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CMU MSCF Realistic Chances of acceptance

BBB

BBB

Joined
11/5/11
Messages
40
Points
16
Hi,
This will be my profile in 2-3 years when I plan on applying to schools. I want to know if I'll have a realistic chance at these programs so I know to go through with the extra classes I plan on taking or turn my focus elsewhere. I plan on applying to the CMU Online program, MIT, and Princeton.

  • 2-3 years experience trading derivatives at Chicago prop shop
  • GRE: 168Q, 162V
  • 3.52 overall GPA, 3.90 major GPA in finance at top 30 undergrad b-school
  • Take Calc III, Probability, Linear Algebra, and Diff Eq through UIUC Netmath - Earn an A in all courses
  • Complete QuantNet's C++ certificate or C++ courses though UC Berkeley Extension or Northwestern night classes
  • I have already passed CFA Level I
  • Previous internship at BB
 
Anyone? I would like to know if the money I would spend on these extra courses would be worth it.
 
It is a common understanding in this forum that people won't comment on how "likely" you can get admitted since
1) no one here works on the admissions committee, so we're all just guessing
2) candidate quality has gone up drastically in recent years
3) no one wants to be responsible for squashing your dreams or giving you false hopes by telling you the wrong thing

There are still way to gauge your competitiveness
1) Go through the trackers and compare your exam results, notes for potential notes on w/e
2) Ask Linda from Berkeley. Berkeley MFE is the only program which will pre-screen your profile and give you pointers on how to improve your profile
3) Go to each program's site and read through their student profiles. See how competitive yours is

When it comes to taking classes, many people share your skepticism. Unfortunately, no one here can tell whether your programming skill is gonna be the Achilles heel of your application. Obviously, people may tell you to take it JUST TO BE SAFE. But internship at BB and direct market experience might be sufficient for adcom to look the other way. Everything is relative
 
Thanks, Bullion. Appreciate your honesty. I didn't know that about UCB. I'll check into that.
 
For CMU, I would also recommend an algorithms course.

With MIT, Princeton, and CMU on there, I see three very different programs. MIT is more oriented for client-facing roles, for instance. CMU is really geared towards analytics development and algorithmic trading. They are both good programs, but MIT is not going to help you become an algorithmic trader and CMU is not going to help you become a portfolio manager.

Princeton gives you a lot of different options, but admissions is very difficult. You need the kind of personal profile that would get you in at HBS or Stanford, and on top of that, you need a strong quantitative skillset. Take a look at some of the resumes they post.

What do you want to do with your career?
 
I'd like to stay in trading, transitioning into more of an algorithmic role possibly. I could also see myself working at a hedge fund though. This is why I'm looking at all three programs.
 
Hello everyone,
I just completed my undergraduate degree in actuarial science. I love mathematics and I would ultimately want to become a portfolio manager for an investment company but I really love mathematics and I hope to apply mathematics a lot to aid in the fund management. I am going to be studying MFE in september. Do you think that financial engineering is the right programme given my ambitions and love for mathematics.​
 
CMU is your best bet for step #1. Then two more years of experience and something like HBS or Booth (if you want to stay in Chicago) for step #2. There is no easy MFE->Algo trading -> PM greatness route. Algo trading is starting to become so specialized and have so many individual moving parts that it's very difficult.

You need more programming ability. Definitely an algorithms and data structures class and probably a database course too. Head for a firm like Jump if you can. Then try to get into CMU after 18-24 months of work. Then we'll talk some more.
 
Nevaloselondon said:
Hello everyone,
I just completed my undergraduate degree in actuarial science. I love mathematics and I would ultimately want to become a portfolio manager for an investment company but I really love mathematics and I hope to apply mathematics a lot to aid in the fund management. I am going to be studying MFE in september. Do you think that financial engineering is the right programme given my ambitions and love for mathematics.​
Click to expand...
No. Stay the hell away from the execution/trading business- it's going to be shrinking for the next 20 years. Insurance is a nice place to be, and you can always move into PM roles there. Focus on the CFA, FRM, or maybe get an MBA (part time) and transfer internally.
 
GoIllini said:
No. Stay the hell away from the execution/trading business- it's going to be shrinking for the next 20 years. Insurance is a nice place to be, and you can always move into PM roles there. Focus on the CFA, FRM, or maybe get an MBA (part time) and transfer internally.
Click to expand...

The thing is that I have gotten a very big scholarship to study in the US and I have to study either financial engineering or mathematical finance come september. During my undergrad , my experience in finance was limited and I really wanted to do a masters that would basically turn me into a financial expert. Looking on MBAs they seemed to focus more on management but what I need now is more financial theory instead of management. So financial engineering seemed as if it would have exposed me to a lot of new and exciting finance related materials such as creating new financial products, arbitrage, various investment strategies and so on. And since I love mathematics, I figured that it would suit my talents more. But if not financial engineering or an MBA, what other degree would you recommend?
 
Are you allowed to do a PhD in just finance? Most programs will give you a TAship or RAship after your first year.

Spend two or three years, get your MPhil, and you'll be an expert. And maybe you'll have a paper or two published in the Journal of Finance. Academically speaking, you'll be more of an expert than most PMs and most of the pundits on CNBC.
 
Well the scholarship is for a Masters degree but if I perform well in my degree, I can possibly get funding for the Phd so I may just take your advice. But I have already been chosen to do financial engineering or mathematical finance so I may just continue into the phd after completing the masters. Thanks a lot
 
A small note that some MFE programs will turn down your application if you mention that you plan to do a PhD after the master degree. It's a professional terminal degree and the ultimate goal is to get good positions in industry.
Some other programs may not concern about this as much since they don't have any real career services to begin with.
 
bullion said:
There are still way to gauge your competitiveness
1) Go through the trackers and compare your exam results, notes for potential notes on w/e
2) Ask Linda from Berkeley. Berkeley MFE is the only program which will pre-screen your profile and give you pointers on how to improve your profile
3) Go to each program's site and read through their student profiles. See how competitive yours is
Click to expand...

Hey Bullion,
You mentioned getting in touch with Linda from Berkeley in order to pre-screen one's profile. I'm probably being a bit daft here as it's likely to be mentioned somewhere else on this site, but I was hoping you could tell me how exactly to get in touch with her.
Cheers
 
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