take advantage of it.
Looks like you aren't sure what you want with your life and not sure what MFE is about. If you want MBA/MFE, there are programs at NYU and CMU that allow it. I've seen applications for them and they look like unsure dudes who don't know which way to go.

If UCB MFE is your top choice, take advantage of their online web chat and send Linda your resume, she will tell you your chance. That's your best way to find out your chance.

You have Georgia Tech, Toronto, USC on your list. It's all over the map and I'm not entirely sure why you have such a mix bag of programs.

 

[roni]

CMU also accepts GMAT even though they say that they prefer GRE.

Schools like UCB, CMU post detailed stats of accepted students, you can probably see if your GPA is below or above average.
Also, if you look at our Tracker, some applicants with relatively low GPAs were accepted to different top programs.

 

[theNazerith]

Thank you for the responses. I posted a little more info below...I know I didn't go into why I chose these specific colleges...

For Roni:
I am aware of the student profile at Berkeley and posted the link above so people could check it out if they are not familar with there recent stats.

The tracker is good but a lot of people don't post there profiles. So it just says Accepted/Waitlisted/Declined...

Was just seeing if anybody knew my chances or if I should try to apply for Round 3 admissions or wait until Round 1 of next year...

For Andy:
Toronto - John Hull who wrote the options book teaches there and University of Toronto does not require test stats... (Long shot for this college anyways. They prefer Canadian citizens...)

Georgia Tech because I want to stay in the South and they accept the GMAT
USC because I like Cali and would prefer warmer weather...

You'd be surprised how many programs do not list on there website that they do not accept the GMAT...It eliminates a lot of programs

For instance Rutgers, Stony Brook, Texas A&M

I live in Texas and UT does not have a quant finance program. Texas A&M in College Station is relatively new. I do not want to stay at University of Houston to do a graduate degree. I prefer to go to Cali, or a large city like Atlanta. GT is an excellent engineering school and seems to have a lot of resources for the Quant Finance program. However, there placement isn't the best.

I don't think I have much of a chance at NYU or Chicago, but as far as the NE goes I am also going to apply to Boston University. I wish Duke had a program...

I for sure want to do a MFE and then later do an MBA while working at night at a good university in the area. I have the resources too so I might as well knock it out.

My low grades in my introductory math courses are from 4 years ago while I was working in colleges. I don't know how much that will affect my application if explained in the essays. Just because I want to do both an MBA and MFE wouldn't suggest I do not know what the MFE program entails. I just want to get all my credentials to give me the option to move around throughout my career. I don't want to be 35+ without an MBA trying to switch career paths and locked in only because I have a MFE. I worked with several people with MS in Financial Math from top colleges and have seen there career prospects. To advance you need an MBA from what I have seen in the industry. MFE is good for research, back testing, statistics, risk management, software/database development/management, or algorithm trading. MBA is preferred for brokering, trading, or more qualitative management positions. You never know when you are going to want to switch to something different or new in your career! I was considering GT joint program for an MBA and MFE. But, for an MBA I need about 5 years post grad experience. Right now I only have 2 solid years...

BTW I think most people who hold an undergraduate math degree understand what it would require to complete a rigorous graduate mathematics program and the career prospects after graduation.

 

[atreides]

You can take a look at the Berkeley MFE website, they list detailed profiles for all enrolled/current students. This will probably help you guage what your competition is like.

Other programs you listed like Rutgers (they have 3 or so different programs now), USC, Chicago have been discussed extensively on this forum... search the forum

Haven't heard much of the Georgia Tech program, but I believe it is housed in the engineering school which has a very strong reputation.

You want to stay away from the Texas A&M program, its basically a mix 'n' match of current courses from the math department and then rebranded as Financial Math Option.

Stony Brook seems to be up and coming but I haven't heard much from there.

Have you considered going the CS route? -- for this definitely look at UT , Georgia Tech and Rice, since you want to stay in the south.

These are my personal views and you would do well to take them with a grain of salt

 

[Andy Nguyen]

@theNazerith
Hull teaches in the Rotman school, not the U of Toronto FinMath program

In case you haven't read the reviews section on our website
http://www.quantnet.com/review/
http://www.quantnet.com/review-berkeley-mfe-program/
http://www.quantnet.com/review-georgia-tech-qcf-program/

 

[theNazerith]

I talked to the GT admissions department. They said last semester 27 people graduated from the program and 9 people had offers in hand...They still haven't quite developed a way to market there program and don't have access to the MBA career services resources...They do have a solid program though.

I have no interest to go to Rice or UT. I have worked in Austin and lived in Houston a majority of my life. I am looking for something new and different in a graduate experience relative to my UH experience. I want to go to a better university for sure. But, don't know how much better I can get with my grades. This was the reason why I really wanted to post here. I spend so much time reading different articles and viewing different things. I am going to apply to the above colleges because the worst thing that can happen is a decline. But, just figure I'd ask straight out at Quantnet.

I've read reviews saying Atlanta isn't the best place for instance to look for a quant job. There just isn't a lot of industry for it. But, if I move back to Houston anyways I don't think it would be too much of a problem.

 

[theNazerith]

Andy:

I must not be up to date on UoT apparently. I thought he taught there. I think I checked a couple years ago and he was teaching there. Oh well!

I am familar with Quantnet's section for program review. I have read the colleges that interest me. My question stems from: Do you think I will get into any of the above programs that I plan on applying too. The colleges I listed there I know accept GMAT.

Berkeley will be my long shot when i apply to different colleges and an expected fail for me. But, curious if quantnet people here think i have a 50% or greater chance of getting in...According to most of the class profiles for top 20 quant programs I have below the class profile GPA. How much does this weigh in my application given my background above...

Not all the posteres on this site list there full profile so the tracker just says accepted/waitlisted/declined...Maybe I am looking at this wrong.

The reason why I posted here because I know a lot of posters have been through the process or going threw it. So I figured this would be the best place to post and talk about my chances here...

 

[Andy Nguyen]

re: Tracker. Yes, I encourage all applicants to put their profile on the tracker so they can help out people like you. Some put their basic stats (GPA, GRE, school, etc) in the Notes section.
Another way is to go through http://www.quantnet.com/forum/threads/mfe-program-profile-evaluation-master-thread.202/

 

[theNazerith]

i'll post on there also

do you think it is better to wait for round 1 admissions next year or just apply for round 3 admissions this year

 

[Andy Nguyen]

As I mentioned earlier, send Linda (UCB MFE director) your resume or point her to this thread to seek her suggestion on what you can do to improve your profile. She may ask you to take CFA L1, some online pre-MFE courses at UCB or something. If you want to study there, do it.
This will be the most time efficient way to move forward. There is no point in heading into the unknown and pay some decent money and time just to try out. You have to ensure that you have a decent shot.

I'll take out the other 3 and find something better to do.

 

[coolharvard]

How did you graduate with cum laude with just 3.22 GPA?

I do agree with Andy that the Cs will hurt your chance a lot....

 

[theNazerith]

at UH it is your last 60 hours that determine cum laude, summa cum laude, etc...

 

[coolharvard]

Cal and Ga Tech,.. your chance is slim, since both schools put a lot of emphasis on grades/test scores... The Cs would definitely raise warning flag for them.

U$C you can get in no problem, but I don't recommend that you waste money on U$C's so-called "education" might as well stay home at Rice or UT-Austin...

not sure about Toronto.

 

[AZPalta]

If you want to be in SoCal, I'd go for the UCLA or Claremont MFE programs over USC.
In my opinion they have a stronger curriculum but you might want to research it more closely.
Of the those two , I'd say go for UCLA MFE since it uses the Haas MFE as its template.

 

[Ycohen]

First time poster long time reader of Quantnet.com...

I am considering applying for Berkeley next year along with several colleges...It is my long shot, but I am very interested in it. Below are my grades for all my math, finance, computer science, and econ grades...

1. Berkeley http://mfe.berkeley.edu/community/students/classprofile.html
2. Georgia Tech
3. USC
4. University of Toronto

U of T will be very hard to get into. I am from Toronto and I personally know 50 people with far better GPA's. They only accept 30 students. Good luck with your applications!

 

[theNazerith]

andy:

i emailed back and forth with linda today. i think i am going to wait and apply for round 1 admissions for fall 2012. the reason being is because if they recommend any class retakes or any of the MFE prep classes i will have time to complete them...

 

[yechess]

Thought I might just chip in with a "yes" vote to even out the odds :D...On a more serious note, I am no guru. But you have some good guidance. Follow it and best of luck.

 

[ICQuant]

If UCB MFE is your top choice, take advantage of their online web chat and send Linda your resume, she will tell you your chance. That's your best way to find out your chance.

Hey Andy, may you provide the link for the online web chat please? I am interested in contacting them as well

 

[Andy Nguyen]

It's on their website's homepage. You can't miss it.
They have online webinar, as well as tour in many different cities. They have 6 sessions until the end of April so as I said, you can't really miss them. If you can't go online, they will come to a city near you.