Hi,I am currently a student of the following programs:1. Master of Science in Applied Physics and Electrical Engineering 2. Master of Science in Business Administration and EconomicsMy last year of engeneeringstudies will be focused on applied mathematics and I will take some financial mathematics classes.The university system here in Sweden is a bit different than the US and we don't first get a Bachelor's degree and the apply again to study a Master's degree - here we do the full Masters degree in one go at the same place etc. I am a bit interested in getting a job in the quant-area and don't really know what my next move should/could be. From my own preliminary research most programs aimed towards this field are M.Sc Financial Engeneer and M.Sc Computional Finance. I don't think these programs would be very well suited for me who already have a quantitative M.Sc degree, correct?So what other paths could I seek to land a quant-job? The relevant books I will read my last year are just Hull's book and "Beyond value at risk" (forgot the author's name) so I guess some more schooling would be a must.Is a Ph.D program my best path? I haven't found many Ph.D programs aimed towards financial mathematics, any tips?

Patrick,You are in two master programs. You must be very smart. How many coures do you need to take in each term (around 4 monthes) if you want to start and finish those two programs simutaneously ?I want to apply for a MSc program in your country.Can you tell me a bit about how much approximate living expense in Switzland per month ?

J,You missread, I am from Sweden, not Switzerland From friends studying in Switzerland I only know it is a bit more expensive than Sweden.. I leave that one for some Swiss-people to answer.I don't consider myself very smart, I think ambitious and a bit talented has more truth to it Smart I preserve to the older (I am just 22) people with big white beards getting Nobel prizes in Physics Studying economics isn't very hard compared to engeneering, escpecially if you, as I did, started off with a couple of years engeneering before the economics. I rate my economics degree as being about 40-60% the effort of my engeneering degree.As for courses per term it is a bit different. Studying engeneering fulltime here one takes 3 or 4 courses at the same time every period. Every term is two periods. One term is 20points. The courses gives different number of points so the total number can vary, but 6-8 courses per term is standard.For economics one takes only one course at a time. Depending on the course length, depth etc they award different points, and 20points is a term of fulltime studies. Courses in economics tend to give 5 or 10 points, so one term is 2-4 courses. I consider my economics points cheap compared to stuff like funcional analysis.In Sweden you can only get accepted to one M.Sc program every year, so you can't finish two simultaneously, but if you could you would probably have to juggle 5courses at all times during about 10 terms (might get tricky tha last year when writing final papers on both programs..).I second your interest in studying in Switzerland by the way, have heard many good things from friends at ETH, Zurich.

switzerland is pretty much the high watermark of civilisation. thoroughly recommended. if you're british you should go just for the novelty of seeing a train arrive on time. it's a revelation.

"switzerland is pretty much the high watermark of civilisation. thoroughly recommended. if you're british you should go just for the novelty of seeing a train arrive on time. it's a revelation."There are less appealing sides to life in Switzerland. Trust me on that.

"switzerland is pretty much the high watermark of civilisation. thoroughly recommended. if you're british you should go just for the novelty of seeing a train arrive on time. it's a revelation."There are less appealing sides to life in Switzerland. Trust me on that. >>Omar, Why do you think life there is not interesting to you ?

"Omar, Why do you think life there is not interesting to you?"I personally love the country, and I feel perfectly at home there, particularly in Geneva, where I have very fond memories But I also know that foreigners find it impossible to integrate there. That has never bothered me, as I thoroughly enjoy my status as a permanent alien with unclear background However, I appreciate that most people like to feel integrated in the society that they live in.

Patrick:Stockholm School of Economics has an excellent PhD program in finance, a good preparation for a quant job. Thomas Bjork, one of the bigest name in mathematical finance, is teaching there. http://www.hhs.se/secfi/courses/PhD/default.htmv.

MrHook:<<<<<<<<Stockholm School of Economics has an excellent PhD program in finance, a good preparation for a quant job. Thomas Bjork, one of the bigest name in mathematical finance, is teaching there. http://www.hhs.se/secfi/courses/PhD/def ... >>>>>>>>>I knew SSoE where a good business school but I didn't think SSoE were into the quantitative and mathematical side of finance, so this is good news for me. I plan to finnish my M.Sc at that school. Do you know which other schools department helps out with the maths?

Hi JI'm living in Switzerland. In Lausanne(near Geneva)I think if you want to live here the recommended money a student MUST have is about 1800swiss francs(about1200$). But I think 1000$ will be ok.(Do you consider it as expensive?)Where do you want to do your Msc? In Zürich, at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology or in Lausanne?Can you tell me why do you wanna get a Msc there? Are you british? Swiss Fed. Institute of Tech. is considered as a top tier (engineering)university?Bye

Nishan,"I'm living in Switzerland. In Lausanne(near Geneva)I think if you want to live here the recommended money a student MUST have is about 1800swiss francs(about1200$). But I think 1000$ will be ok.(Do you consider it as expensive?)"Do you mean US$ 1000 for 12-month living expense ?"Where do you want to do your Msc? "Depending on if I can get funding and supervisors."In Zürich, at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology or in Lausanne? "How well is ETHZ ? There is a MSc in math finance program http://www.msfinance.ch/ But, I dont know how well it is."Can you tell me why do you wanna get a Msc there? "Some guy told me there are some good schools strong in issurance and math finance. So far, I dont know if it is true."Are you british? Swiss Fed. Institute of Tech. is considered as a top tier (engineering)university?"No, I am a canadian, not a british citizen.Is SFIT strong in theoretical and practical side of Quantitative Finance ? Where is its URL ?

J,I think you are dreaming!Do you think that living in Switzerland,one of the most expensive country, will cost 1000$ for a year??No, you must have that money for a month.Yes there are some excellent schools for insurance and maths. Insurance,banking are sectors which are very developped here. So do the universities.There are two universities for applied maths. ETHZ and EPFL. The main difference is that lessons in ETHZ are teached in german and in EPFL in french. There is an excellent Msc. in mathematical engineering in EPFL(the master is sponsored by firms as UBS Warburg, Credit Swiss First Boston,...). But lessons are teached in french. A master in quant. finance will be teach at the ETHZ from this October(in english)I think it will be one of the best in Europe. And the tuition is only 3000$. It's not expensive beacause here, the government helps a lot the universities, and so do the big firms(Nestlé, UBS, Roche...)EHL URL : dmawww.epfl.ch/secretan/ing_math_info/ETHZ : www.ethz.msfinance.chAny questions my buddy?