University of Oxford MSc, Mathematical and Computational Finance VS Columbia University MAFN
Currently a 3rd year University of Toronto student (BSc in Mathematics). GPA of 4.0. I had 1 internship at D.E. Shaw this past summer. Planning on getting my Masters with the eventual goal of working in a Hedge Fund or Investment Bank.
My 3 Options Are
- University of Toronto, Master of Science in Mathematics
- University of Oxford, Master of Science in Mathematical and Computational Finance
- Columbia University, Master of Arts in Mathematics with specialization in the Mathematics of Finance
I live in Toronto. My D.E. Shaw internship was in Manhattan, I would like to work in NYC over Toronto or London. My only issue with Columbia is it's a Master of Arts and the other 2 are Master of Science. Does this matter at all to people or is the Columbia brand all they care about? I realize Uoft isn't a "target" school (Canada isn't a target country) so I feel getting my Masters at Toronto is my absolute worst case scenario.
Did you get a return FT offer from Shaw?
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not sure what you said here but if you did get a return offer, you should work at DE Shaw for a few years and then do the degree if you feel like you need it. Breaking in is the hardest part so you should get in when you can. A financial math degree, regardless of where you got it from, doesn't provide you a guarantee of a buyside HF job.
I hold a bachelor's degree in applied math from UT and went to Columbia MAFN. I was also admitted to Oxford Computational Finance.
Columbia MAFN is a solid program. My personal experience is that if you are good in math and coding and you are interested in becoming a quant (hedge fund quant, quant trading, desk quant etc.), MAFN would be a great choice. I got interviews from quant trading firms but failed due to my weak knowledge of stats and coding. If you already did an internship at DE Shaw I assume your chances of breaking into trading or hedge fund will be much better.
That being said, if you are eyeing investment banking, the chances are slim. IB mostly recruit undergrads from target schools.
Oxford is a totally different story. If you want to work in London, pick Oxford. Otherwise, stick with North American schools.
If you want to work in NYC then Columbia all the way, Oxford is definitely a target amongst UK universities, but coming from a UK grad trying to work in NY, you should definitely take US (especially US targets) over others.
The "Arts" label isn't going to deter recruiters?
I don't believe so, even if, not by a large margin. An MSc would perhaps only be a plus for jobs that have a quants aspect to it. Ive seen loads of people get admitted to IB with a BA or an MA. And furthermore, your Columbia option already includes mathematics and finance, which shows that you already have healthy exposure to the field. I would be surprised if you get rejected for getting an MA at Columbia.
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