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Job opportunities after MFE vs MS Finance

rishab dhar

Joined
9/25/10
Messages
285
Points
38
Hi guys,

I am interested in what sort of job opportunities are available after a MFE degree vs those after a MS in Finance degree in US, especially in terms of what degree is in more demand these days.

I get a feeling as though MSF degree is not well received by the US employers, as the UIUC's MSF program has dismal placements (47% as per FT data) and MBA placements were pretty decent-82%, meaning that its B-school is pretty well known and reputed.

Because the MS in FE program is taught in collaboration between the B-school and the Engineering college UIUC's engineering college is highly reputed, I am in a dilemma- could MSF's failure to place could be because of non-quant nature of the program?

As I understand it, almost every successful/top program in finance in US is highly quant oriented, even Princeton's MSF.
 
I do know that the MSF is gaining popularity because of its shorter duration.
 
The MSF places primarily into banking. If you are not fluent in English and require sponsorship, you will have a hard time getting into banking. The MSF is also not quant enough for quant roles, so you are essentially in between a rock and a hard spot.
 
Like Anthony said, MSF is for banking roles whereas MFE is for quant work. If you work in finance, you are going to want to be able to communicate regardless, so you will need good English + communication skills for both, maybe more so in banking.

I'd say for MSF you should aim for only the top programs, or else don't even think about it. I imagine the MSF students competing with undergrads for analyst positions, and a MSF from John Doe College isn't going to be much better than Harvard undergrad. But this is based on my own research and friends' experience. I don't want to say it's impossible to break in with a lower-tiered MSF, but it'll definitely be more difficult. Good luck.
 
thanks guys for all that invaluable advice.

Quantnet has proven to be a great community to provide such great advice to guys like me.

I would like some more advice on these counts :
1) Now that I know that MSF is primarily for banking, can I also assume that for all kind of roles I'd also have to compete with MBA (Finance) graduates, along with thousands of students with an undergrad in finance?
2) As UIUC as fairly reputed school, would be easier to get a quant job in let us say Chicago area, as compared to other gradutes with quant focussed degrees ( Univ of Chicago lets say)? ( I am willing to work in Chicago, unless of course I am offered a job in NY area).
3) One thing I have also observed that most MFE programs have small class sizes, with UCB's MFE class being that largest cohort (65). So, does this also mean higher chances of getting placed. Most MSF programs that I found are overcrowded classes (anywhere between 60-150 students).
4) How well is a MFE degree recognized outside US? (Let's say in Hong Kong ,Singapore, Mumbai?). AFAIK outside US, very few univs. offer MFE programs. As I am an international student, the answer to this question is extremely important to me.
5) Finally, for a computer science graduate (B.E), with excellent grades in math, good programming knowledge, and good communication skills, will MFE be better suited than a MSF? ( At the end of the day the thing that matters the most is getting a job. Of course, I wan't to work in the domain of finance, but I am willing to compromise with the roles as long as I get a job). How well does MFE graduate stand up against a PhD in Math/Physics/Statistics student for a similar quant role?
 
OP - can you share the FT data that you found on MFE placement? Some of the university websites have placement numbers, but it would be great to validate from the 3rd party source.

Also, great questions above, I have some of the same.
 
FT assesses a few of MFE programs; one of them is UCB's MFE. I do not have much info about the placement data for the program in which I am interested, as this is a new program; so all can rely on are the reviews that the present UIUC MSFE students give.
 
Hey Risabh!!!

I have similar doubt as you had. Did you get any pointers?? Did you finally choose MSF or went for MFE
 
I personally think most people interested in a MSF would be better off going for a CFA... The MSF vs MFE usually does qualify students for different roles as specified above but I do feel it also depends on how you market yourself. A creative MSF student should be fine, but will have a more difficult time than their MFE peers.
 
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