"MFE program profile evaluation" master thread

@ Andy : Thank you for your reply

All i want is to Get to a good college for Financial engineering / Quantitative finance. I believe that I can get through the course and compete for Jobs at the top level.
I screwed up my GRE quant section but i have strong determination to do well in the college I get.

You WILL be able to get admission into some schools with a 730 Q on GRE. Then if you spend enough money, you WILL get a very attractive piece of paper called a diploma. Then maybe, with that piece of paper you will be able to get a job in your home country. No company in USA would hire you and sponsor your work permit from those schools.
 
@rabit,
I'm no longer impressed any bit by the Q 800 (it becomes less relevant as an indicator) so my first impression is that your English is weak.
Everything you posted just says you are a technical guy. Schools would be able to judge your other qualities when they have your full profile.

I don't pick programs for people so you should go through our listing, ranking, wiki, reviews and find a few that meet your personal needs.


Ohkey.Thanks for your inputs
 
BA from UC Berkeley in Applied Mathematics with a concentration in Physics and Probability
(Courses include: Linear Algebra, Numerical Analysis, Differential Equations, Theory of Probability/Statistics, Real Analysis, Complex Analysis, Statistical Physics, Quantum Mechanics)
GPA: 3.91/ 4.0
Computer programming: Matlab, SAS, Splus, FAME, IDL, Unix/Linux (will be taking a C++ course before the start of the program, either next spring or summer)
GRE: 800 Quant (94%), 640 Verbal (92%)
Work experience: currently employed at the Federal Reserve Board, Washington DC (economic research assistant)
Berkeley Consulting - 1 year (consulted on 2 projects for major companies, including PG&E)
Space Sciences Laboratory, Berkeley CA - 1 year (as a Data analyst)

I think I have all the math and quantitative skills necessary, and will be getting the computer programming and already have a good base for it. My biggest weakness is background in finance and my theoretical background, as opposed to applied. Also, my letters of recommendation might not be as strong as others - I have 2 math professors I can ask, neither of which are huge names, and 2 supervisors. One from Space Sciences Laboratory who probably knows me better than any other recommender, but I worked with him 3 years ago. The other is my current supervisor at the Federal Reserve, who I'd rather not ask because I don't want to tell them that I'm applying, but I could - however, she has only known me and worked with me for 5 months. Any advice?? I would appreciate it so much!
 
BA from UC Berkeley in Applied Mathematics with a concentration in Physics and Probability
(Courses include: Linear Algebra, Numerical Analysis, Differential Equations, Theory of Probability/Statistics, Real Analysis, Complex Analysis, Statistical Physics, Quantum Mechanics)
GPA: 3.91/ 4.0
Computer programming: Matlab, SAS, Splus, FAME, IDL, Unix/Linux (will be taking a C++ course before the start of the program, either next spring or summer)
GRE: 800 Quant (94%), 640 Verbal (92%)
Work experience: currently employed at the Federal Reserve Board, Washington DC (economic research assistant)
Berkeley Consulting - 1 year (consulted on 2 projects for major companies, including PG&E)
Space Sciences Laboratory, Berkeley CA - 1 year (as a Data analyst)
This looks fine. You have a good background. I don't have much advice for picking recommenders. For finance background, my personal advice is to do CFA level 1. It gives you a very nice broad (mostly qualitative) overview of what happens in finance. This will allow you to talk intelligently to anybody in the business. I'm sure there are other ways as well.

Other people have gotten by on less finance though, so I wouldn't worry too much. Also if you're interested in the UCB program, you might want to work your network.
 
Hi Andy,
I am keen on pursuing MS in Financial Engineering starting FY 2011 and need an evaluation on my profile:

GMAT: 650/800. Quant-49 and Verbal-31.
Previous Work experience:
1.5 years as a senior derivatives analyst in Futuresfirst info services I have traded corn and soybean in Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME Group)
1.5 years as a consultant in ICRA Management Consulting Services Limited (IMaCS)

I know my score is on a lower side (especially the verbal part) but can you please suggest few colleges that I can apply to based on my score?
 
Hi all,

I previously put this inquiry as a separate post, but then figured that this thread may be the right place to post it. Apologies if this is the wrong forum, in which case, can someone point me
a) to the right forum to post it in
b) advise about whether admission consultants knowledgeable about MFin or MS in Fin programs exist (there are many admin consultants for MBA programs, but I am not able to find anything about MFin programs)
c) comment on my chances for MFin/MS Fin programs such as Princeton. Is it even worth applying for me?

your comments will be great help, thanks.

I am an software technology engineer and am considering apply to MFin program (Princeton). I am also applying to a few MBA programs this year, but MFin Prineton also will suit my long term goals. The problem is: I looked at the class profile (20 selected out of around 500), and looks like none of them is more than 6 years out of undergrad (most of them just a year or two out of undergrad) with excellent gpa etc and pure fin/math ground.

My profile is:
- 33 yrs, MS/BS in computer engineering (CE) from top programs in CS/EE university
- Couple of international publications, book chapters in my research field in CE.
- Variety of R&D roles in a few companies in hi-tech
- GMAT 740 49q, AWA 4.0 - (low?)
- GRE - 800Q - AWA 4.0 (low?)
- GPAs (~3.5)
- Good grades in math courses in UG.
- moderate ECs (do ECs matter?)

From the class profile of MFin, it looks much young (with most of them 0-1 years from undegrad). How do Pton view age during admissions? How important is "statement of purpose", and recommendations? I will have only 1 academic rec from my professor in grad school, others being professional recs.

thanks very much!
-jm
 
Kindly evaluate my profile for msfe

where do i stand with my present profile?
GMAT : 690 ( 48-Q, 37-V)
Work experience: 1.5yrs till date
8 months of relevant internship in finance.
i have done several social service activities
At present Im employed with Tata Consultancy Services, Bangalore(1yr).
GPA: 3.00 ( 61% IN BE Telecom, but fairly good mathematics score throughout my BE, Puc and school)
extracurricular achievements in the field of Chess. Won several chess competitions and captained the chess team in college for 4years.

I have chosen a list of ambitious and safe colleges, kindly evaluate my profile.
1. Kent state university,Kent, OH( financial engineering)
2. Baruch college,City University of New York (financial engineering)
3.Boston University, Boston (mathematical finance)
4.UNC Charlotte( mathematical finance)
5. Smith school of business( msc finance)
6.Syracuse university (msc finance)
7. Georgia Institute of Technology,Atlanta, GA(quantitative and computational finance.)
8. Rochester Institute of Technology (msc finance
 
Hi,
I'm Giridhar from India, and my application for admission in the MFE program in 2011 is presently in process. I recently took the GMAT and got a score of 710 (48 -Quantitative, 40- Verbal). I'm presently with HSBC as a Senior Market Risk Analyst. I have 7 years of full time work experience. My Educational background is -
Bachelor of Science (Electronics), University of Madras - AwardedFirst Class.Completed in 2001.
Post Graduate Diploma in Management. Grade A. Completed in 2003.
Math courses taken - Mathematical Physics (undergrad), Numerical Methods and Computer programming (undergrad), Business Statistics and Mathematics (post grad)
Programming Languages known - C, Visual Basic for Excel.

I'd like to know what my chances of, at least making it to the interviews are.

How good/bad is a 710 GMAT score for a decent shot at the Baruch MFE program..?

I'm also toying with the Idea of obtaining a GRE Score. Is the GRE preferred over the GMAT, by the admissions committee at Baruch..?

I'd be grateful to anyone who can who can provide me with the clarification i seek in this forum.

Cheers,
Giri
 
Please evaluate my profile

Hi,
Can someone evaluate my profile and let me know my chance of admission in the following list of universities?

Type of Undergrad Univ: MSc (Tech) Information Systems and BE(Hons) Civil Engineering, BITS, Pilani
Undergrad GPA : 8.39
Math Grad courses: Calculus- B, Linear Algebra and Vectors- A, Differential and Integral Calculus- A, Numerical Analysis- B, Probability and Statistics- A, Optimization- C, Operations Research- C, Graphs and Networks- C
Econ Courses: Principles of Economics- B, Principles of Management- A,
Programming courses: Computer Programming I- B, Computer Programming II- B. Object Oriented Programming- C
Relevant Finance courses: Security Ananlysis and Portfolio Management- C (Elective)
Letters of Recommendation: One From College Professor, One from Internship Coordinator, One from Team Leader
Teaching and research experience:
Statement of Purpose:
Other: GRE 1320 (790Q, 530V, 3.5 AWA) TOEFL 108 (29R, 24L, 26S, 29W)
Work Experience: 4 years at Juniper Networks, 6 months at Thomson Reuters

I'm thinking of applying to these schools order of safe, match and reach schools.

Boston University
University of Wisconsin Madison
Illinois Institute of Technology
Kent State University

University of Michigan
City University of New York-Baruch College
University of Toronto
University of California-Berkeley
NTU

Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences-New York University
 
where do i stand with my present profile?
GMAT : 690 ( 48-Q, 37-V)
Work experience: 1.5yrs till date
8 months of relevant internship in finance.
i have done several social service activities
At present Im employed with Tata Consultancy Services, Bangalore(1yr).
GPA: 3.00 ( 61% IN BE Telecom, but fairly good mathematics score throughout my BE, Puc and school)
extracurricular achievements in the field of Chess. Won several chess competitions and captained the chess team in college for 4years.

I have chosen a list of ambitious and safe colleges, kindly evaluate my profile.
1. Kent state university,Kent, OH( financial engineering)
2. Baruch college,City University of New York (financial engineering)
3.Boston University, Boston (mathematical finance)
4.UNC Charlotte( mathematical finance)
5. Smith school of business( msc finance)
6.Syracuse university (msc finance)
7. Georgia Institute of Technology,Atlanta, GA(quantitative and computational finance.)
8. Rochester Institute of Technology (msc finance

You should be able to get admission into some of the schools on your list like Kent State, UNC-Charlotte, and maybe soe others. Learn as much as you can at TCS. The job you will get in USA will be IT job / programming job. Best you can hope for is quant developer job. These are the only jobs for which they will sponsor the H1-B visa.
 
Hi,
Can someone evaluate my profile and let me know my chance of admission in the following list of universities?

Type of Undergrad Univ: MSc (Tech) Information Systems and BE(Hons) Civil Engineering, BITS, Pilani
Undergrad GPA : 8.39
Math Grad courses: Calculus- B, Linear Algebra and Vectors- A, Differential and Integral Calculus- A, Numerical Analysis- B, Probability and Statistics- A, Optimization- C, Operations Research- C, Graphs and Networks- C
Econ Courses: Principles of Economics- B, Principles of Management- A,
Programming courses: Computer Programming I- B, Computer Programming II- B. Object Oriented Programming- C
Relevant Finance courses: Security Ananlysis and Portfolio Management- C (Elective)
Letters of Recommendation: One From College Professor, One from Internship Coordinator, One from Team Leader
Teaching and research experience:
Statement of Purpose:
Other: GRE 1320 (790Q, 530V, 3.5 AWA) TOEFL 108 (29R, 24L, 26S, 29W)
Work Experience: 4 years at Juniper Networks, 6 months at Thomson Reuters

I'm thinking of applying to these schools order of safe, match and reach schools.

Boston University
University of Wisconsin Madison
Illinois Institute of Technology
Kent State University

University of Michigan
City University of New York-Baruch College
University of Toronto
University of California-Berkeley
NTU

Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences-New York University

Seems to me that Baruch, UC-Berkeley, and Toronto may actually be reach schools for you. Your work experience is solid and will help you to get a job in a similar type of work. To actually switch into Finance, not very optimistic. UC-Berkeley would work, IF you get admission (very big IF).
 
Profile evaluation for Financial Engineering.

Hi,
I'm interested in mathematical finance/financial engineering/computational finance. Kindly evaluate my profile for the following colleges, do i stand a chance?
GMAT : 690 ( 48-Q, 37-V)
Work experience: 1.5yrs till date
8 months of relevant internship in finance.
At present Im employed with Tata Consultancy Services, Bangalore(1yr).
GPA: 3.00 ( 61% IN BE Telecom, but fairly good mathematics score throughout my BE, Puc and school)
extracurricular achievements in the field of Chess. Won several chess competitions and captained the chess team in college for 4years.
I have chosen a list of ambitious and safe colleges, kindly evaluate my profile.
1. Kent state university,Kent, OH( financial engineering)
2. Baruch college,City University of New York (financial engineering)
3.Boston University, Boston (mathematical finance)
4.UNC Charlotte( mathematical finance)
5. Smith school of business( msc finance)
6.Syracuse university (msc finance)
7. Georgia Institute of Technology,Atlanta, GA(quantitative and computational finance.)
8. Rochester Institute of Technology (msc finance)
 
Hello,

Thank you for all the useful information in this forum. I was wondering if anyone could review my profile and suggest which schools I should apply for.

Education: University of Toronto Computer Engineering GPA:3.48/4.0
Work Experience: 4 years at a leading computer chip company doing CPU design. 1 year of experience developing backends of trading platform at a forex trading firm.
Most math courses are B+ to A. one math course had a C

GMAT: 690 Q49/V35 AWA 5.5

School: My top choice is UCB

If anyone can comment on my chance of getting into berkeley that would be much appreciated. I emailed Cal and all they suggested was retaking GMAT to get my gmat Q score to 50. The problem is that I've studied for a full month on math before my test and my Q score won't go pass 49! GMAT avgs at other schools such as Baruch and UCLA all seem to be 50Q.

Do you guys think it's really necessary to get 50Q on GMAT in order to get into UCB?
 
pocari,
You realize that Linda of UCB MFE usually evaluates resume of prospective applicants? She does this at the open houses and online chats.
If UCB is your top choice, that's something you should do.
 
Few more queries!

Thanks for the response!!
Also id like to know if my undergrad grades could hurt my admissions? I have a pretty Low GPA overall, although my grades in mathematical subjects have been consistently good( by Indian standards- we do study loads of math out here!!).
Also how good are my chances in Boston University and Rutgerts?
Would it be okay to send out most of my applications by the Last week of Dec, or will that be late for deadlines in feb-March? (admissions for Fall 2011)
 
howdy,

i figured i'd throw my name in the hat as well. would love to know what your folks think of where i stand with a few universities.

bachelors in math - gpa 2.72
masters in math (currently enrolled) - gpa 3.54

gre - 790/570/waiting

i took and got a 5 on the ap calculus exam in high school so didnt have to take calc 1 or 2 in college. dont feel like whining in my first ever post so lets just say that the first 2 years of my undergrad were a giant waste and a gpa downer. my gpa my last two years was actually a 3.6. dont want to go into how low it was after the first two years...at any rate, ive had the following classes

calc 3 - C
diff eq - C
matrix theory - C
above were taken during first 2 years =/

math -
linear algbera 2 (ugrad) - A- (only student in the class to get that grade, no A)
linear algebra (grad) - A- (only student again)
linear programing and game theory - A (senior level undergrad)
cryptography and info security - A (senior undergrad)
regression analysis - A (grad, taken as undergrad)
applied statistical models - A (grad, taken as undergrad)
stochastic calculus - A (grad)
financial math 1, 2 - A, A (taken as an independent study - worked through hull's text)
financial management - B (grad, corporate finance course)
mathematical probability - B+ (grad)
probability and statistics - A (undergrad)

programming -
linear programing and game theory - A (senior level undergrad)
computer science 1 - A (language - C)
computer science 2 - A (language - C++)
computer science 3 - B (language - Java)
computational math - B (language - C++)

going to take theory of financial management next semester along with investment management and a class on derivatives before graduation. (all graduate finance classes)

currently teach 7 classes along with going to school full time - 6 at 2 local community colleges in remedial algebra and 1 for my university in calculus 1. in the past was a TA for college algebra professors and ran independent lab sections as an undergrad and grad student. no work experience outside of that relevant to finance.

my letters of recommendation will be quite good as i have been working my butt off for the last 4 years. only gpa downers in grad school were the annoying intro algebra classes everyone has to take.

is it possible for universities to look past just the undergraduate gpa and look at the years separately? i have applied to bu, and rutgers and finishing up fsu's application today. with my credentials do i even have a chance at any other places or even the above mentioned onces? i am considering gtech, michigan and baruch but i dont want to chase any magic dragons. stark candor would be much appreciated here.

many thanks.
 
@Cjs - I think you should apply to more than 3 programs. The general idea when applying is to apply to a few dream schools, a few schools you feel are at your level, and finally a few "safety" schools that you feel are below your level.

I think the admissions will be somewhat forgiving of your undergrad GPA because your grad GPA is much better, but it may still be a factor.

The low GRE is somewhat worrying. To study that much math and not get an 800 on the quant section. The usual advice is you need an 800 to apply to top programs, and getting your verbal to at least 600 wouldn't hurt either.

I don't think the teaching experience will help you at all in the MFE admission arena. It would really only help you some if you were applying for PhDs (and then only a little).

Since you are already applying and therefore can't change your profile, I would just recommend to apply to more programs.
 
Thanks Connor.

I don't really have money to waste so I don't want to end up in a situation where I go to a sub par school because of my credentials and then not be able to get a job afterwards. I'd rather just work next year and try to make myself more marketable. If I were to do that what would you suggest besides improving my gre scores?

Thanks.
 
Thanks Connor.

I don't really have money to waste so I don't want to end up in a situation where I go to a sub par school because of my credentials and then not be able to get a job afterwards. I'd rather just work next year and try to make myself more marketable. If I were to do that what would you suggest besides improving my gre scores?

Thanks.

This is a VERY SMART decision and VERY PRACTICAL. It is better to keep applying to the Top 10 schools every year until you get into a good school, rather than go to a low ranked school in a hurry and then end up unemployed because no company wants to hire any of the students from the low ranked schools.
 
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