COMPARE Master of financial economics versus Master of financial and actuarial engineering

[Vermeir Jellen]

Hello,

I am a computer engineer from Belgium. I have recently gotten interested in quant trading and am now thinking about following a finance related masters program. Ideally I would like to keep working at least part time during this endeaver.

I have taken a look at some curriculums of local universities and I would like some feedback on the following 2 programs, if possible:

http://onderwijsaanbod.kuleuven.be/2013/opleidingen/e/SC_51016799.htm#bl=01,02,03,0301,0302
and

http://onderwijsaanbod.kuleuven.be/opleidingen/e/SC_51016921.htm#bl=02,03,04

For now I want to study the courses out of personal interest, but later on I might be interested in a full career switch to a more quant oriented job (ideally, it would be in the field of quantitative trading).

The first masters does not seem to be a masters in financial engineering but a masters in financial economics. What is the actual difference between the two? The curriculum looks interesting to me, but I was wondering if it provides a deep enough quantitative coverage from a quant career perspective? The second master in "financial and actuarial engineering" seems more deeply quant oriented but I am personally not interested in the insurance related stuff. It does not seem to be to the point from a pure finance point of view.

Which one of these options would be best suited for my needs, if I want to become a quant and/or trader later on?

Some additional questions:
How do the above masters compare versus Wilmott's certificate of quantitative finance that can be followed online? I've also came accross another online graduate certificate at stanford university that does not seem to be mentioned on this website: "quantitative methods in finance graduate certificate" (The weblink is dead because the website is under maintenance. I will edit later).

Would one of these certificates provide additional value, if combined with one of the masters above? (I am talking about both additional knowledge as well as career oppurtunities and added value in the eyes of employers). For example: Stanford has a very good international reputation and the courses seem to directly involve quant trading / models.

It should probably be noted that the above two masters cost less than 3000€ while the certificates cost about 15.000+USD and 10.000+USD respectively.

 

[tfors]

I am an undergrad CS student, here is my feedback: The first master's i hardly quantitative. The second one looks better, the insurance related courses are mostly electives. The Stanford brand name is only valuable for degrees, not for certificates anyone can take. (edited)