UCB MFE UC Berkeley MFE Application Discussion

[galmodras]

The interview was purely technical. They ask questions from Linear Algebra, Calculus, Probs & Stats, ML, C++, finance etc. They will also see what you have on your resume and ask questions on that.

Can you give examples of questions plz?

 

[bamf]

No. But I am afraid that it's because my last recommendation was submitted in early April. And I haven't heard anything since then.

 

[PDquant]

Hello,
I had been waitlisted for UCB MFE, but have not had my interview yet. I have been asked to complete few courses first(Coursera coursers etc). What are the chances of converting the waitlist to Acceptance? Anyone who was in a similar position and has received an admit? Thank you.

 

[GoNoles]

UCB asked you to complete coursera courses to become more eligible? Is this to fill gaps from undergrad?

 

[PDquant]

Yes, for some prerequisites.

 

[SD_]

I'm not sure about this, but I think you will have to wait till at least the end of Round 3. The admitted students also get a pre-requisite checklist so don't worry, it is very much possible that you'll be interviewed soon. Just make sure that you are disciplined, are doing the courses and are sending them regular monthly updates. Good luck!

 

[PDquant]

I'm not sure about this, but I think you will have to wait till atleast the end of Round 3. The admitted students also get a pre-requisite checklist so don't worry that much, it is very much possible that you'll be interviewed soon. Just make sure that you are disciplined, are doing the courses and are sending them regular monthly updates. Good luck!

Understand. Thank you for this.

 

[GWeitz]

Just giving an update that I got an admissions offer after being waitlisted. Good luck to all!

 

[PDquant]

Just giving an update that I got an admissions offer after being waitlisted. Good luck to all!

Congratulations! A quick question, were you placed in waitlist, asked to complete some courses and had your interview pending?

 

[Satoru]

Just giving an update that I got an admissions offer after being waitlisted. Good luck to all!

Hi, congratulations!! Could you give us some tips for getting admitted?

 

[SD_]

Just giving an update that I got an admissions offer after being waitlisted. Good luck to all!

Congratulations @Gquant!

 

[Athena]

The interview was purely technical. They ask questions from Linear Algebra, Calculus, Probs & Stats, ML, C++, finance etc. They will also see what you have on your resume and ask questions on that.

Hi, I have an interview scheduled in the next couple of days. Could you recommend some resources you used to prepare for the technical portion?

 

[SD_]

Hi, I have an interview scheduled in the next couple of days. Could you recommend some resources you used to prepare for the technical portion?

All the above mentioned concepts can be found in a typical Quant Finance interview prep book mentioned in the thread below:

Advice on Interview Books

Could someone please suggest the best book for quant interviews? From the best selling books list, I see there are books by Joshi, Crack, Wilmott, and Zhou. If you only have time to read one, which one would best prepare you for quant interviews? Furthermore, it seems that none of the books...

quantnet.com

I used the Zhou (a.k.a. the green book) btw.
Good luck.

 

[Athena]

All the above mentioned concepts can be found in a typical Quant Finance interview prep book mentioned in the thread below:

Advice on Interview Books

Could someone please suggest the best book for quant interviews? From the best selling books list, I see there are books by Joshi, Crack, Wilmott, and Zhou. If you only have time to read one, which one would best prepare you for quant interviews? Furthermore, it seems that none of the books...

quantnet.com

I used the Zhou (a.k.a. the green book) btw.
Good luck.

I've been going through the green book, but its just puzzles. So I was confused as to what extent (depth) I should know each topic. Did you get into UCB btw? If yes, I'd love to know how you tailored your interview prep to your resume

 

[LeFed]

not sure how much you can do in only a couple of days but here's a broad outline of topics to prepare:

math
- linear algebra
- prob
- calculus

statistics + ml

finance

programming (python, c++, or whichever language you have experience in)

resume

i'd say projects on your resume should be of highest priority, if you can't answer questions about what's on your resume, you're unlikely to get selected

the next most important topics would be probability and statistics (this is where the green book will come in handy — it's just puzzles??? by that token all math is just puzzles!), then, based on how/what you answer, they can riff off on topics such as ml, related linear algebra or calculus

you will definitely get a question on programming, not super complicated but they will try and gauge if you have decent experience in coding (they're language-agnostic, at least in the interviews, but you'll have to learn python if you get admitted)

and then of least importance would be finance — they'll want to know if you have basic knowledge of, or interest in, the markets, they might also ask simple questions on options — black scholes, greeks and the like

 

[EngTurnedQuant]

I applied in the third round and had my interview pretty soon after applying. I prepped a lot for Math, Stats, Prob and logic puzzles, but since I have a PhD in a quantitative field, the interviewer just skipped all of the math and problem solving related questions except for asking me to compute a pretty simple derivative.

I don't have a background in Finance or Programming, so my interview questions focused mainly on those topics. There was a lot I didn't know, so I ended up getting wait-listed with a bunch of pre-reqs related to finance, machine learning and programming.

The interview seems to be two things:
1. Weed out people who really aren't fit for the program (i.e. they may assess your aptitude in problem solving and mathematics).
2. Really gauge where you're at and what would best help you prepare to succeed (if you were eventually to be offered admission).

For those applying in Round 4, this may be helpful to understand that each interview is different and really is tailored to the individual.

 

[Yuanfang Cheng]

Did anyone get an offer for Round 3?

 

[Athena]

not sure how much you can do in only a couple of days but here's a broad outline of topics to prepare:

math
- linear algebra
- prob
- calculus

statistics + ml

finance

programming (python, c++, or whichever language you have experience in)

resume

i'd say projects on your resume should be of highest priority, if you can't answer questions about what's on your resume, you're unlikely to get selected

the next most important topics would be probability and statistics (this is where the green book will come in handy — it's just puzzles??? by that token all math is just puzzles!), then, based on how/what you answer, they can riff off on topics such as ml, related linear algebra or calculus

you will definitely get a question on programming, not super complicated but they will try and gauge if you have decent experience in coding (they're language-agnostic, at least in the interviews, but you'll have to learn python if you get admitted)

and then of least importance would be finance — they'll want to know if you have basic knowledge of, or interest in, the markets, they might also ask simple questions on options — black scholes, greeks and the like

Thank you!

 

[Athena]

I just interviewed. Have you?

Hey, did you receive any communication post interview?

 

[Satoru]

Hi, does anybody know whether the interview is mandatory in order to get admitted? I would appreciate it if those who got waitlisted will be invited to the interview afterwards. Thank you.