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COMPARE CMU MSCF vs Stanford ICME (general) vs Cornell MFE

Joined
11/26/13
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Hi, I have been admitted to Stanford and Cornell and am given an interview from CMU(from previous experience, likely to be admitted if invited for interview.)

I am just wondering which program should I go to? Taking CMU away as I have not been admitted, I personally would prefer Stanford for its brand name and chance to be admitted to be a PhD student. I listed some of the pros and cons for the two schools from my view.
S:
Pros: PhD opportunity, dream school, top brand name worldwide, wonderful climate and campus, easy to transfer to be a developer in SV
Cons: not mathematical finance track, relatively worse placement(as I heard even in the previous finmath program people were having trouble for placement of internship or a full-time job), probably a pro, curriculum is designed by oneself, not very structured(stanford has little restriction on course registration and all tracks in icme can choose the same courses)

Cornell:
Pros: Better networking opportunity, better career service, possibly better placement, more structured program for quant positions
Cons: seems Stanford has all the advantages in terms of school reputation

If I could be admitted to CMU then it will be more difficult to make a decision. Also I want to ask if it is true that in MSCF program 20% of the students get 80% of the offers and those "weaker" students still have trouble with placement or have to go for a risk position?

Please help me with your advice!

Thank you very much!
 
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