COMPARE Master Programs Comparison: Which quant program to choose?

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aksrandhawa

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BOSTON MA mathematical finance vs Rutgers MSMF vs USC MAMF
Among the three univs which 1 do u prefer for the mathematical finance course..
according to the placement scenario..
 
Hi all,

Just got admitted to both Princeton's MFIN (2 years) and Columbia's MSOR (Operations Research).
I need some information about these 2 programs.

- Reputation in NYC
- Ranking among other Masters
- Is it worth it to pursue the Princeton program in 2 years?
- Is it true that Princeton is not well-known as a grad school in comparison with Columbia?
- Which program should I choose?

I have to make a decision by April 14 which gives me less than a week. I am French and these programs are not well known in France. That's why I'm asking all these questions that may seem obvious to some of you but I really need help because except forums, I can hardly get advice from people here.

Many thanks for your help.
Lola
 
The problem with this question is that the three programs you mention do not publish their placement record. As such, anyone saying this program has better record than the other is purely guessing. Quantnet people don't seem to do that a lot.

In any case, people would eliminate USC for the location disadvantage alone. Have you tried calling the depts directly?
 
Go for Princeton. It's a much smaller size program compared to MSOR where you will be one of the few hundred graduates Columbia mass produces every year.
Princeton is in New Jersey which is not having the advantage of being in NYC as the Columbia program. Columbia is a big name in NYC but at the same time, its MSOR is generating bad vibes this year.

There are few threads about the MSOR program here.
 
Do some search in this forum. Check the wiki. There are some threads about the Columbia MSOR... but I think those threads will push you to go to Princeton.
 
I am not very experienced in this regard nor did i apply to these programs. But if i were in your situation I would go to princeton. How can you compare Finance degree with OR(even though you might take 1 finance elective per semester or whatever). Look at curriculum of these 2 programs and it is you who can decide which one is better.
 
Go to Princeton. I have known a friend from there. One of their program's chairmans has worked in Merrill Lynch for 10 yrs before she went back to school. And she is very dedicated to helping students find jobs. As far as I know, Princeton has good placement record.
 
Since I don't know anything about placement at these schools, I would go along the lines Alain suggested and pick Boston because of location :)
 
Muting said:
Go to Princeton. I have known a friend from there. One of their program's chairmans has worked in Merrill Lynch for 10 yrs before she went back to school. And she is very dedicated to helping students find jobs. As far as I know, Princeton has good placement record.
Click to expand...


Generally, is Princeton's MFin program as good as Berkeley/NYU/CMU MFE?
 
Yuriy said:
Since I don't know anything about placement at these schools, I would go along the lines Alain suggested and pick Boston because of location :)
Click to expand...

Yuriy, you might be thinking about Boston College. I don't recall any Boston University sports team... maybe hockey?
 
Alain, when I said "along the lines" I meant that you picked different criteria - sport - to choose USC. My criteria is location, since I would rather go to Boston than to NJ or CA :)
 
Even for sports, why go to USC? The Trojans are way over rated. If you want sports, go to Boston. Red Sox, Patriots, and Celtics...doesn't get much better.
 
I was talking about college sports... but I'm totally biased against Boston in every regard.
 
I would tout the BC football team, but I don't care much for them, since they are in the same conference as FSU. It's funny that you mention your bias toward Boston sports, because I feel the same about New York. :D Especially the Yankees.....
 
Sanket Patel said:
I would tout the BC football team, but I don't care much for them, since they are in the same conference as FSU. It's funny that you mention your bias toward Boston sports, because I feel the same about New York. :D Especially the Yankees.....
Click to expand...
The only difference is that I used to work for a Boston Company. I didn't care about the Patriots or the Celtics... after working for that company I always root against them.

The dislike for the Red Sox is by default.
 
Lolasff, Congratulations !!!
Princeton is my dream, but I was rejected. I am heading for CMU now.
 
Yuriy said:
I would rather go to CMU :) but mostly because CMU is more quantitatively oriented.
Click to expand...

Thanks to all of you for your encouragements!!!

Don't you think that it's a bit late to start working at the age of 27. I'm 24 today. If I go to Princeton (2 year program), I won't start working before the age of 26/27.
 
Andy said:
Go for Princeton. It's a much smaller size program compared to MSOR where you will be one of the few hundred graduates Columbia mass produces every year.
Princeton is in New Jersey which is not having the advantage of being in NYC as the Columbia program. Columbia is a big name in NYC but at the same time, its MSOR is generating bad vibes this year.

There are few threads about the MSOR program here.
Click to expand...

I heard Columbia MSOR had very bad placement record this year...
Besides, I'm more interested in the Princeton MFIN coursework but my concern is the length of the program. I am already 24 and going to Princeton whould mean start workin at 26/27... Whereas the one-year program at Columbia would enable me to start workin at 25!
What's your opinion?
 

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