MFE degrees in Quebec (Canada)

[Poomrang]

Hello,

Does anyone know if thse degrees have a good international reputation ?

- Master in Computational Finance (University De Montreal)

- Master in Financial Engineering (HEC Montreal)

- Master in Financial Engineering (University Laval)

Thanks !

 

[raywin]

Actually, I never heard of those you mentioned though I am in Canada. The financial center in Canada is Toronto. If you wanna pursue a mathematical finance degree in Canada, your best two choices are Quantitative Finance@University Of Waterloo or Mathematical Finance@University Of Toronto. However these two programs are extremely competitive in Canada. Hope these info are useful for you to make your own decisions! Good luck

 

[Poomrang]

Actually, I never heard of those you mentioned though I am in Canada. The financial center in Canada is Toronto. If you wanna pursue a mathematical finance degree in Canada, your best two choices are Quantitative Finance@University Of Waterloo or Mathematical Finance@University Of Toronto. However these two programs are extremely competitive in Canada. Hope these info are useful for you to make your own decisions! Good luck

Thanks for your answer, but what I discovered is that these programes are ranked better than those of the Ontario region !

here is the ranking published by Global derivatives :

Global Derivatives v3.0 - Quantitative Masters Programs - Complete List

 

[Pravit]

The website you linked to is an arbitrarily ordered list, not a ranking. There is a Global Derivatives ranking out there from 2003-2004, but it's pretty worthless, in my opinion - it says they used surveys to compile the rankings, but who filled out those surveys? MFE applicants?

At any rate, if you poke around GD you will find their ranking. There is no official ranking out there for MFE programs that I am aware of.

 

[alain]

are there any dependable sources of rankings for mfe progs anywhere? and why are a lot of the colleges reluctant to reveal their placement stats ?

What is a rankings list so important to you? What does it matter? A ranking is some subjective thing to influence your decision.

I know outside of US rankings and name seemed very important but that is not how real life works. For example, I know in India everything is driven by some sort of ranking (the IIT test, etc, etc). Well, to get a job in the US you have to be good in the interview and you have to show that you know your stuff regardless if you came from an Ivy league school or from a community college.

 

[cofibreak]

I think rankings do serve some purpose but like everything else, we have to come to any conclusion after we look at the whole picture, including ranking.

To someone outside the US, rankings of US colleges/universities are even more helpful because Dartmouth, Rutgers, UPenn and PennState are all equally less known to them until they do their research.

However, like Alain says, what gets you the job is how you sell yourself at the interview. But given the programs are more or similar to your needs, if you get into a university which has lower acceptance rate, it tells the hiring manager something about you. [Ranking and acceptance rate may not be correlated]

Maybe hiring managers/recruiters can confirm this: If you graduate from a 'better known' university or a 'better known' program, it increases your chance of securing an opporunity to sell yourself to a manager.

 

[Ted]

Thanks for your answer, but what I discovered is that these programes are ranked better than those of the Ontario region !

here is the ranking published by Global derivatives :

Global Derivatives v3.0 - Quantitative Masters Programs - Complete List

Those are just listed alphabetically

 

[AlexandreB]

I'm currently doing the MFE at HEC Montreal right now. It is by far the best program out of the three you mentionned above. Upsides: Good, industry oriented program. Great job prospects and reputation in montreal. Downside: Extremely little reputation outside montreal (although still better than UL and UdM. Best international reputation in Quebec is McGill, though they don't offer an MFE) Don't hesistate to PM me for more detailed answers.

 

[Somebody]

I've done the Master in Mathematic and Computational Finance at Universite de Montreal 2-3 years ago. I'd say the programs seem pretty different from one another so the choice depends on what you want from it. My program was a bit strangely composed (equal parts of computer science, financial economics and mathematics (more pure maths than financial maths)). At the end of it you don't know that much about finance so you can look a bit stupid on that side in a job interview but the good part is that, if you go through the program seriously and with some succes, the various advanced math problems encountered will make you become quite strong in maths. For the finance part, it's not really difficult to get once you work in it. Also, the programming aspect is a pretty huge asset to have. At the end, I'd say that the Universite de Montreal choice is for those who like maths and the HEC choice is for those who want more parctical oriented courses (this one I'm not sure of course).

 

[AlexandreB]

In terms of content, I agree with Somebody above that the UdM program is probably more rigorous and better compared to the HEC one. For example, classes at HEC use mostly Matlab instead of c++ while c++ is much more used in the industry. Furthermore, I think one should learn the tough maths as early as possible and then grab the easier finance stuff afterward.

Where HEC has the edge is in reputation and networking opportunities. Sadly, at least to some, who you know matters more than what you know.

Anyway, go CARABINS!

 

[Dibbs]

Do you know how competitive the program @ UofT is ? I've just applied to UofT and i would have to say I am a bit scared of the outcome.

I'm studying in Mechanical Engineering, my GPA is 3.93/4 and i've got many extra-curricular activities. I've also enrolled in finance classes @ HEC in order to deepen my finance knowledge. The only thing is.. i don't have any work experience in the finance field. (I've got many work experiences, but in the engineering field).

What do you think my chances are

 

[shivgang]

Master in Mathematic and Computational Finance at Universite de Montreal and MFE at HEC Montreal right now is in English?

 

[Speedwing]

Hello everybody,
I was wondering if someone could help me with this:
I am currently in my last semester of college (in Quebec) and my goal would be to do an MFE (probably in the United States) after getting my bachelor's degree. The problem is I am asking myself if a BBA programm like the one offered at HEC will provide me with enough mathematical tools for the MFE. Is the BBA programm contains enough mathematics?

Thank you in advance! (and sorry if my writing is not that good)

 

[shivgan joshi]

Is the Quebec program in English or French?

 

[Speedwing]

Well there's the BBA at HEC wich is offered in both languages, the BBA at John Molson school of business wich is in english (Concordia) and finally a bachelor in financial mathematics at Udm, wich i'm pretty sure is in french only...

 

[puvendra mishra]

is MFE in HEC Montreal and university of Laval in french or English?

what are the score requirment for the same

 

[TehRaio]

is MFE in HEC Montreal and university of Laval in french or English?

what are the score requirment for the same

well the website is all in french, and nothing in there says it offers modules taught in english. do you have alternatives?

 

[Alexandre Chretien]

HEC's program is in French, but one third of the courses can be taken in English.
Score requirements are posted on the website.
Good luck.

 

[Emanuel S]

It is extremely hard to get in into UofT. However they have 3 interesting programs. The first one is MMF, which is pure maths with a hint of finance, so you need to be amazing in quants. Then we have MFE which is also pure maths and programming. For both of the previous programs, the students have engineering/maths/quants background. Lastly, there is the Master of financial economics. To get in you need perfect grades (3.93/4) is good enough and a great amount of extra curricular activities(they value that a lot), useful to have work experience, but not mandatory (most applicants work a few years after the undergrad and then get into this program). UofT is definitely the best school in Canada. I'm trying to get in there, but have very low expectations as I'm coming from a no name school.

 

[CaFre]

is MFE in HEC Montreal and university of Laval in french or English?

what are the score requirment for the same

Laval is all in french, you'll need a 3,5/4,33 GPA and undergrad level maths. Most students come from maths/engineering/actuary. Most Learning material is in English though...

Acceptance rate = between 10% and 20%.

Laval's positions at the Rotman International Trading Competition:

2013: 1
2014: 1
2015: 8
2016: 4

Hope that helps,