COMPARE EPFL MFE vs Barcelona GSE MFin

  • Thread starter Thread starter Umnik
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robopool: You over exaggerate here a bit ;)

It also would be a lot better if in addition to information about costs you will add what you (and other) students have reached after graduation.
 
No seriously, I don't exaggerate. I don't like credit card debt and I certainly don't like spending my father's money when I know how hard he works for it. There's no reason that a person needs so many things to survive and study.

Well, after graduation, we have jobs. There are no costs. We get paid, we can cover all costs from here on out.
 
Also, how am I exaggerating?! Maybe you were referring to the rent cost. It is indeed about 500 francs a month. Have you even clicked the link I gave? I just re-checked it and things have gone up a bit, I actually paid 455.- CHF per month, but the Rhodanie house is like 510.- for a room if you subscribe for the entire semester year. Also you can sublet the times that you are not using it.

I think a lot of people make life a lot harder than it needs to be. What happened to living within your means, why is that so hard to believe nowadays that someone will think you are "exaggerating" when he/she hears this? It's so disgusting that people say "oh I can't live like that, I need a lot more money for everyday expenses, I'm a student but I'm so unwilling to live within my means that I'd rather sacrifice the quality of my education than to be self-disciplined and spend less, I'd rather keep my lifestyle and convince myself to settle for a second-rate degree." As a student, not a normal working person, one does not need all this extra stuff. If EPFL is willing to charge you just 633 francs a semester, and you STILL think it's expensive for a Master degree, there is a problem and it is not with EPFL. A student needs only a quiet bed to sleep in, a good desk and chair, and enough food to not get sick. This isn't so unreasonably expensive.
 
robopool said:
Also, how am I exaggerating?! Maybe you were referring to the rent cost. It is indeed about 500 francs a month. Have you even clicked the link I gave? I just re-checked it and things have gone up a bit, I actually paid 455.- CHF per month, but the Rhodanie house is like 510.- for a room if you subscribe for the entire semester year. Also you can sublet the times that you are not using it.

I think a lot of people make life a lot harder than it needs to be. What happened to living within your means, why is that so hard to believe nowadays that someone will think you are "exaggerating" when he/she hears this? It's so disgusting that people say "oh I can't live like that, I need a lot more money for everyday expenses, I'm a student but I'm so unwilling to live within my means that I'd rather sacrifice the quality of my education than to be self-disciplined and spend less, I'd rather keep my lifestyle and convince myself to settle for a second-rate degree." As a student, not a normal working person, one does not need all this extra stuff. If EPFL is willing to charge you just 633 francs a semester, and you STILL think it's expensive for a Master degree, there is a problem and it is not with EPFL. A student needs only a quiet bed to sleep in, a good desk and chair, and enough food to not get sick. This isn't so unreasonably expensive.
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Well, it is easy to live moderately when you make no breaks between first degree and second degree, but if you have some years of work between that.... Concerning lodging I agree, e.g. need only desk, chair, bed/sofa and no one else living in my room, but concerning food I got used to spending most of my salary on restaurants, cafes and delivery pizza :)

And about attrition rates - what happened to the ones who didn't finish the program (didn't get an internship, were expelled after several months e.t.c?)?
 
Well, I get the sense that you're viewing this not as an intense 2-year study period but as a continuation of life with a focus on study. In any case of whether you have money or not, this is not the case. The "intense 2-year study period" is more like it, because indeed this is what it is. In this viewpoint...about the expelling........that shouldn't happen. You should be REALLY committed to the program that you're in. It's not an MBA. If you want the degree you'll have to work for it. If you work for it and see it properly for what it is, expulsion won't happen.

If you have money you can order all the food you want, but if you don't, that's part of the sacrifice you make in order to get a good education. That shouldn't be considered a valid reason for belly-aching and whining that MFE is so expensive. It's not. It is 633 francs a semester. The delivery pizzas were all your idea.

Even if you don't get an internship, you can do an independent project. Only about half the people who graduated on time got internships, I personally applied to about 250 firms (really, not joking. I spent so much time applying, it's not even funny. I wanted one so badly.) and got one. But you don't get one, you do an independent project and can still finish.
 
Umnik said:
Which one is better from job perspective? If I have problems with securing a good job, which one will give better chances for PHD in Finance?
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Hi Umnik,

You can view Finance placement information on our website:
You will see for example that one Finance '11 graduate is now at the Swiss Finance Institute doing his PhD.

I invite you to join the GSE Alumni & Friends on Facebook, where you can also get insights from current and former masters students who have gone on to professional careers and doctoral programs.

Best,

Jodi Neufeld
Communications Coordinator
Barcelona Graduate School of Economics
 
If your goal is to do Finance PhD in USA, I would recommend MFin at Barcelona GSE. I know a guy who is currently completing the MFin at Barcelona GSE. Within past two weeks he has received admission into three TOP Finance PhD programs in USA. He is a really smart guy and got free ride at Barcelona GSE for the MFin program.
 
Hey Friends,
Can you people please tell me the admission criteria for the MFE program @ EPFL. I'll be happy if someone can address my concern.Im a Bachelor of Mech Engg.
Thanks
 
Umnik said:
Well, this is list is not representative, BUT... EPFL is more often discussed here, on Wilmott etc.

In fact my current opinion is following: mind votes for EPFl, heart votes for living in Barcelona, and there is a war between mind and heart :)
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As a Spaniard based in London I advise you to stay away from Spain. I've never heard of the Barcelona GSE programme in my life and I can assure you that will be quite difficult to find a decent job in Barcelona after graduation, maybe Madrid (University of Alcalá de Henares) would be a better option if for whatever reason you wanted to study in Spain. Also bare in mind that will be almost impossible to find any kind of job unless you're fluent in Spanish. On top of that if you're in Barcelona you might have to learn Catalan to get a job which is also an official language in that region.

If I were you I would choose the Lausanne programme, you'll have better chances to secure a job after graduation either in Switzerland or any other European country (e.g. UK).
 

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