Hello.I've just been accepted to the Wharton finance Ph.D. program. Are there any former students here?I would like to know what the pespectives of its graduates are, in terms of academic placement. I am particularily interested in researching quant finance topics there such as stochastic calculus and derivative pricing.Is it worth going, guys?The faculty is brilliant, but the placement concerns me. It seems that few graduates teach in schools whose rank is comparable to Wharton's.I am also on the waiting list at Stanford, which is my first-choice school. But this option is not definite. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Hi,For finance, Wharton is the best school in the US. T Row Price just hires its analysts from Wharton.

hey,whether it is worth going depends on your other available choices, i.e. the opportunity cost. Wharton is definitely a top finance school and you will be on the right track working towards a decent faculty positon. Though in term of academic placement Stanford is better, going to Wharton can't be wrong.I am wondering that the academic placement of Wharton PhD is not so stellar because of the big size of its program. Stanford has a small PhD program according to what I heard.btw, can you share your profile ? thanks.good luck.s.t.QuoteOriginally posted by: contradanzaHello.I've just been accepted to the Wharton finance Ph.D. program. Are there any former students here?I would like to know what the pespectives of its graduates are, in terms of academic placement. I am particularily interested in researching quant finance topics there such as stochastic calculus and derivative pricing.Is it worth going, guys?The faculty is brilliant, but the placement concerns me. It seems that few graduates teach in schools whose rank is comparable to Wharton's.I am also on the waiting list at Stanford, which is my first-choice school. But this option is not definite. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

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QuoteOriginally posted by: contradanzaThe faculty is brilliant, but the placement concerns me. It seems that few graduates teach in schools whose rank is comparable to Wharton's.Placement at top schools is hard for everyone. there are no guarantees. even those from stanford, which is the best, have less than 50% placement at top 10.

QuoteOriginally posted by: minhngocHi,For finance, Wharton is the best school in the US. T Row Price just hires its analysts from Wharton.You probably mean their MBA program. Well, it is indeed brilliant.

QuoteOriginally posted by: minhngocHi,For finance, Wharton is the best school in the US. T Row Price just hires its analysts from Wharton.why do you think working for a mutual fund is the "best" placement?

If you're interested in derivatives pricing and stochastic calculus, Wharton is easily a top 5 university. To be honest, I don't think your placement will be much better by attending Stanford. I know their placement record is stronger, but this has more to do with the small size of its programme (as has been previously mentioned), which allows them to better market their Ph.D. candidates. In truth, if I had admission to both, I would go to Stanford (but it would not be an immediate choice).I think that both programmes have strong faculty in a broad range of fields. Stanford has a slightly stronger economics department, but it's only marginally better. The finance departments at the two schools are nearly indiscernable. Both schools have strong faculty in asset pricing theory, and strong math/stats departments from which you can learn stochastic calculus.The fact is, if you're a poor performer (in terms of the quality of your research) at either university, you won't get a strong academic placement. If you're a strong researcher, put out a quality market paper, and have the support of your department, you'll get a strong placement. I think the most important thing is to get a good advisor. I'm currently a Ph.D. student in finance at a top school (also focused on asset pricing/financial economics), and your mentor makes all the difference. They'll be the one who introduces you to the people who will hire you (since Wharton likely won't hire its own graduates straight away), they'll be the one to push for you to present at conferences, they'll be the ones with whom you'll have to discuss your ideas. Ask the current Ph.D. students at the two departments about the quality of the mentorship available.Hope this helps.