Metallurgy to financial mathematics branch transfer..my chance?

[Vibhav jain]

Playing trading game might not hold much ground ( Brutal way to say it would be, I used to play business in my kindergarden, so I want to do business now . I hope you get the gist).
If you are in final year and have no option of internship in financial domain, then you must look for job in financial sector this December (I guess that's when your placement season starts). Working for one year understanding industry might not do any harm. But your call if you want to apply this year.

Thank you ssinghvi for your reply...but its not that trading games that fascinated me towards Fin.Math. I participated in trading competitions like Trade Mogul , where I experienced the real time share market of companies like COMEX GOLD, Euro- FX, ICE brent crude oil. which indirectly forced me to look at the reasons behind these fluctuations i.e. the risks involved. at present i have solid knowledge about the risks involved. I have a strong math background from very beginning and good programming skills. So definitely I can be in a position where I can manage these fluctuations which Fin. math can help me in doing this.So that's how i defined my FINANCIAL RISK ANALYST. because i`m interested in risk management.

Vaibhav Jain "It was in the 2nd year of my under graduation I understood that Metallurgy is not my interest"
Never ever say that again in your life, atleast not in front of any admission director/Job interview. That's just naive. 1 semester of Metallurgy (which also included non core subjects) made you loose intrest in the branch you selected... ahem ahem...

sorry if it seem i contradicting your statement...but in 1st year ( 2 sems) we arent taught any core subject related to Metallurgy. Its only in second year we get exposure to the subject ..and that made me FALL APART.

Moreover, its was very informative ssinghvi. my dream university is MFM in U Minnesota, twin cities because I have some inclination towards it right from beginning due to some reasons. whats ur opinion regarding that university.But i`m applying to Gatech, Columbia even. any suggestions of other universities.

Thanks in advance.

 

[bigbadwolf]

my dream university is MFM in U Minnesota, twin cities because I have some inclination towards it right from beginning due to some reasons.

What reasons?

 

[ssinghvi]

Thank you for your reply Shantanu Kumar,
Yeah I'm not sticked to any plan regarding working in US only. If i dint find any job, I would return to India and would like to work in Indian corporate firms. Is that advisable ?
How about job opportunities in India for quants..

Its Ok if you dont have any problem in having a loan of at least 25+ lakh 0n your head. Secondly off campus hiring is getting really tough even with IIT degree in India. And regarding 'quant' firm (most of them known as KPO's in India) they hire in large numbers directly from IIT/IIM campus. And not sure if the salary levels are enough to payoff loans.

I participated in trading competitions like Trade Mogul , where I experienced the real time share market of companies like COMEX GOLD, Euro- FX, ICE brent crude oil.

Yes I know what Trade Mogul is, and my reply still stays same "I used to play Business in my kinder garden, doesn't mean I know a lot about doing business". My suggestion still stays same - try to get real internship/job experience. But again that is just a suggestion. I am more risk-averse, I personally prefer securing a job in placement season first because applications are more uncertain for me. "Risk Management". You might want to give application more weight age.

sorry if it seem i contradicting your statement

.. no you are reiterating what I said. Since Your core subject came only in 2nd year that means your exposure to your core subject was 1-2 semester. Anyway that is not even the point here. Point is you might not want to put words like you got bored of your academic subject in SOPs/any interviews

whats ur opinion regarding that university.

Nop, I dont have much idea. But FAQ no. 12 on the website is really interesting

Q12: What jobs are available in the local area for graduates of this program?
Answer: A good source of information is http://www.quantfinancejobs.com/.
You can also try typing "quantitative analyst", selecting "100 miles" and typing the zip code "55455" in a search in monster.com, but there may be a good deal of local employment (particularly in insurance) for which quantitative tools are important, but which don't formally use "quantitative analyst" in the job title

 

[ssinghvi]

not seen many universities mentioning monster.com on website..

 

[Vibhav jain]

What reasons?

hmm.. some of my seniors are alumini of that university who somewhat resemble my profile and they are doing good now..so sense of confidence ...and reasons like fee structure, location,its ranking and career services.

 

[Vibhav jain]

not seen many universities mentioning monster.com on website..

what was dis about...monster.com >> ur comment what was it related to?

 

[ssinghvi]

what was dis about...monster.com >> ur comment what was it related to?

Yes it was related. Please see the last point of the post above.

 

[Vibhav jain]

Hi Vibhav, I am also a metallurgy student working in derivatives for 3+ years and applying this year. No, there is no problem in switching courses. But you need to know your reasons first.

Hello ssinghvi, its like i am in a dilemma regarding this issue...i have two choices
if i want to apply however, i have chosen this
columbia MAFM
U Minn,TC MFM
Boston Math Fin
U Chicago MSFM
I am looking for a safe university still.. whats ur opinion..

But as u told. i may look for a job first but, how are you working in finance being a metallurgical major ? please if have no prob let me know about the firm u r working in....in our college we get a lot of companies to work in metallurgy, not finance.please tell me about available off- campus options. That would be very helpful ssinghvi.
Thanks in advance

......

.......

Shantanu Kumar, Jayanthan ...ur advice on post above..regarding universities according to my profile

 

[ssinghvi]

I am looking for a safe university still.. whats ur opinion..

Regarding what Universities and job first? I think it should be your call, but dont panic... For U Minn as I said before I dont have much knowledge. You might want to look at quantnet/websites/reviews/google search etc. etc. to get info. Not only would it help in selecting universities, but also in your essays.

 

[bigbadwolf]

For U Minn as I said before I dont have much knowledge.

I don't recommend it. As you have noticed they don't really have any proper career placement. There are other things also wrong with the program.

I live in Minneapolis. It is not a financial hub. It is 350 miles to the nearest hub -- Chicago.

Maybe similar objections can be made for the program in North Carolina -- I don't know.

Quant finance is just a very risky high-stake bet for someone coming from India and trying to get admitted to a second-tier program.

 

[Vibhav jain]

Regarding what Universities and job first? I think it should be your call, but dont panic... For U Minn as I said before I dont have much knowledge. You might want to look at quantnet/websites/reviews/google search etc. etc. to get info. Not only would it help in selecting universities, but also in your essays.

regarding jobs+university.....both sides. I am in a confused state right now..I couldn't find any solution to my problem..ITS A COMPLETE DEAD LOCK FOR ME.....
I feel I should postpone my plans to US. ssinghvi, it would be very helpful if could guide me( PLEASE, just guide me ...dats it) in getting a finance job. that is just tell me where can i find a right place for my career.

 

[Vibhav jain]

I don't recommend it. As you have noticed they don't really have any proper career placement. There are other things also wrong with the program.

I live in Minneapolis. It is not a financial hub. It is 350 miles to the nearest hub -- Chicago.

Maybe similar objections can be made for the program in North Carolina -- I don't know.

Quant finance is just a very risky high-stake bet for someone coming from India and trying to get admitted to a second-tier program.

Thank you bigbadwolf...for ur advice. I will postpone my plans to USA. I didn't find any better course than this for my profile because..for advanced mathematics courses( like applied mathematics), university grad offices said their table is full of applicantions of that of core guys( that is math guys). So there is no other course of mathematics. i am not interested in pure mathematics either.
so thank you for all the help.....