UChicago MSFM vs CMU MSCF

[excitedquant]

Hey everyone! I was fortunate enough to be accepted into both these prestigious programs and want to decide between these two universities. After comparing final costs (includes living costs + tuition - scholarship) UChicago would be cheaper by about 25-30k for me. I wanted to gather input on whether it is worth picking CMU over UChicago and what factors lead to the differentiation between the two. For context: I am okay with the Chicago weather (used to the weather) and I will not be taking any loans to fund my masters (however, the 25-30k will be a bit of a strain on my finances). I appreciate your input! I would love to hear any nuanced opinion as I have done my preliminary search online and talked to a few students from both the universities. Thank you in advance!

 

[Andy Nguyen]

Congrats on getting 5 admits and scholarships. Thanks for sharing them on the Tracker. That's all the contribution we ever ask of our members.
It's a good problem to have picking between the two.
The important question you don't address: what do you want to get out of the program so people can see which one is a better fit for you.
Look at the curriculum, courses, instructors, support that put you on that path.

 

[anxious_guy]

Hey everyone! I was fortunate enough to be accepted into both these prestigious programs and want to decide between these two universities. After comparing final costs (includes living costs + tuition - scholarship) UChicago would be cheaper by about 25-30k for me. I wanted to gather input on whether it is worth picking CMU over UChicago and what factors lead to the differentiation between the two. For context: I am okay with the Chicago weather (used to the weather) and I will not be taking any loans to fund my masters (however, the 25-30k will be a bit of a strain on my finances). I appreciate your input! I would love to hear any nuanced opinion as I have done my preliminary search online and talked to a few students from both the universities. Thank you in advance!

Hi, congrats on the offers! I am currently in the same boat, I have an admit from UChicago with a 37.8k scholarship and no scholarship from CMU. I am unsure about which one to choose. I am currently leaning towards CMU due to their reputation and their more comprehensive curriculum. But on the other hand UChicago also seems like a very good program and 35k is a pretty large amount so I'm wondering if CMU would be worth that extra cost. But I suppose if I am able to land a good job after graduation it wouldn't be too much in the long run. After graduation I am hoping to land a front office quant research role, it seems like CMU would give me a better chance at that. If there are any members here who can give their inputs on this I would greatly appreciate it.

 

[kombuchalover]

If I was you, I would take the leap of faith and go with CMU.

 

[Siiilvaaa]

Even taking into account the scholarship, CMU has by far better career outcomes; $20,000 or $30,000 is the margin of error, so I would choose CMU without hesitation.

 

[quant_alpha]

I am in a similar position. I would choose CMU without hesitation. I believe that choosing CMU will be a +EV move accounting for the first several years of my career.

 

[Andy Nguyen]

Here is latest employment report from CMU MSCF (Dec 2023 grads). Read all the details, fine prints to find where their grads end up.

 

[neill_gonz]

Here is latest employment report from CMU MSCF (Dec 2023 grads). Read all the details, fine prints to find where their grads end up.

How many of these 91 students already had at least 1 internship before starting the MSCF? How many had full time experience before the MSCF? same case with UChicago MSFM.

Placements are one thing but those numbers may be skewed with the context that employers prefer those with experience already whether they be related or slightly unrelated experience.

It will be interesting to know if there were actually students admitted by CMU MSCF and UChicago MSFM who had nothing at all, got into these programs, and managed to get at least one placement (internship/job).

 

[kombuchalover]

How many of these 91 students already had at least 1 internship before starting the MSCF? How many had full time experience before the MSCF? same case with UChicago MSFM.

Placements are one thing but those numbers may be skewed with the context that employers prefer those with experience already whether they be related or slightly unrelated experience.

It will be interesting to know if there were actually students admitted by CMU MSCF and UChicago MSFM who had nothing at all, got into these programs, and managed to get at least one placement (internship/job).

81% of CMU students had no full time work experience in 2024 according to the 2024 class profile…

 

[neill_gonz]

81% of CMU students had no full time work experience in 2024 according to the 2024 class profile…

of those 81%, how many had prior internship experience? (It's a lot easier to get placements with prior internships)

 

[kombuchalover]

of those 81%, how many had prior internship experience? (It's a lot easier to get placements with prior internships)

If you haven’t had an internship you have no chance of landing a higher end quant internship anyway (hedge fund / prop shop trading/research) to be honest with you. Having an internship is a very low bar. I don’t think students having an internship discredits CMUs placement if that is what you’re getting at.

 

[neill_gonz]

If you haven’t had an internship you have no chance of landing a higher end quant internship anyway (hedge fund / prop shop trading/research) to be honest with you. Having an internship is a very low bar. I don’t think students having an internship discredits CMUs placement if that is what you’re getting at.

Usually, yes, but in the current market where a good amount of firms don't take in a lot of interns (say 10/2000 from my experience), those without internships/experience will be forced to go for a master's to avoid CV gaps

 

[Siiilvaaa]

These are objective opinions from the data that CMU MSCF is superior to UChicago in various aspects.

- Rankings
As you can see from the QuantNet ranking, CMU is #3 behind Princeton and Baruch, but UChicago is #7.

- Carrier Outcomes
CMU has one of the strongest connections in New York (because CMU MSCF has a campus there), where top-tier funds and investment banks are most concentrated, alongside of Baruch, MIT and Columbia, so if you want a job in New York or Pittsburgh, CMU is your better choice. My friend also attended CMU New York campus and received an offer from a hedge fund. (The basic premise is that the market has been bad for the past few years, so employment results have been down everywhere.)

- Expected Salary.
According to official data, the average salary at CMU MSCF is $165,025, while UChicago MSFM is $134,285. If the scholarship from UChicago is $20,000 - $30,000, I will chose CMU. Because there is a $30,000 difference in just the first year, and this difference is compounded and widened every year if you can work in NYC, the financial capital of the world.

- Quality of Education
Regarding cohort size, CMU is 101 (NUC: 53, PGH 48) and Chicago is 153; CMU is more likely to have a higher quality education with closer distance to professors. Financial engineering professors are usually well-known practitioners in the industry, so connections with them are very important. Actually my friend I mentioned got a summer internship (and was subsequently hired) at HF in NY through a professor's referral and recommendation.