Georgia Tech QCF Admission Discussion

[Geekynoob]

I am not sure was for what to join. Can't decide. Georgia Tech has great ROI, while Columbia has location advantage (NY). Also, I am very hopeful for UCB. I am definitely choosing UCB over others.

 

[Tsunami]

Given that you have no problem in paying for the program, i think you should consider definitely Columbia. Even if you consider GATech, i don't think it will be a big disadvantage with the quality work ex you have. You'll end up paying half or may be even less of what you'll be spending at Columbia.

 

[Geekynoob]

I have been talking to a lot of Columbia MFE alumni, no one has given me a good review. So I am really confused now lol.

I am actually thinking if I get NYU admit, probably should ditch all these and go with NYU. Except Java as programming language and placements, no bad reviews from any alumni. I already code in C++ and placements is something I might be able to get by myself. But honestly, all so confusing. GATECH presently > Columbia. Hadn't imagined that 2 months back!

 

[Deleted member 34462]

@Geekynoob What kind of bad reviews did you get for the Columbia MFE program? Could you share those with us?

 

[Geekynoob]

1. Lack of team tasks/ study groups. I believe that makes you more materialistic and the whole experience less fun.

2. Subjects being very theoretical. Lacking practicality.

3. Placement cell service is not good. They don't prepare students for jobs, which Baruch, CMU do a lot.

4. Competition from MSOR and MFin.

5. Particularly for me, they said don't do MFE, you would learn nothing new, perhaps do data science or computer science. If your only goal is to move to US, choose GATECH as the ROI is much better. No point spending a total of $120K on education.

P.S. none of these are my views.

 

[Geekynoob]

Does anyone know what difference does home college make?

 

[willxx]

Does anyone know what difference does home college make?

i think it's just that their faculty review files and send out decisions separately, once you start the program, there's no difference

 

[shadefaliam]

1. Lack of team tasks/ study groups. I believe that makes you more materialistic and the whole experience less fun.

2. Subjects being very theoretical. Lacking practicality.

3. Placement cell service is not good. They don't prepare students for jobs, which Baruch, CMU do a lot.

4. Competition from MSOR and MFin.

5. Particularly for me, they said don't do MFE, you would learn nothing new, perhaps do data science or computer science. If your only goal is to move to US, choose GATECH as the ROI is much better. No point spending a total of $120K on education.

P.S. none of these are my views.

1. Completely dependent on you and your choice of courses to make your experience more collaborative and fun.

2. Again, variety of very applied courses available if you are smart enough not to be swayed by the waves.

3. Not really sure of what exactly is expected of a great placement cell. Cant comment on Baruch as Ive never met a baruch mfe graduate. CMU’s program is a pretty strong hand and well known with great alumni network which I do think Columbia Mfe lacks.

4. This in my opinion, is hilarious to say the least and smells of sour grapes.

5. Might be true, might not be. If looking for more variety, in fact MSOR could be a good choice. The point being that the columbia brand, however idiotic it sounds, cannot be discounted, especially in NYC.

 

[Geekynoob]

1. Completely dependent on you and your choice of courses to make your experience more collaborative and fun.

2. Again, variety of very applied courses available if you are smart enough not to be swayed by the waves.

3. Not really sure of what exactly is expected of a great placement cell. Cant comment on Baruch as Ive never met a baruch mfe graduate. CMU’s program is a pretty strong hand and well known with great alumni network which I do think Columbia Mfe lacks.

4. This in my opinion, is hilarious to say the least and smells of sour grapes.

5. Might be true, might not be. If looking for more variety, in fact MSOR could be a good choice. The point being that the columbia brand, however idiotic it sounds, cannot be discounted, especially in NYC.

Thanks for the review.

I need your take on this: how much sense does it make to join Columbia MFE if I have been a quant in a bank for 4 years and a HFT trader for < 1 year.
1. Worth 110,000$?
2. Take a cheaper course like Gatech
3. Don't take any MFE course, just do your job.

 

[Tsunami]

The tuition comes out to be 70k$. The cost of living is 40k$ for 18 months??!!!Can you explain this.
Given that you do a 3 month internship in the summer and get a TA position under a professor or manage some part time job (grader etc.) , won't the costs significantly come down??
Thoughts people?

 

[Geekynoob]

I meant 110K for Columbia, saw it on their website. This was raw cost, excluding internship

 

[Deleted member 34462]

@Tsunami The educational expenses for 2018-2019 are approx 80K$ and the total cost of attendance is around 112K$.

Tuition & Fees 2018-2019 (Estimated) | Department of Industrial Engineering & Operations Research

 

[somya harjai]

Yes that's the min cost one ends up spending there and students find it difficult to get well paid internships even from Columbia. One of my friend bagged a front office role at UBS but didn't get a paid internship. Till now as per the information given to me very few students got good internships till march and most of them are still searching. Yes you can definitely go for TA's but most of the students utilize their time to build good networks with industry people.

 

[Tsunami]

I have been speaking to a few students at Columbia and they spoke highly of GA Tech QCF. Placements are all about networking, work-ex and luck is their opinion. It also depends on whether you cherish that brand name.
One of the alum mentioned that the program is very heavy on math and coding and not all enjoyed it.

 

[somya harjai]

The tuition comes out to be 70k$. The cost of living is 40k$ for 18 months??!!!Can you explain this.
Given that you do a 3 month internship in the summer and get a TA position under a professor or manage some part time job (grader etc.) , won't the costs significantly come down??
Thoughts people?

Also please don't go by Quantnet fees that is misleading, these programs have other costs as well.

 

[Tsunami]

Regarding the Cost of attendance, i think people take-up on campus jobs which will greatly reduce the cost (living) that needs to be paid out of pocket.
IMO you should also consider the 3 month internship and the salary you'll be paid for that.

 

[Tsunami]

@somya harjai seriously? I didn't know that people aren't getting paid internships. All the money you spend for the brand name doesn't make sense then.
@Andy Nguyen Lot of guys are having this dilemma of GA Tech QCF vs Columbia MFE.
Can you please give your thoughts on this.

 

[somya harjai]

@somya harjai seriously? I didn't know that people aren't getting paid internships. All the money you spend for the brand name doesn't make sense then.
@Andy Nguyen Lot of guys are having this dilemma of GA Tech QCF vs Columbia MFE.
Can you please give your thoughts on this.

Internship opportunities are less as compared to job opportunities. Also most of the folks who are not able to get paid internships are mostly the ones with no prior relevant work experience. That does not mean that people don't find good jobs. From my perspective the best job if you graduate from an ivy League school would be eithet a trader or front office analyst/associate. However, as per the stats only 10 percent around 7-8 folks are able to get these kind of roles. Most of them end up going to banks. Columbia was my dream university and few days back i was very confident about joining it(mathfin for now) but the return on investment i see is not good. Also my research tells me that it won't be an intelligent bet. But again with the Columbia brand name you can definelty bag good jobs as well. At the end of the day i think it all comes to what skills you have because no course can instill that in you within 12-15 months timespan.

 

[shadefaliam]

Thanks for the review.

I need your take on this: how much sense does it make to join Columbia MFE if I have been a quant in a bank for 4 years and a HFT trader for < 1 year.
1. Worth 110,000$?
2. Take a cheaper course like Gatech
3. Don't take any MFE course, just do your job.

I would rather not do an MFE at all. The MFE program works great for folks with fewer work experience and gives them a decent chance of landing a front office position. If a grad school is your only path to a front office position in US, i would rather look at quanty mba like Wharton/Booth which have pretty established channels towards funds. If you persist that an mba is out of question and mfe is the only rout, i would prefer Columbia. The location and name is significantly stronger and honestly, a difference of 20 or 30k is insignificant if you are willing to compromise your lifestyle for a couple of years after graduating. Of course, all of this is under the assumption that you are an equally competitive candidate for a buyside position.

 

[somya harjai]

I would rather not do an MFE at all. The MFE program works great for folks with fewer work experience and gives them a decent chance of landing a front office position. If a grad school is your only path to a front office position in US, i would rather look at quanty mba like Wharton/Booth which have pretty established channels towards funds. If you persist that an mba is out of question and mfe is the only rout, i would prefer Columbia. The location and name is significantly stronger and honestly, a difference of 20 or 30k is insignificant if you are willing to compromise your lifestyle for a couple of years after graduating. Of course, all of this is under the assumption that you are an equally competitive candidate for a buyside position.

The difference is just not just 20k or 30k. Its much more than that (gatech fees plus living expenses = 55k-60k). Also i think Wharton/Chicago mba would be best for PM kind of roles not if someone wants to become a trader.