Applying for US MFE from the UK

[CheeseG]

Hi! I am a prospecting applicant from an UK university thinking about applying to US MFE programs, and I just want to ask for a few advices regarding the process.

My main concern is the GPA scaling differences between the US and the UK. For Oxbridge students, it is prevalent that most our raw scores are in the 60s compared to that of 80s and 90s for US applicants. Although technically a 65 is (supposedly) scaled to a 3.7/4.0, I am still concerned that it might work against me in the process.

Just one more question about internship recognition. I will be doing an internship at a top BB's E-trading desk as an algo trader. I wonder how much can this experience help in the application process? Can it make up for the raw score caused by the UK school system?

Sincerely appreciate any advice!

 

[devconnolly]

How's it going. I applied Ireland, using the I/II/III system too. I believe the official conversion puts a first class at a 4.0, which definitely helps, but I think AdComs understand the difference in grading fairly well, so I wouldn't worry too much. Personally, I got a class rank added to my transcript for some context, which might be a worthwhile avenue to explore.

Internship definitely helps. Especially valuable for programs geared towards those with no full-time experience, as it shows some prior commitment to the industry and a willingness to go get it. Explain it clearly with a focus on the technical skills learned and the opportunities you had to develop and show leadership and so on.

Good luck.