transfer to other university

[earthpae]

hi, i am freshmen at rpi. i am considering whether to transfer to other university. the reason that i want to transfer is my school is not well-known for mathematics. if i transfer,i would lose some credit, and if i stay at rpi i would graduate in three years.

do you think i should transfer or not?? and does the previous college important for grad school admission in math finance???


thank you

 

[euroazn]

Where would you be transferring to?

Also, what are your goals, career/academic wise?

 

[ygmwy]

I don't know your background, but be careful about this.

I have a friend who transferred colleges 3 times, and lost a lot of credits. In the end, he received his bachelor's after 6 years, and regretted the whole switching thing. His friend who stayed at RPI actually got into a top 3 FE program. Don't think that transfering is going to solve all your problems. The grad schools honestly don't care what school you came from if you are from the US. They just seem to care because the most motivated students seem to come from there. I went to a very unknown school, and got into a top 3 FE program. I also know someone who went to CUNY and got in.

You are still a freshman, and it seems like you are not feeling all that good about your school. I felt the same way in my freshman year, but I decided to become the best I could in my school, taking grad classes, and completing a double major a bit early. I then had time to focus on research, and grad classes as an undergrad. Don't worry, at RPI, if you're good, you have a chance to shine. Not saying don't transfer, but from experience, you are certainly not the only person who has had these feelings at this point in their career.

 

[IntoDarkness]

transferring to a target school will make ur life a lot easier, and u wont have to do a master program to get in the door anymore

 

[ygmwy]

transferring to a target school will make ur life a lot easier, and u wont have to do a master program to get in the door anymore

Yes, it is true that it would be better to just get a job right out of a target school undergrad. But if you're planning to do Masters, then it really doesn't matter. In terms of getting a job, target school matters. In terms of getting into grad school, target school undergrad only matters for international students. If you're a smart, hardworking American student, you will be accepted regardless of what school you went to for undergrad. I know a guy who went to a community college, and got into Columbia MFE. You're just a freshman, so focus on doing well first.

 

[earthpae]

but i am international student, so it does matter?? I had participant in IMO and Putnam, does it enhance my chance??

what about if graduate in three years? because i got a lot of credit from AP

 

[ygmwy]

but i am international student, so it does matter?? I had participant in IMO and Putnam, does it enhance my chance??

what about if graduate in three years? because i got a lot of credit from AP

Sorry, I mean if your undergrad is done internationally. You go to RPI which is an American school, so it doesn't matter. I know someone who came from China to study at UofR (which is known more for music than for math), and he got into a top 3 MFE program. If you plan to get into grad school after 4 years, stop worrying so much about target schools, and worry more about your grades and your knowledge. That is much more important. This is America, not China in the sense that target schools are not AS important.

And I had the chance to graduate in 3 years, but I didn't, and I'm glad. There is one person in my program who did that, and he/she is suffering. I took the extra year to take more grad classes to get my feet wet before I prepared to take on a higher level FE program. But the choice is up to you.

 

[IntoDarkness]

well, if u dont need to go to grad school to do math finance

 

[euroazn]

but i am international student, so it does matter?? I had participant in IMO and Putnam, does it enhance my chance??

what about if graduate in three years? because i got a lot of credit from AP

You participated in IMO? And are in RPI?

How did that happen???!

 

[GoIllini]

I would not discount RPI at all when it comes to landing in analytics at a major NYC bank.

You may want to consider switching to Computer Science.

If you *must* study math, try to aim for at least a Cornell or NYU.

 

[earthpae]

my grade in high school was terrible, so i got reject almost everywhere and waitlist at MIT ==

 

[euroazn]

my grade in high school was terrible, so i got reject almost everywhere and waitlist at MIT ==

Then transferring will not be trivial. You'll want to have a 4.0 for two semesters in RPI at least, I feel.

 

[Quantfinguy]

And I had the chance to graduate in 3 years, but I didn't, and I'm glad. There is one person in my program who did that, and he/she is suffering. I took the extra year to take more grad classes to get my feet wet before I prepared to take on a higher level FE program. But the choice is up to you.

I have a chance to finish my undergrad in math by end of this term. Or I can extend it by 1 more term and take additional courses. I have completed all core courses - Calculus I, II, III, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Calc based probability, Econometrics, Probability and statistics. I am applying to various MFE programs now. What would you suggest ? Take more courses? If so which ones - Stochastic cal in finance, stochastic process, mathematical modelling, time series, discrete math(intro to algorithms), numerical methods in finance, financial economics? I was thinking to work full time for next few months to save some money (non-finance work). Or I can take 2-3 courses and work part time. In that case, which courses are the most important?

 

[GoIllini]

Time series would be really helpful.

Discrete math and algos would be helpful if you plan on becoming a coder.

StoCal is always big.

Seems like you have a lot of your bases covered in terms of the program.

What's the job opportunity? If it's $50+/hour, I say take it. If it's sub $20/hour, I say keep taking classes.

 

[ygmwy]

I would add that programming is useful. In my extra term, I took a class on C and a class on C++. That really saved me a lot of headache in grad school. I also took an intro to quant finance course which covered basic stoch calc, and some of the ideas encountered in quant fin. It was a big help so that I at least knew what things were when I went to grad school--even if I didn't understand the math behind it completely. There is also a lot of learning to be done on your own. I began experimenting in trading, and following the financial/economic news more avidly than I already did. I would also look at the grad course offerings, and see if they will allow you to take them as an undergrad. So many options. In my experience, the people who graduated early command much less respect from their peers. I knew a guy who did that, thought he was all that, talked big, and then quickly realized he was at the bottom of the class. There is always so much more to learn, so don't rush it unless you know what you are doing!

 

[earthpae]

how about uk grad school?? i pretty interest in Oxford math and computational finance
does it competitive as US grad school admission???

 

[ygmwy]

how about uk grad school?? i pretty interest in Oxford math and computational finance
does it competitive as US grad school admission???

You are missing the point. US Grad schools do not care what US school you come from.

You seem to feel that you belong in a higher tier school. You are probably having regrets about high school and your college applications. My advice to you is to stop worrying about it, and do well at RPI. If you want to prove yourself, do well there first. There are tons of smart people in RPI, and I am sure there is a place for you. Once you prove yourself there, then you can apply for top tier grad schools.

I also did horrible in high school. I was lazy, and I have a lot of regrets. I only got accepted to three very mediocre state schools. In the end, I just chose one of them and hoped for the best. In my first year of undergrad, I applied for transfers again because I was having the same feelings that you did. Then I realized that the problem wasn't the school--it was me. I decided to kick-ass in my mediocre school, and in senior year, after I had squeezed all possible benefit from my mediocre school, I finally grew out of it, and applied to the top tier MFE programs, and I am studying at one right now.

When I interviewed with the bank that I am interning at now, I mentioned that unlike many of the people in my MFE program, I came from a mediocre school, and wasn't a "genius" my whole life. But, I felt that I was stronger because of it. When you are a "genius" your whole life, you don't know how to communicate as well, or relate to people as well. You learn a lot more when you get to see things from the bottom up, and/or from other people's point of view. I started an organization where I tutored financial math in my undergrad, and I feel like the experience was much more worth it than anything I could have done at one of those fancy elite academies. By going to one of those, you risk thinking you are all that, and tunneling your vision/thinking.

If I had to give my younger self some advice (and you are close enough), I would say to stop being so obsessed with the prestige and reputation you think a transfer will bring you, and kick-ass where you are. Only when you stop focusing on that will you do well in school and in career.

 

[Ken Abbott]

my grade in high school was terrible, so i got reject almost everywhere and waitlist at MIT ==

Waitlisted at MIT, rejected everywhere else, poor grammar.

Folks: I think we may have a troll here...

 

[earthpae]

because i had an IMO medal