Seeking Advice: Strengthening My Application for Princeton's MFin Program

[benzenephi]

Hello QuantNet Community,

Hope everyone is well. I'm a recent 2023 grad from IIT Delhi, currently working as an Equity Research Analyst, and will transition into a Quant role soon, where I will work for a year before application time. I'm eyeing the MFin program at Princeton University & the MFE program at Baruch and am on the lookout for ways to beef up my application. Your insights would be super valuable and I’d appreciate any guidance you can provide. Here's a brief rundown of my situation:

1. Competitive Coding: I’m thinking about diving into competitive coding on platforms like CodeChef, aiming for a Grandmaster level over the next 1.5 years. I’m curious how a high ranking in competitive coding might be viewed by the admissions committee in terms of showcasing my quantitative and analytical skills.
2. Certifications: Planning to tackle Baruch's Pre-MFE courses covering Advanced Calculus, Probability Theory, and Numerical Linear Algebra, and aiming for certificates with distinction. Would these certifications help in showcasing a strong foundation in relevant quantitative and financial domains?
3. GPA Concern: My GPA is at 6.7/10 in Mech, with CS minor.Its on the lower side, but its from a top prestigious school. I’ve scored 170 in Quant and 167 in Verbal on the GRE. I’m exploring different avenues to balance out my GPA and present a strong application.

I’m all ears for any advice, suggestions, or shared experiences that could guide me in tailoring my preparation effectively. Thank you so much for your time and looking forward to your responses.

Thanks!

 

[CourantMathFinance]

Most top end quant finance MS programs infer your skillset from the transcript and job history. Certification from third parties don't mean much because nobody knows what quality control they have. IIT (any of them) is notoriously hard and a 6.7 GPA probably is considered good. The quant GRE score is good, but it is not so helpful because most competitive applicants have high scores.

 

[Lukee]

Certification from third parties don't mean much because nobody knows what quality control they have.

Are quantnet's certificates an exception to this rule?

 

[MikeLawrence]

Are quantnet's certificates an exception to this rule?

Kaggle is pretty well known as well. Not a certification but is closer to what OP was originally referencing.

 

[CourantMathFinance]

No, not an exception (in my opinion, others may feel differently). Quantnet, Coursera, etc., are great ways to learn stuff, but not to show off what you're learned. A lot of people are in this situation -- having a skill but no way to demonstrate it in an application.

 

[marcelo.taipe.Integra]

No, not an exception (in my opinion, others may feel differently). Quantnet, Coursera, etc., are great ways to learn stuff, but not to show off what you're learned. A lot of people are in this situation -- having a skill but no way to demonstrate it in an application.

what about courses from a master's degree? Given that my major did not include courses such as Linear Algebra, Real Analysis, etc., taking courses from my university's math master's degree would be accepted to fulfill the prerequisite?

 

[Andy Nguyen]

Are quantnet's certificates an exception to this rule?

I understand if someone from the outside would not be able to see the difference between similar online courses or tell what made ours unique.
I have been running this since 2011 and can tell you the programs that have required their admitted students to complete the QuantNet C++ certificate as part of their admittance condition. They are Baruch MFE, CMU MSCF, etc. UCLA MFE also recommends their incoming students take our C++ courses.
There are students who take our courses after their MFE graduation to strengthen their programming skills at work.
We have quant firms who sent their employees to take our C++ courses.
We have run the courses for over a decade and I haven't heard anything but good recommendations from those who took it or hired our graduates.
I can say with 100% confidence that those who completed our C++ or Python courses will have a very solid foundation in programming. The skills they learn will prepare them very well for their technical interviews. They will go on and use that knowledge to tackle harder technical issues at work and save their employer millions.
There are dozens of similar online courses for any topic from various platforms but there is not a single course that provides a dedicated TA who can ensure you learn the best techniques and get personalized feedback throughout your learning process with us.
We have been saying that our C++ courses are the best if you want to learn how to program the right way. I haven't heard anything that proves otherwise.

Of course, if you can choose between taking one or two programming college courses and QuantNet C++ courses, our courses will kick others out of the park. How you use what you learn in our C++ courses to further demonstrate your mastery of the language would be up to you. We can provide project ideas and you can join open source projects. If you do that, I promise you will go far in this field.

 

[CourantMathFinance]

what about courses from a master's degree? Given that my major did not include courses such as Linear Algebra, Real Analysis, etc., taking courses from my university's math master's degree would be accepted to fulfill the prerequisite?

If it's on a university/college transcript then the admissions officers know how to interpret it.

 

[Daniel Duffy]

No, not an exception (in my opinion, others may feel differently). Quantnet, Coursera, etc., are great ways to learn stuff, but not to show off what you're learned. A lot of people are in this situation -- having a skill but no way to demonstrate it in an application.

Both QN C++ courses have modules on Monte Carlo and PDE.
There is no other C++ course like it.