- Joined
- 9/19/13
- Messages
- 1
- Points
- 11
Hello everyone, I want to thank the QuantNet community in advance for their input.
I have looked at the tracker and understand the numerical data requirements for getting into a top quant program but obviously the numerical data is a small part of the applicant profile.
I am a second year student currently double majoring in electrical engineering and financial mathematics at a soft-target state university. I am very involved in clubs and organizations but I want to shift my focus on more important extracurricular activities such as research or certifications. While I am not going to completely get out of the organizations I am involved in I feel there is a better way to spend my energy. This brings me to my question.
What extracurricular activities do graduate schools want to see from their quant applicants?
I understand the obvious perfect test scores and 3.9+ GPA but what I don't understand is what to focus on now. I have had leadership roles in many organizations on campus and now have the opportunity to do research in electrical engineering and/or mathematics. Also, the next two summers I will be doing internships (I have an offer at a Boston boutique but hope to end up in NY or London). I saw the C++ certification which I am holding off until next semester when I take a C++ class for the EE major (I know Java and the class I will be taking is a 200 level C++ class, I'm not sure how advanced the C++ certification is but I don't anticipate many problems with the certification after I take this class).
The extracurriculars I have been thinking about partaking in are:
Math/EE research
More leadership roles in organizations
Certifications (C++, CFA, others?)
Applying to significant scholarships
I will be able to choose several of these but would like to know which are the most important in an applicant profile from a quant point of view?
I have looked at the tracker and understand the numerical data requirements for getting into a top quant program but obviously the numerical data is a small part of the applicant profile.
I am a second year student currently double majoring in electrical engineering and financial mathematics at a soft-target state university. I am very involved in clubs and organizations but I want to shift my focus on more important extracurricular activities such as research or certifications. While I am not going to completely get out of the organizations I am involved in I feel there is a better way to spend my energy. This brings me to my question.
What extracurricular activities do graduate schools want to see from their quant applicants?
I understand the obvious perfect test scores and 3.9+ GPA but what I don't understand is what to focus on now. I have had leadership roles in many organizations on campus and now have the opportunity to do research in electrical engineering and/or mathematics. Also, the next two summers I will be doing internships (I have an offer at a Boston boutique but hope to end up in NY or London). I saw the C++ certification which I am holding off until next semester when I take a C++ class for the EE major (I know Java and the class I will be taking is a 200 level C++ class, I'm not sure how advanced the C++ certification is but I don't anticipate many problems with the certification after I take this class).
The extracurriculars I have been thinking about partaking in are:
Math/EE research
More leadership roles in organizations
Certifications (C++, CFA, others?)
Applying to significant scholarships
I will be able to choose several of these but would like to know which are the most important in an applicant profile from a quant point of view?
