COMPARE Cornell MFE vs Columbia MAFN

[Novicequant]

As the deposit ddl for Cornell MFE is approaching, I have to make a decision in this week. I would say both programs are prestigious, but I would like to hear some advice on how to choose between these two.

some of my personal background: undergraduate in Hong Kong, major in finance, minor in mathematics, little programming background (trying my best to catch up), would like to seek internships and graduate job in the US.

Columbia: pros: Big name, US News No.3, bigger alumni resources(maybe?) great location, more convenient to find jobs.
cons: bad career service, class size/cohort size is too large, internal competition. Admitted Chinese students are not as selective as Cornell(heard from others). not flexible curriculum.

Cornell: pros: great curriculum, good one-on-one career service, small class size, slightly better MFE program ranking.
cons: really bad location, brand name not as good as Columbia (especially in China).

I have read another post comparing Cornell, Columbia and NYU, however, there seem to be few discussions on Cornell and Columbia, mostly discussing whether NYU MFE is good or not. So I would like to hear more advice on choosing between these two programs.

By the way, is NYU MFE still sending out offers? There seems to be no decision given out since March, but I haven't got my result (my transcript arrived on Feb, before that so many offers had been sent out)

Thank you all in advance.

 

[Youlan Dai]

. I have withdrawn NYU MFE, very boring program, very bad attitude of their coordinator.

 

[ApolloChariot]

. I have withdrawn NYU MFE, very boring program, very bad attitude of their coordinator.

If you are talking about who I think you're talking about, that's completely understandable. Nobody in my program wanted to deal with this person. None.

 

[Novicequant]

. I have withdrawn NYU MFE, very boring program, very bad attitude of their coordinator.

Are you suggesting choosing Cornell?
And why would you say NYU MFE very boring and the coordinator has a bad attitude( r u referring to how he defended NYU MFE in another post or something else), from what I heard, Peter Carr has made that program completely different and much better than before.

 

[ApolloChariot]

Are you suggesting choosing Cornell?
And why would you say NYU MFE very boring and the coordinator has a bad attitude( r u referring to how he defended NYU MFE in another post or something else), from what I heard, Peter Carr has made that program completely different and much better than before.

It really is irritating how much the line "Peter Carr has made the program much better" is repeated here. There are some egregious evidence of astroturfing (not necessarily you) such as new accounts being made to convince students how great the program is right before the deadline to accept.

NYU Tandon School of Engineering - MS in Financial Engineering - Reviews

Just look at the reviews, there are EIGHT 4/5 star reviews in a 7 day span in 2017. No reasonable person would think it is most likely a coincidence.

 

[Youlan Dai]

It really is irritating how much the line "Peter Carr has made the program much better" is repeated here. There are some egregious evidence of astroturfing (not necessarily you) such as new accounts being made to convince students how great the program is right before the deadline to accept.

NYU Tandon School of Engineering - MS in Financial Engineering - Reviews

Just look at the reviews, there are EIGHT 4/5 star reviews in a 7 day span in 2017. No reasonable person would think it is most likely a coincidence.

Marketing Strategy. Play people's fantasy I love, said Trump

 

[Youlan Dai]

Are you suggesting choosing Cornell?
And why would you say NYU MFE very boring and the coordinator has a bad attitude( r u referring to how he defended NYU MFE in another post or something else), from what I heard, Peter Carr has made that program completely different and much better than before.

No, I am just referring to the coordinator, not Peter ! He is OK.

 

[Novicequant]

It really is irritating how much the line "Peter Carr has made the program much better" is repeated here. There are some egregious evidence of astroturfing (not necessarily you) such as new accounts being made to convince students how great the program is right before the deadline to accept.

NYU Tandon School of Engineering - MS in Financial Engineering - Reviews

Just look at the reviews, there are EIGHT 4/5 star reviews in a 7 day span in 2017. No reasonable person would think it is most likely a coincidence.

Marketing Strategy. Play people's fantasy I love, said Trump

Hi both,
I do thank your kind reply, but I would appreciate it more if you can give more advice on deciding between Columbia and Cornell, instead of NYU MFE, after all, I didn't receive the offer from NYU MFE.

 

[ApolloChariot]

No, I am just referring to the coordinator, not Peter ! He is OK.

Yes I know who you’re talking about. If anything you’re being too generous; the inexcusable rudeness and vitriol shocked me as a student. Experiences with that person were universally negative.