Non-Target to Top 10 M.S. Financial Engineering?
I decided last fall that I don't want to be an accountant. I want to be a trader. It sounds cliche, but it's my passion. I love finance, mathematics, and money. Perfect fit.
Anyways, I'm entering my fifth and final year of undergraduate studies at a non-target school (Syracuse University). I know one kid who got an internship with BNP Paribas this summer in S&T, but other than that, recruiting for those positions just doesn't happen there. Understandable.
For that reason, I'm considering going to grad school right away to pursue a M.S. Financial Engineering. I need my resume to be better. Haven't taken the GRE yet.
Thank you guys in advance for your advice.
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Someone recently posted about the MFE at UCLA, after speaking with career services and the head of the program; the OP was informed he would need a Plan B and C if S&T was his goal because getting a trading gig was far fetched. Based on that information and knowing how much universities tend to paint a rainbow over their programs, I would 1) keep your expectations in line and 2) be damn sure about what you are getting into outside of the top 3-4 programs.
This is mostly out of curiosity but I've seen dozens of these posts over the past few weeks. During your four years of schooling toward being an accountant, why did you decide at your projected graduation date (approximately) that trading is now your passion? I'm assuming that is why you extended your schooling to add on the minor, in order to pursue trading. The timing leaves me with the question; Is it possible this has to do with being set out into the real world?
It's something I've always been interested in but never had any exposure to until last fall. I added the minor and second major because I need 150 credits for the CPA, and because it would allow me to explore finance and trading in more depth at the academic level. Then I discovered I really enjoy comp sci as much as finance. Trading just seems like the perfect fit.
It has nothing to do with going into the real world. I've been paying my own bills for a while now, and I'm a father. This is about deciding what I want to do for certain and acting it now, cuz it's a hell if a lot easier to do a year of grad school now, before my son is in school.
Good call on the CS. Hope it works out, like I said, buyer beware on some of those programs.
The timing makes total sense given your situation. I was just curious as this is probably the 10th post in the past 2-3 days about someone coming from a non-target and at the end of their schooling they all of a sudden find finance. Though they typically come from a useless or unrelated major.
Thanks. Yeah I always wanted to go finance but my parents pushed me towards accounting because my father is a CPA, started his career at Deloitte, and ended up with opportunities in finance as a result. Also I started college in 2010, and with what happened in 2008, I couldn't really argue with them when they told me to pick a major that would guarantee me a job post-grad.
It took me a while and several internships to admit it, but accounting isn't my calling. It's not as quantitatively-driven as trading and finance in general. It's not as exciting, creative, or fun to talk about. And it doesn't make me feel connected to the market, and consequently, the world.
One additional point: full time offers will be coming out in a month where I'm interning (Ernst & Young). I was set up for an offer in tax, but after deciding it's not for me, I requested a switch to Transaction Advisory Services - Valuation, which would put me in a better exit position, but at this point it seems unlikely.
So I think my biggest weakness right now is that I haven't demonstrated an application of comp sci to financial projects. Of course, I just started my comp sci studies last semester, and only learned Haskell, so there's only so much I can do with such a limited background. I am reading books on C++ and VBA now.
GPA should come up to a 3.5. GRE needs to be good. As an alternative, I could retake the GMAT and try to break 700, though that would limit the number of programs I could apply to.
What other areas of my resume should I be focused on strengthening at this point? Is a M.S. Financial Engineering out of my league right now? Should I just focus on getting a full-time offer in finance, earn my CPA and CFA, and then reapply after a few years of work experience with a stronger resume?
friend of mine graduated from whitman school at syracuse and while she was enrolled she interned for 3 different BBs where she was offered a full time return offer during her junior year SA stint. its definitely possible
Thanks. No doubt it's possible, but coming from an accounting background with mostly tax experience, I'm just trying to figure out what short-term improvements to focus on so I can either land interviews this recruiting season or be a competitive applicant for a top MFE program. The second major in finance and minor in computer science is a start, but with no summers left for internships and not a single BB on my resume it's just going to be an uphill climb.
Can you elaborate on your friend? It sounds like she knew someone if she was interning at a BB freshman year. Was she just a finance major? How did she get in the door for S&T? Did she take a back/mid office SA position and then network internally while there? As far as I know there's virtually no S&T recruiting at Whitman, and when there is only the kids in the Orange Value Fund get in the door.
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