Advice for MFE Profile

[stewerlois]

Hi everyone,

I'm an Indian Graduate of Electrical Engineering from an old IIT (CGPA = 9.6/10, not sure of the conversion to 4-point scale). I wish to pursue an MFE for either the Fall'25/Spring'26/Fall'26 intake. Dream colleges: Baruch, Princeton, CMU, UCB, MIT

Some of my relevant coursework includes:
Multivariate Calculus and Real Analysis (9/10), Linear Algebra (9/10), Complex Analysis (10/10), Differential Equations (ODEs and PDEs) (8/10), Probability (10/10), Optimization (10/10), Stochastic Optimization (10/10), Advanced (Measure-theoretic) Probability (10/10), Financial Engineering (10/10), Computer Programming in C/C++ (10/10), Data Structures and Algorithms (10/10), Introductory ML (10/10), Stochastic Processes (8/10)

Other than that, I've done multiple internships in the Software (using C/C++) and Data Science (using Python) domains, and have had a brief stint as an FPGA Intern at a small HFT Prop Shop.
Currently working as a Quant Researcher at a large Prop Trading HFT firm in India (almost a year of experience at the time of applying).

I feel my lack of finance-based coursework would pose a slight issue in my application, could anyone give me an advice on any other coursework that could be lacking here and how to improve upon it? Also the lack of CFA - how bad a dent would that put on my application?
Also, most Indian students I've seen get into such programs have had multiple years of experience in the sell-side, contrary to mine, being on the buy-side with just a year. Should I wait another year to apply?

Requesting your advice on the above, and any other general things I should keep in mind based on my current profile. Looking forward to hearing your insights. Thanks.

 

[jarryds]

Are you using an MFE to try to break into the US market?

 

[stewerlois]

Pretty much, but on top of that, I personally feel that I've a lot of ground to cover in terms of the 'statistics' part of finance. This is something which I've not been able to gain through my current job as well, and I feel a good education would help bridge that gap. Also, I have some interest to shift into risk roles as well.

 

[arohan]

Your application’s pretty competitive. With good LoRs and SoP/Essays, you should be able to get a few admits. Maybe just apply to a few more colleges (Chicago, Columbia, Courant, Cornell) to be safe.

 

[stewerlois]

Thanks for the advice @arohan , I'm keeping those options open too, probably gonna apply to all of them eventually, and while LoRs are beyond my control, SoPs and essays are something I can definitely improve upon.

Other than that, there's the matter of interviews, and I'm pretty worried that the interviewer may judge my lack of experience in BB firms (or otherwise, since I've got hardly a year's worth of experience). Is there any way to compensate that, or will it even be that big a point of contention?

 

[stewerlois]

Adding this as a continuation to my original question -

I haven't pursued Baruch's Pre-MFE program, and just off hindsight, I found that a lot of people who get into Baruch tend to have that as an experience? Is it possible for my current profile to be accepted (or even considered) for Baruch's MFE (I've studied Prof. Stefanica's LinAlg Primer and Finance Primer thoroughly along with his 150 Questions book)?

Also, would the lack of Pre-MFE affect my chances in the other mentioned programs?

 

[arohan]

Adding this as a continuation to my original question -

I haven't pursued Baruch's Pre-MFE program, and just off hindsight, I found that a lot of people who get into Baruch tend to have that as an experience? Is it possible for my current profile to be accepted (or even considered) for Baruch's MFE (I've studied Prof. Stefanica's LinAlg Primer and Finance Primer thoroughly along with his 150 Questions book)?

Also, would the lack of Pre-MFE affect my chances in the other mentioned programs?

I don't know why you think prop trading experience would be less valued than BB exp. Most folks coming into these programs with BB experience are trying to pivot into prop trading, hedge funds, asset managers etc. themselves. Having buy-side experience should be at least as valuable as BB experience. And honestly, I would be inclined to believe it would be valued more than BB given how rare it is to have candidates with buy-side QR/QT experience. The only reason I might feel QR experience at prop shops may not be valuable is if you aren't actually doing much Quant work. A lot of prop shops in India label themselves as Quant but are closeted discretionary traders often trading based on technical analysis. If your experience is in something similar then it might perhaps end up being an issue. But if it's actual QR experience at a prop shop, I wouldn't worry about it at all. It would prolly be one of the strongest highlights of your profile.

Adding this as a continuation to my original question -

I haven't pursued Baruch's Pre-MFE program, and just off hindsight, I found that a lot of people who get into Baruch tend to have that as an experience? Is it possible for my current profile to be accepted (or even considered) for Baruch's MFE (I've studied Prof. Stefanica's LinAlg Primer and Finance Primer thoroughly along with his 150 Questions book)?

Also, would the lack of Pre-MFE affect my chances in the other mentioned programs?

I am not sure about how important doing Baruch's Pre-MFE might be for getting into Baruch. I think it would be best to ask someone at Baruch about this. I can comment on other similar programs though. A lot of the times, MFE programs make it mandatory for admitted candidates to pursue their pre-MFE programs before starting uni (e.g. UCB). Just check if Baruch might be the same case. If it is, then it isn't that you need to do the Pre-MFE to get admitted into Baruch. It just means that you'll have to pursue the pre-MFE if you get admitted.