COMPARE CORNELL vs NYU TANDON MFE vs COLUMBIA MAFN

[YLin Jr.]

I received Cornell, Tandon MFE and Columbia MAFN admission recently, but I don't know which one to choose.
I want do some quant jobs in US after graduation even though it's not easy for all these three programs.
Anyway, I want some suggestions from others. Thank you so much!
Here are my pros and cons for each program:

1. Cornell
Pros: Career service and placement is good but I've heard that the majority of work after grad are relevant to risks; A certification of financial data science could be attained; Proper cohort size
Cons: Location (inconvenienct for living, transportation, interviews); No extra C++ course (I may have to learn C++ if I want to be a quant)

2. NYU Tandon
Pros: Location; Peter Carr and Sarah are making this program better and better; Dedicated career service (I don't know if it's better than Cornell's); Lower tuition (fellowship counted)
Cons: If I couldn't find a job in US, I might go back to China in which case Tandon may be not so competitive to Cornell and Columbia. Large cohort size (less resources shared to everyone and more competition with peers in the same program); I heard that the curricula incline to finance, not so tech (regarding maths and programming).

3. Columbia MAFN
Pros: Location; Brand name
Cons: Hard curricula (less time on job hunting); Fierce competition among similar programs in Columbia (MFE, MAFN, OR, STAT); Little career service

I'm struggling with this dilemma. Thank anyone giving some other information or advice!

 

[InTenDecades]

I'm a recent grad from Cornell.

Well I would say your concern about the location of Cornell is not that big of a problem. Your time in the first and second semester will be pretty much fully occupied by classes and job hunting, which means it actually leave you little time for networking (which is probably the biggest benefit to locate in NYC). And work on C++, I'm a sell side quant and I don't need C++ in my job. In fact I've talked to ppl from my company during summer internship, they told me now a day they are shifting away from C++ since it's not easy to hire quants that knows C++. I mean it's nice if you know C++, but as a quant, Python is definitely your go-to programming language.

 

[YangXu]

Jobs in US: Cornell≈Tandon>Columbia
Jobs in Asia: Columbia≈Cornell>Tandon
So I'll go with cornell.

 

[YLin Jr.]

I'm a recent grad from Cornell.

Well I would say your concern about the location of Cornell is not that big of a problem. Your time in the first and second semester will be pretty much fully occupied by classes and job hunting, which means it actually leave you little time for networking (which is probably the biggest benefit to locate in NYC). And work on C++, I'm a sell side quant and I don't need C++ in my job. In fact I've talked to ppl from my company during summer internship, they told me now a day they are shifting away from C++ since it's not easy to hire quants that knows C++. I mean it's nice if you know C++, but as a quant, Python is definitely your go-to programming language.

Thanks a lot. Working in the buyside or being a trader to me is more attractive, if I can do that, so I think cpp might be important to me. Can I choose curriculum from other departments like CS?

 

[cheron_jrm]

I really like Columbia’s curriculum though it suffers from the MFE and other programs in Columbia for job prospects. Thus, overall, I think Cornell is the best opportunity. FE degrees are really good if you want to go in trading and I think Cornell’s is really solid, with really impressive placements & Cornell is a great name in the US.

 

[YLin Jr.]

I really like Columbia’s curriculum though it suffers from the MFE and other programs in Columbia for job prospects. Thus, overall, I think Cornell is the best opportunity. FE degrees are really good if you want to go in trading and I think Cornell’s is really solid, with really impressive placements & Cornell is a great name in the US.

Thanks for the advice！