COMPARE Chicago MSFM vs Georgia Institute of Technology QCF

[Afina]

I wonder which one to choose, QCF @ gatech or MSFM @ Chicago?

I hope to find a job in U.S. after graduation. I know that both programs are not among the top MFE list, but I have to choose between these two. Does anyone know which program has better career placement? I appreciate your help!!

Besides, here is my understanding of the two programs:

Gatech:
Advantages: 1. comprehensive courses in finance, mathematics and programming
2. 1.5 years, can find internships
3. It is said that part of the students can find jobs in Atlanta. Gatech has good reputation in Atlanta.

Disadvantages: the rank is lower than chicago. Financial industry seems to care a lot about the reputation of universities.

Chicago:
Advantages: 1. high rank, good reputation
2. geographical advantages, financial center, more opportunites than in Atlanta.

Disadvantages:
1. teaching quality is said to be not very good
2. courses are more theoretical, focusing on mathematics.
3. 1 year, cannot find internships
4. nearly no career service

Which one should I choose? Hope for advice! Thanks!

 

[atreides]

Have you tried to contact alum/current students through linkedin, searched through this forum and/or talked to the program to get their placement information??
You need to go to the program that is the "best fit" for your future goals

 

[Forza]

@Afina,

As mentioned by atreides, you have to choose the program that fits you the best. But just a couple quick points -
- A friend of mine graduated from the GT QCF program and was able to get into a prop trading firm in Chicago (but he is a US citizen). From chatting with him, firms do recruit from GT, but they are not your well known BB...
- At one point in time, I thought about applying to the MSFM program in Chicago (went there for a wedding, and loved the city) but decided against it since my perception at the time was that the program was going through a lot of changes. The uncertainty wasn't something I liked, especially with so many other outstanding programs out there.

Good luck on your decision!

 

[Afina]

@ atreides & Forze,
Thanks so much for the advice!

I don't have good working experience so that I am afraid that I can't find a job after graduation from Uchicago.
As for Gatech, I am OK to work in firms which are not well known banks. I just hope to find a job in U.S. after graduation. It is good to start from level jobs for me.

 

[alain]

My advice, don't go to Atlanta.

 

[Forza]

@Afina,

You might still want to chat with each program and its alum to get a feel what the job market is like out of those schools for non-US citizens. In other words, more research the better.

Another thing to consider, Atlanta is a lot cheaper and just as fun. My family lives there and I went to undergrad around there.

 

[Afina]

My advice, don't go to Atlanta.

Could u give some reasons? Thanks!

 

[Afina]

@Forza

Thanks! You are really nice!

I am trying to contact current students from both programs.

 

[Forza]

@Afina,

Thanks, just trying to help in any way I can. The goal of QNet is really to share information with others so they can make better decisions, and I just try to follow that rule.

But Chicago does have a better name than GT in the finance circle, so another thing to keep in mind.

 

[alain]

Here is my reason. You are trying to do a Quantitative Finance degree. In the US the biggest hubs are Chicago and NY. Life will be easier if you work in those places. Don't go to Atlanta if you think that's the hotbed for quantitative finance, it is not.

 

[DannyF]

My dilemma is the following: If I go to Chicago, I could potentially have to take 4 extra classes in programming and finance, which each cost 5700 dollars, unless I study hard and place out of them. The cost of living is higher as well. The rest of the program will cost me more than GT already, and there will be a chance for Financial Aid at GT.

Because of this, and because I like GT and Atlanta, I lean towards GT. But if experienced members tell me it is a much better idea to go to Chicago, I will bust it to place out of those courses, and pay the extra money for the Chicago degree. I just do not know how these programs compare with each other. I have a feeling Chicago is "better."

I know about the campuses, cities, reputations of universities overall, selectivity of programs, etc.

I am yet a novice in Finance. I come from a science and math background. This could be important in the decision of schools for me, personally.

My career goals are not set in stone. I would rather not do risk management.

Can some experienced members of the forum tell me their opinions of these programs, based on the academic reputation among yourselves of the program itself, as well as the likelihood of getting an interesting job coming out of the program? I suppose opportunity for big bucks would be nice, too...

 

[TehRaio]

What about the job market?

 

[DannyF]

Both programs have > 90% placement nowadays.

But I do not know if Chicago leads to better jobs (more pay, more interesting, more relevant to FE).

EDIT: response rate for Chicago's graduate survey was a little low

 

[Sonny D]

as a hiring manager I would bring in someone from Chicago over GT any day.

 

[DannyF]

as a hiring manager I would bring in someone from Chicago over GT any day.

Thanks for your opinion!

 

[TehRaio]

there are also more jobs in Chicago than in ATL. Keep that in mind.

 

[Sonny D]

Yea, GT caries a lot of technology clout in the south east (there are really no other tech schools that compare to them in that corner of the country), but for business, they are only OK (again, they have good rankings, but they also have 1/4 of the country voting for them just because they are Tech). So if you want to stay in the south, and be a quant programmer (are there any quant programming jobs down there?), then it would be a good choice, but besides that you will probably be heading to NYC, or Chi (or maybe Dallas or NC, but even if you get a job there, will you learn anything from your co-workers?)

 

[Yolo Zhang]

It is ture Chicago has more jobs. But as I know, most Uchi msfm graduates work in risk management. Chicago has many trading firms but there are not many graduates got trading jobs. I have talked with a recent Gatech graduate, he told me QCF graduates got jobs not only in south but also in Chicago, Boston, LA and New York.

 

[DannyF]

I'm gonna reply to many topics above:

- 1/4 of GT grads work in ATL. I do not know how many work in NYC and Chicago, and I do not know what work they do in NYC and Chicago.
- about 20 percent of Chicago grads went to risk management in the last class. The class before that, ~10 percent
- ~10 percent of Chicago grads go to trading
- ~1/3 of Chicago students become quants
- The curriculum at GT is really good, especially when you consider that the new director is bringing in lots of cool speakers, classes, opportunities. I'd compare the program to UWashington, as it is a less competitive school led by a brilliant director that manages to offer a lot, and gets better every year.

The catch is that I have no idea how much networks matter for jobs in finance, beyond the vague assertions I find on the internet. I have no experience in finance; I was a hard science guy. A supergenius at a less renowned program might be worse off than a run-of-the-mill candidate at the renowned programs, for all I know.

So I am here, testing to see if any experienced people on quantnet have opinions. I greatly appreciate all your input!!!

It is interesting that the opinion of Chicago's MSFM is not so high among everyone...is it not that good? Because it is so expensive, I might go for GT, and hope for the best. As far as learning goes, I do not feel bad about GT. I am honestly not that impressed by the "elite" universities in America; I just want the best opportunity for myself. It is a hard decision that could be very important!

 

[Harsha Putta]

I got admits from Gatech and UCLA(with 10k scholar too). I have very strong finance profile even though I am from engineering background. Putting aside average salaries & placement rates, I think I want to go for Gatech QCF. The curriculum is very strong especially the programming and mathematics part. Finance side of curriculum pretty ordinary and weak, but I don't mind it as I have enough finance stuff on my resume already. And other flipside to QCF is, I am not very sure of the peer group (IMO UCLA has better peer group profiles). After graduation, I want to move into pricing/structuring of products which is what I already sort of back-end work on. There is a risk that QCF might push me to more tech related roles which I don't want, But I am willing to take that risk b'coz of confidence in my already existing strong finance profile which might be the deciding factor during placements. Finally, there is no doubt that even though QCF is better ranked than UCLA/UChicago, it's reputation/visibility is quite low compared to others. So you should definitely get technically very sound to counter your weak branding. Also QCF is ~15 years old and I donno why it is still lagging behind in terms of alumni network/reput/visible.
As a budding financial professional, take calculated risks instead of going with safe options.