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albertmills
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June 18th, 2007, 12:11 am

Hi, I have a few questions about berkley's masters in financial eng. program, if anyone has opinions: What is the quality of jobs that grads get afterwards? Are they forced to settle for something they're not really interested in after completing a program for which they had to go in debt? How happy are grads with their careers afterward (this is a general question i have about financial eng grad's, not berkley in particular)? do many people decide to get out of the inudstry? I come from an engineering background, no finance, how will this affect my job prospects? Is the median total compensation after graduation of 150k accurate? How much do you think this salary just reflects the cost of life in NY where most of the jobs are? What kind of hours does the typcial quant work? How many of the jobs that financial eng. grads get involve just being a programmer rather than a financial modeller and using financial modelling as a sales tool rather than for propreitary trading (i'm asking about financial eng's in general here, not just berkley)? Opinions are appreciated, thnx
 
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misiti3780
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June 18th, 2007, 1:54 am

i would start searching through previous threads, a bunch of your questions have been answered already
 
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Arbitrary
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June 18th, 2007, 5:51 am

QuoteWhat is the quality of jobs that grads get afterwards? Are they forced to settle for something they're not really interested in after completing a program for which they had to go in debt? Berkeley has a strong reputation for their course. They also put the profile of their students on their website for employers to look at. Just reading them, a lot of them have prior financial experience, which will also help answer your second question. In the so-called land of democracy, i don't think anyone is forced into any position - i mean you have a year and a bit during your studies to decide whether this field is right for you. QuoteHow happy are grads with their careers afterward (this is a general question i have about financial eng grad's, not berkley in particular)? do many people decide to get out of the inudstry? Depends what you want from life.QuoteI come from an engineering background, no finance, how will this affect my job prospects? Better than if you did an arts major. Finance experience is not required in most cases for entry level.QuoteIs the median total compensation after graduation of 150k accurate? Sounds about right, including bonuses, for entry/analyst.QuoteHow much do you think this salary just reflects the cost of life in NY where most of the jobs are? Think what you could be earning in a few years time QuoteWhat kind of hours does the typcial quant work? There is no typical quant - but more than 40 hoursQuoteHow many of the jobs that financial eng. grads get involve just being a programmer rather than a financial modeller and using financial modelling as a sales tool rather than for propreitary trading (i'm asking about financial eng's in general here, not just berkley)? not sure, but i think more go into front-office than IT. All involve programming in some form or another In all I think you need to seriously consider whether this field is right for you.
Last edited by Arbitrary on June 17th, 2007, 10:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
 
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Aaron
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June 27th, 2007, 8:36 pm

A Berkeley MFE is among the best non-PhD credential you can get for quantitative finance. I don't just mean the marquee value on your resume, I mean the education and school support. The best graduates get the jobs they want, most graduates get good jobs, a few settle for not-so-great ones but can advance faster than people without the credential.Most people get MFE's in order to retool their mathematical skills to appeal to financial institutions. I think most of them accomplish that, but that may not be a great long-term plan; sometimes it's the least bad of several options. People with genuine interest in and talent for finance do much better. My experience is programs like Berkeley's attract (and accept) mostly the latter type.If you have an undistinguished background in engineering, unless you blossom in the program, you're not likely to be competing for the top jobs. Some of your classmates will have top MBA's or financial experience, others will have really impressive non-financial quantitative accomplishments. If that's your situation, don't look too hard at the median statistics for the class. But the program can still meet your needs.$150,000 sounds about right for New York. It will be lower other places (except London and Tokyo, which should be higher). But remember some people in the class were making that before the entered the program, and others have important other credentials. So don't look at $150,000 as a guarantee.I wouldn't consider this program unless you also planned to work long hours to get ahead afterwards. This is not a program to get an easy $150,000 per year, it's for people who are looking at the derivative of salary.Many MFE's are hired to program, but no one pays up for a Berkeley MFE to have them do that. You still have to be a good programmer, but you'll be hired for your financial skills.
 
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Disptra
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June 28th, 2007, 1:54 am

What skill do you learn in these MFE programs? If I pass CFA level 1 and 2, take a course like CQF. Do I have equivalent skills? Or do they teach something different? Thanks!
 
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quantnewb
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June 28th, 2007, 4:10 am

QuoteOriginally posted by: albertmillsHi, I come from an engineering background, no finance, how will this affect my job prospects? this will be completely irrelevant if you have a good friend in the industry who will hook you up or ask his friends to hook you up. stop studying math. start making friends.
 
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DominicConnor
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June 28th, 2007, 6:59 am

Networking is indeed a fine way of getting a job. Not only can you get to jobs that are hard to find otherwise, but you can get a more accurate view of the quality of the job itself.But unless your are Paris Hilton, you can't possibly party with enough people to make that a sure fire way to get a good job.
 
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twofish
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June 29th, 2007, 9:12 pm

QuoteOriginally posted by: albertmillsHi, I come from an engineering background, no finance, how will this affect my job prospects?Lack of finance is not a problem. QuoteIs the median total compensation after graduation of 150k accurate?Seems a bit high for a median. QuoteHow much do you think this salary just reflects the cost of life in NY where most of the jobs are?There is a 10% state + city income tax that you have to take into account. Rent in NYC is the big cost, but it is survivable if you live outside of Manhattan. One thing about NYC is that a lot depends on the lifestyle you choose. There are lots of ways in NYC to blow large amounts of money.QuoteWhat kind of hours does the typcial quant work?Get in at 9. Out between 6-7. One of the interesting things that I found is that the work isn't particularly exhausting, but NYC is.
 
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twofish
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June 29th, 2007, 9:26 pm

QuoteOriginally posted by: quantnewbthis will be completely irrelevant if you have a good friend in the industry who will hook you up or ask his friends to hook you up. stop studying math. start making friends. Actually that is not the way that networking works. The main thing that a bank looks for in a technical worker is someone that can do the job and make money for the bank. If you can't do that, it doesn't matter whose friend you are.The other thing is that if someone strongly recommends you, then their credibility and reputation gets hit if you do badly in the interview or in the job. In some ways, there is more pressure when you get a job reference through a friend, because if you look bad, they look bad. What happens more often is that some is willing to forward the resume without a strong recommendation, and even this is of *huge* benefit. It gets you to jobs that aren't advertised, and also even a "I talked with this person for an hour and he didn't seem incompetent" recommendation gets you pretty far in the system.One thing that I find curious is that usually "networking" and "personal relationships" are seen as being in conflict with "qualifications" but in high tech organizations, there are social conventions in place so that "personal relationships" actually reinforce "qualifications." People use personal relationships to signal and transmit complex information that is difficult to communicate.
 
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sunmaker
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June 30th, 2007, 2:01 am

QuoteOriginally posted by: albertmillsIs the median total compensation after graduation of 150k accurate? Yes.