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COMPARE Rutgers MSMF or CMU MSP
- Thread starter LouiseHearl
- Start date
Hi! I have the same confuse with you. I also find it hard to choose between these two programs. But I think CMU is better because of its reputation. And I hear that the students in the MSP program can find jobs easily. So I maybe choose CMU before March. 27 unless I receive an offer from Duke. And you?
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is the brand name everything that counts? is Rutger MSMF that bad?
The two programs are very different so I think you are comparing apples to oranges. Also, Rutgers is not bad at all; however, I would agree that CMU has a better name in the industry, but only because of the MSCF program, not the MSP program. I would look at the curriculum for both programs and decide what courses you are more interested in. The MSMF program is not heavy on stats courses (there is a different program for that), whereas it sounds like the MSP program is.
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Well, although the original poster is from 2011, it seems there were some more comments last months so I'll add my 2 cents.
Without having gone to CMU, I'd say go to CMU if you are worried about landing a job. It is a very well respected university all around in addition to having a top mfe program. Also, if you're ending up paying roughly the same tuition in either case, CMU seems like the best bet.
That said, the Rutgers MSMF program is not at all bad. Especially if you get in-state tuition. Especially Especially if you actually *want* to live in NJ
. I am in MS Stats in Rutgers and MSMF at Rutgers (getting two MS degrees was overkill in hindsight, but live and learn) and I am almost finished with both degrees (8 courses / 10 MSMF, 9/10 MS Stats).
I have taken all the Stats courses that overlap with MSMF (there are about 4 such courses of which you can use up to 3 for both programs ; out of 10 courses required for MS Stats and 10 courses required for MSMF). 30% of the courses I guess can seem like you should have a handle on what the MSMF is like, but it's really not a representative sample.
The way the MSMF works is that some of it's courses are offered in the Applied Math department, some are offered in the Statistics department, some are offered in the Electrical Engineering Department and you can ask to have approved for electives relevant graduate courses from departments such as Operations Research, Economics, Finance, Computer Science, etc. It is open to the criticism of being called a 'collection of courses'.
However, the core of the program is the 5 or 6 Applied Math courses that are attended almost uniformly by MSMF students (and the occasional curious Math PhD student) which are 2 semesters Derivatives Pricing Mathematics, 2 semesters Numerical Analysis, 1+ semester <pick one or more>{Portfolio Theory, Credit Risk Modeling, Computational Finance}.
I personally don't have a problem with the MS Stats courses I took (though I had to maneuver things carefully to ensure that most of the sections I was taking were being taught by Rutgers academic staff, not contractors ; I've never had to do this for any department in RU except Stats). The core of the MSMF courses listed above are much more rigorous than the MS Stats courses (as I mentioned I have taken many courses in both categories) and they are qualitatively different in that the focus is on mathematics not statistics.
If I were to tell someone about the Rutgers program (i.e. someone who didn't have an admit from CMU), I would say my experience is generally positive but note that:
1) Rutgers program is on the academic side, some days I love this and some days it drives me crazy, but at the end of the day you'll spend more time writing mathematics than doing 'gee whiz' type projects (there's plenty of opportunity to code within the program however);
2) In the same vein, Rutgers tries to balance theory and applications and is currently a bit heavier on theory side IMHO, again it's good and bad;
3) Rutgers MSMF does not teach much traditional Finance. There are electives but they are not that convenient to take (you'd have to travel a bit for them from the main Busch campus). I personally don't see this as too big a deal. The justification that this is the sort of thing you could learn on your own versus the opportunity cost of not taking a course from one of RU's well respected quantitative departments (see above) makes sense to me now at least (we'll see what I think when I apply for jobs!);
4) Live on campus if possible. I live with my family within a commutable distance to Rutgers but getting around the actual campus in a car is a pain in the ass.
Without having gone to CMU, I'd say go to CMU if you are worried about landing a job. It is a very well respected university all around in addition to having a top mfe program. Also, if you're ending up paying roughly the same tuition in either case, CMU seems like the best bet.
That said, the Rutgers MSMF program is not at all bad. Especially if you get in-state tuition. Especially Especially if you actually *want* to live in NJ
. I am in MS Stats in Rutgers and MSMF at Rutgers (getting two MS degrees was overkill in hindsight, but live and learn) and I am almost finished with both degrees (8 courses / 10 MSMF, 9/10 MS Stats).I have taken all the Stats courses that overlap with MSMF (there are about 4 such courses of which you can use up to 3 for both programs ; out of 10 courses required for MS Stats and 10 courses required for MSMF). 30% of the courses I guess can seem like you should have a handle on what the MSMF is like, but it's really not a representative sample.
The way the MSMF works is that some of it's courses are offered in the Applied Math department, some are offered in the Statistics department, some are offered in the Electrical Engineering Department and you can ask to have approved for electives relevant graduate courses from departments such as Operations Research, Economics, Finance, Computer Science, etc. It is open to the criticism of being called a 'collection of courses'.
However, the core of the program is the 5 or 6 Applied Math courses that are attended almost uniformly by MSMF students (and the occasional curious Math PhD student) which are 2 semesters Derivatives Pricing Mathematics, 2 semesters Numerical Analysis, 1+ semester <pick one or more>{Portfolio Theory, Credit Risk Modeling, Computational Finance}.
I personally don't have a problem with the MS Stats courses I took (though I had to maneuver things carefully to ensure that most of the sections I was taking were being taught by Rutgers academic staff, not contractors ; I've never had to do this for any department in RU except Stats). The core of the MSMF courses listed above are much more rigorous than the MS Stats courses (as I mentioned I have taken many courses in both categories) and they are qualitatively different in that the focus is on mathematics not statistics.
If I were to tell someone about the Rutgers program (i.e. someone who didn't have an admit from CMU), I would say my experience is generally positive but note that:
1) Rutgers program is on the academic side, some days I love this and some days it drives me crazy, but at the end of the day you'll spend more time writing mathematics than doing 'gee whiz' type projects (there's plenty of opportunity to code within the program however);
2) In the same vein, Rutgers tries to balance theory and applications and is currently a bit heavier on theory side IMHO, again it's good and bad;
3) Rutgers MSMF does not teach much traditional Finance. There are electives but they are not that convenient to take (you'd have to travel a bit for them from the main Busch campus). I personally don't see this as too big a deal. The justification that this is the sort of thing you could learn on your own versus the opportunity cost of not taking a course from one of RU's well respected quantitative departments (see above) makes sense to me now at least (we'll see what I think when I apply for jobs!);
4) Live on campus if possible. I live with my family within a commutable distance to Rutgers but getting around the actual campus in a car is a pain in the ass.
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Is there anyone who is still waiting for decision on rutgers msmf? To ask in another way...my status is still 'no decision'..can i still expect to get admit for this course?
FWIW, the year I was admitted I only heard in the late spring / summer (I forget whether it was May or June).
Note: Edited above.
I was an unusual case though as new applicants are generally given preference over existing RU graduate students (but not undergrads).
Note: Edited above.
I was an unusual case though as new applicants are generally given preference over existing RU graduate students (but not undergrads).
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I'm also waiting to hear from Rutgers MSMF. My application status was in "No Decision" for about 3 weeks. Then it changed to "In Review" and it has been like that since 15th March.
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