Massachusetts Institute of Technology - Master of Finance

MIT MFin MIT MFin Admission Discussion

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  • devconnolly has no tracker for this program.
tips said:
Kinda unrelated, but a question about the program for anyone who knows: what are exit-ops like for students in the program? Really, I would like to know if students have a generally ok time pursuing further academia if desired i.e. a PhD / what post-program careers are like for students with prior work experience- it seems like the program is generally catered to new grads
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From my experience, there aren't a whole lot of people who enrol on the program who are interested in pursuing a PhD. However, it is definitely possible, and has been done before (likely to be difficult to enrol in MIT's Finance PhD program, it is highly selective). There is opportunity enough to work closely with professors, and if you play your cards right I'm sure you could land a top PhD program, but you have to very knowingly gear your time on the program towards research (whereas the bulk of the class will focus on projects, action learning, and so on).

In terms of catering to new grads, I wouldn't say there is an explicit leaning one way or another. For my class, the average full-time work experience was still north of a year, with a roughly equal split of straight from school and coming from industry.
 
  • YankeesR has no tracker for this program.
devconnolly said:
From my experience, there aren't a whole lot of people who enrol on the program who are interested in pursuing a PhD. However, it is definitely possible, and has been done before (likely to be difficult to enrol in MIT's Finance PhD program, it is highly selective). There is opportunity enough to work closely with professors, and if you play your cards right I'm sure you could land a top PhD program, but you have to very knowingly gear your time on the program towards research (whereas the bulk of the class will focus on projects, action learning, and so on).

In terms of catering to new grads, I wouldn't say there is an explicit leaning one way or another. For my class, the average full-time work experience was still north of a year, with a roughly equal split of straight from school and coming from industry.
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did you notice any individuals in your class north of 30?
 
  • devconnolly has no tracker for this program.
  • 2021  Accepted tips has a tracker for this program.
josephron said:
What is your terminal goal in getting a PhD? Isn't an Mfin sufficient for industry?
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Really an undergrad is sufficient for industry, with an mba or mfin really being useful if you’re having a tough time establishing a network or breaking in. I’m pursing a mfin primarily because 1) my stats from my undergrad aren’t good enough to get into a top phd 2) I’m unsure that I want to remain in the industry at the moment and 3) because I feel like I have a number of skills I want to build up on more and it’ll be harder to justify leaving the workforce later on (I’m 24 right now and it’s already hard)

to be clearer, the programs I listed above (Stanford, princeton, Columbia) are my top preferences because they cater best to my interests. Fully get that MIT may be workable given my interests, but not necessarily the best fit for them, just something I’ll have to think about if I’m lucky enough to get in
 
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  • josephron has no tracker for this program.
tips said:
Really an undergrad is sufficient for industry, with an mba or mfin really being useful if you’re having a tough time establishing a network or breaking in. I’m pursing a mfin primarily because 1) my stats from my undergrad aren’t good enough to get into a top phd 2) I’m unsure that I want to remain in the industry at the moment and 3) because I feel like I have a number of skills I want to build up on more and it’ll be harder to justify leaving the workforce later on (I’m 24 right now and it’s already hard)

to be clearer, the programs I listed above (Stanford, princeton, Columbia) are my top preferences because they cater best to my interests. Fully get that MIT may be workable given my interests, but not necessarily the best fit for them, just something I’ll have to think about if I’m lucky enough to get in
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That makes sense. Question, don't some of these programs have a preference against saying you aim to get a PhD after the program? They seem to favor the professional route for whatever reason, rather than merely the applicants favoring it.
 
  • 2021  Accepted tips has a tracker for this program.
josephron said:
That makes sense. Question, don't some of these programs have a preference against saying you aim to get a PhD after the program? They seem to favor the professional route for whatever reason, rather than merely the applicants favoring it.
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I’ve made it pretty clear in all my apps that I’m open to getting a PhD after, if it fits my career and it hasn’t resulted in any out right rejections at the moment, I think your wording makes a huge difference
 
  • Marcus Love Quant has no tracker for this program.
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Did anyone get any interview invites after the 28th of Jan? I am trying to understand if they are sent out in batches or on a rolling basis. Thanks!
 
  • hihi has no tracker for this program.
devconnolly said:
Congrats folks.

For the math's assessment, don't be too worried. It's short, 4/5 questions designed to take a couple of minutes each. Expect a True/False of some sort, some probability, some introductory calculus of some sort. That's the ballpark. It's just another datapoint, I was admitted and I did not answer every question correctly. There is also a maths placement test in the first week of the program (there are two summer maths courses, normal and advanced). The choice is ultimately yours, though.

This year, a coding assessment was added. It'll be hard (if not impossible) to find information on it, as it hasn't been done before. As a result, I don't expect it'll be overly challenging for folks familiar with code. For us, and potentially for this class too, there is a coding assessment in the first semester anyway. Being programming literate is not a requirement for the program, but they like to know where people stand.

Over-admission (200 down to 130) is due to people going elsewhere. Don't think there is a single program out there with 100% matriculation. For us, there was only one batch of interviews, where people were interviewed in London/Paris/US/Asia/Skype and so on. I'd say the figure of 25%-35% of interviews leading to an offer is pretty close.

Good luck.
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one batch of interviews meaning they sent out the invitation only once or more than that
 
  • DC Boy has no tracker for this program.
  • 2021  Accepted tips has a tracker for this program.
tips said:
I’ve made it pretty clear in all my apps that I’m open to getting a PhD after, if it fits my career and it hasn’t resulted in any out right rejections at the moment, I think your wording makes a huge difference
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I actually ended up watching some of their info videos on youtube, and they were pretty clear that some of their candidates do end up pursuing PhDs so it isn't taboo to them
 
  • Sim has no tracker for this program.
  • Andy Zhang has no tracker for this program.
tips said:
Columbia's Financial Econ, Stanfords ICME, and Princeton's MFIN all usually have a couple students pursuing PhDs post graduation (if not directly transitioning to one at the same school), just don't know anything about MIT
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Just to add to that, so does both Columbia's Financial Engineering and Operations Research programs. I know (not directly though) that one guy, not in my year but an earlier year, graduated from the financial engineering program and did his PhD in Princeton's ORFE program. In my year, two women, both graduates of the operations research program, are doing their PhDs: one in MCF at Oxford and another in ORFE at Princeton.

From what I've seen, in general, I think as long as you came from a reputable MFE program (from a reputable school--generally top US school) that allows you flexibility to take more research-oriented courses, have research experience (publications are obviously the best, as they show that you can actually produce quality research), and can show you can tackle PhD level core courses (on par with those from whichever top PhD programs you'll interested in ofc) or have a strong quantitative background, then you're fine. I know Columbia Business School PhDs must take some of the same core PhD courses as Columbia IEOR PhDs, but not sure about the exact requirements.

I am curious whether MIT MFin students apply for MIT ORC's PhD program (some faculty there have joint appointments with Sloan, e.g., prof. Andrew Lo). I really like that program and their students land excellent industry/academic jobs. I know quite a few professors in Columbia IEOR who graduated from there.
 
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