Wish list for QuantNet 2023 and beyond

Andy Zhang said:
Maybe a course on Linux essentials with applications to finance? Also, kdb, as was mentioned in some QuantNet post a while ago.
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Paul Lopez said:
great idea. How to develop in a linux/unix env using g++ and clang compilers.
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kdb might be the most useful idea. I'm not entirely sure what the second one is, haven't seen it anywhere, purely off of exposure I have seen a couple firms state in internship things that kdb was required (or practically required) (I think it was 2sig and someone else). Also, CMU has a course on it. I know from the last time kdb was brought up on QN that Palley knows it, not sure if he is up for a third (fourth? I think he does python too) full time course commitment. You could always ask a QN member who went through CMU how they did it, and if he/she knows anyone who might want to spearhead it.

But that might just mean that I'm on the surface level for coding and haven't been exposed to the deeper stuff.
 
MikeLawrence said:
kdb might be the most useful idea. I'm not entirely sure what the second one is, haven't seen it anywhere, purely off of exposure I have seen a couple firms state in internship things that kdb was required (or practically required) (I think it was 2sig and someone else).
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I've only seen it on Morgan Stanley job postings. Don't ever recall seeing it on the buy-side...at least not where I work.
MikeLawrence said:
Also, CMU has a course on it. I know from the last time kdb was brought up on QN that Palley knows it, not sure if he is up for a third (fourth? I think he does python too) full time course commitment. You could always ask a QN member who went through CMU how they did it, and if he/she knows anyone who might want to spearhead it.
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Saw that too. I think CMU might be the only program that teaches it, but probably not in much depth. I'm assuming Avi learned it through work?
MikeLawrence said:
But that might just mean that I'm on the surface level for coding and haven't been exposed to the deeper stuff.
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You're not alone here.
 
Andy Zhang said:
I've only seen it on Morgan Stanley job postings. Don't ever recall seeing it on the buy-side...at least not where I work.

Saw that too. I think CMU might be the only program that teaches it, but probably not in much depth. I'm assuming Avi learned it through work?

You're not alone here.
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I learned q/kdb through work. Same for sql. But I'm old. I hope schools teach at least the basics now. :D
 
I learned SQL on my first job on a prop trading desk at Deutsche Bank as I was finishing my MFE. Also, gotta learn VBA/XLL and all that fun stuff. There was a huge disconnect between what you learn in MFE and what's actually going on at work.
 
MichaelLewis said:
A third C++ course. Maybe something that involves building some trading algos that we can show off as projects during interviews (whether for job or MFE interviews)
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Actually, we have been approached about this precise question a few times the last while. And I am coaching a student (who did QN C++ and Adv C++) to set up a prototype.
A lot of techniques are needed. And multiple participants. Kdb could be in there somewhere, as well as Python scripting.

In general, the requirements are well-known. But the devil in the (interesting) details.

@APalley
@Paul Lopez
@Andy Nguyen
@MikeLawrence
 
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Daniel Duffy said:
Actually, we have been approached about this precise question a few times the last while. And I am coaching a student (who did QN C++ and Adv C++) to set up a prototype.
A lot of techniques are needed. And multiple participants. Kdb could be in there somewhere, as well as Python scripting.

In general, the requirements are well-known. But the devil in the (interesting) details.

@APalley
@Paul Lopez
@Andy Nguyen
@MikeLawrence
Click to expand...
I would love to take this course. I have literally scoured the internet as well as countless continuing education courses at universities and can’t find anything. This would be the most valuable class I can think of.

QN is obviously filled with a lot of folks who aspire to be quants. However, I also think there are a lot of folks like me. I don’t aspire to be a quant. Instead, I set out to be a quant/algo developer. And, I think QN can round out it’s portfolio by offering courses for both considering how closely related the two roles are.

I did the first C++ course about two years ago and this helped me get an algo developer role. I then disappeared from QN for a while because there wasn’t any offering that could immediately help me succeed in my new role (and I was a bit overwhelmed with all I needed to learn). Now that I have my feet under me, I am back on QN and preparing for the advanced course.

However, it would have been great to have this third course there to support and educate me along the way.
 
" I have literally scoured the internet as well as countless continuing education courses at universities and can’t find anything."
Most institutions probably don't have the stamina, knowledge or mindset to get it up and running. Based on my experience of such orgs in the last 40 years. And it is too late for them to begin now.

Universities are not geared up to this kind of work.

And that's my honest (and accurate) opinion.
 
Question to all the MFE applicants.
When you research MFE programs through QuantNet, what are the crucial data that you need to help you decide which program to apply and to join?
Obviously, these are data you can't find it elsewhere.

Admission: acceptance rate?
Employment: average salary, % employment, location?
Student reviews?

I'm trying to see what kind of data you value the most and how we can go about providing them.
 
Andy Nguyen said:
Question to all the MFE applicants.
When you research MFE programs through QuantNet, what are the crucial data that you need to help you decide which program to apply and to join?
Obviously, these are data you can't find it elsewhere.

Admission: acceptance rate?
Employment: average salary, % employment, location?
Student reviews?

I'm trying to see what kind of data you value the most and how we can go about providing them.
Click to expand...
Average salary, tuition, and student reviews are some of the most important data for me. This is an investment, and we are all trying to maximize the expected outcome for it. Student reviews are important as they can give a decent feel for the program that isn't reflected in numbers.

Acceptance rate and other stats to show the selectivity of programs have never been particularly appealing to me when choosing programs, though it can be a source of pride once in them. I care more about the quality of the program than how many qualified applicants it manages to turn away.
 
MikeLawrence said:
Average salary, tuition, and student reviews are some of the most important data for me. This is an investment, and we are all trying to maximize the expected outcome for it. Student reviews are important as they can give a decent feel for the program that isn't reflected in numbers.

Acceptance rate and other stats to show the selectivity of programs have never been particularly appealing to me when choosing programs, though it can be a source of pride once in them. I care more about the quality of the program than how many qualified applicants it manages to turn away.
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Most of the data can be found in the QuantNet MFE rankings but the reviews are much harder to obtain. We may have to form Seal teams to hunt down reviews. It's always "what is in it for me" mentality that we have to overcome :)
 
MikeLawrence said:
Average salary, tuition, and student reviews are some of the most important data for me. This is an investment, and we are all trying to maximize the expected outcome for it. Student reviews are important as they can give a decent feel for the program that isn't reflected in numbers.
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On a second read, I agree with this. I think most people will approach this as a 100K investment and they want to have a >50% probability to regain that investment right after school. Unfortunately, some programs make it very difficult to make a good decision.
Many students went back to China because they couldn't find a job in the US. There are many micro and macro reasons for this but without a full picture, it's a pretty dicey decision.
 
Just my two cents. Looking back at when I was going through MFE rankings, and in an ideal world I would've liked to know things like:
  • Placement data (duh! and also a number of people already touched on this - because it's probably the most important point)
    • Placement percentage
    • Starting salaries and titles (finance is highly hierarchical)
    • Career progression stats and job satisfaction (agree that MFE programs are generally not geared for this and a number of them would choose to not even disclose this)
    • Job location
    • I never ran into visa issues, but a lot of my friends from my MFE did - so anything on whether companies that typically recruit from that university sponsor juniors would probably be helpful
  • Student reviews
  • Info on the university's Career Development department
    • In my field (Investment Banking), we begin recruiting for summer interns over a year in advance! So a lot of MBA programs start coaching their admitted students even before they start their first semester
  • Some kind of data on the university's broader Alumni network - people that are in finance or relevant fields (I happen to think this is crucial for students that want to network)
  • Whether the program is offered jointly with a business school or is it purely the Math department
  • Whether a meaningful portion of professors actually have industry experience
  • Average work experience of the student body and what industries people generally come from

Additional food for thought here. As MFEs become more and more commoditized, like it happened with MBAs, I would probably look into the way MBA rankings dice their respective lists: best classroom experience, best professors, best MBA for consulting / finance / management, etc... Obviously, there are some rankings that probably wouldn't make sense like "Most Family-Friendly MBA" because the vast majority on FE applicants are young and single, but it'd be a starting point for me.
 

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