Profile Evaluation MFE 2021: IIT Grad

[arun kumar]

Could someone please help evaluate my profile:

Nationality: Indian
Undergrad: Bachelors in Mechanical Engg. - CGPA - 8.4/10
School: Indian Institute of Technology (BHU) Varanasi
GRE - 325 (170 quant 155 Verbal)
Toefl: 103
Work Experience- 20 Months at EXL services in Analytics for Credit card issuer
18 months at American Express in Credit Risk Modelling (will be 24 months by Jul’21)
Certifications: FRM level 1 cleared

What are my chances of getting into the below colleges:
1. CMU MSCF
2. COLUMBIA MFE
3. GeorgiaTech

 

[WorkofArt]

I'm pretty sure you would've covered a lot of the relevant mathematics coursework. Have you taken any relevant computer science/programming courses?
I'd say you have a pretty decent profile given your background and work experience. But I think the best way for you to know would be to apply and see how it goes. The round 1 deadlines for Georgia Tech and CMU have already passed,did you apply to them or are you looking to apply later?

 

[arun kumar]

I'm pretty sure you would've covered a lot of the relevant mathematics coursework. Have you taken any relevant computer science/programming courses?
I'd say you have a pretty decent profile given your background and work experience. But I think the best way for you to know would be to apply and see how it goes. The round 1 deadlines for Georgia Tech and CMU have already passed,did you apply to them or are you looking to apply later?

I’ve already applied to above 3 programs.
I’m applying to CS/Data science/ML programs also, so have applied to only 3 for MFE.
Georgia Tech seems like a safe option, but are CMU & Columbia too ambitious for my profile? That’s what I want to know.
I was advice to not go outside top 5 programs in MFE as the job opportunities are quite competitive and brand matters a lot on Wall Street. They advised me that a lower rank program in CS is better than mid rank program in FE.
Wanted to know what are your thoughts on that ?
Also, machine learning engineer is the new role which requires a much stronger programming background a good knowledge of distributive systems , rather than knowledge of ML algorithms.

 

[WorkofArt]

I’ve already applied to above 3 programs.
I’m applying to CS/Data science/ML programs also, so have applied to only 3 for MFE.
Georgia Tech seems like a safe option, but are CMU & Columbia too ambitious for my profile? That’s what I want to know.
I was advice to not go outside top 5 programs in MFE as the job opportunities are quite competitive and brand matters a lot on Wall Street. They advised me that a lower rank program in CS is better than mid rank program in FE.
Wanted to know what are your thoughts on that ?
Also, machine learning engineer is the new role which requires a much stronger programming background a good knowledge of distributive systems , rather than knowledge of ML algorithms.

Yes, Georgia Tech would be the safer option out of the three,did you have your interview with them already?
The advice you got was partially right I believe. If you want to get into quant trading jobs at top prop shops or hedge funds, MS CS would probably be better. But an MFE would open up more quant roles for you. So it depends on what you want to do. As per school reputation, I'd say a top 10 school in the 2021 rankings would provide enough opportunities. (I'm going based on the program information and what I've read here,someone might be able to give more information)
And studying ML/AI would be a lot harder for someone without a CS background or research in ML. The UCB MFE and CMU MSCF programs open up ample opportunities in Data Science(in Finance) . If you want to look into more machine learning programs you might want to consider the MCDS program at CMU and maybe even the CSE program at Georgia Tech. And you could follow the other programs depending on ranking also,but it's insanely competitive and even harder if you don't have the right background.
I don't know enough about the ML engineer role to comment about it.

 

[WorkofArt]

And as per your chances at Columbia and CMU, I'd say you have decent chances

 

[shadefaliam]

Could someone please help evaluate my profile:

Nationality: Indian
Undergrad: Bachelors in Mechanical Engg. - CGPA - 8.4/10
School: Indian Institute of Technology (BHU) Varanasi
GRE - 325 (170 quant 155 Verbal)
Toefl: 103
Work Experience- 20 Months at EXL services in Analytics for Credit card issuer
18 months at American Express in Credit Risk Modelling (will be 24 months by Jul’21)
Certifications: FRM level 1 cleared

What are my chances of getting into the below colleges:
1. CMU MSCF
2. COLUMBIA MFE
3. GeorgiaTech

You will get in. GeorgiaTech for sure, Columbia MFE almost certainly and I would be surprised if you didnt get in CMU