MSF at Baruch Zicklin School of Business! Should I expect a lot out of it?

Just want to mention I have no "academic" background in finance. Bad gpa of Below 3.0 from an institution in India(Wes evaluated ). 600 GMAT ( prepped for 3 weeks , couldn't bring up my English score v27/q44 )
Got through Baruch for MSF though. Extremely fortunate!!
What pulled me through
1) Practical Knowledge and personal small time achievements in financial markets.
2) Good essays highlighting my urge to take this course.

I can find pros about the course from anywhere on the Internet. But what I really want to know is
1. Does the course material taught have any relevance in the practical field ( is CFA going to supplement well with the degree or the other way round )
2. Are the professors teaching here better than Fordham for Finance, Fordham being my second and only option.

Hope to hear a response on this forum soon.

 
Best Response

Hey bro, I apparently spoke to current students on LinkedIn for both the programs. For Baruch, they said that students are on their own to find jobs. Location (NY) helps but not much as competition is just huge from top schools like NYU, columbia around. Remember u get 1 yr OPT post education. U need to find a job that will sponsor you for work Visa. MS Acc & MFE at Baruch is well known and those students land up with good jobs. Baruch have very strong alumni connection. U have to go out of the way to network n get a job. For Fordham, they said its a better school compared to Baruch but the networking thing is an issue here too. U need to network a lot to find a job. They said the MSGF course is very basic but since this program is STEM approved, u get 3 yrs post graduation time to find a job n get sponsorship.

All in all both schools r in the same boat. Finance is very tough industry to find a job but one has to go out of the way to get a job. Hope this helps.

 

I would recommend getting an internship experience before going there. Also, both universities have internship courses to take, so, u can take an internship during your program as well. Trust me the internship you get might be ur ticket to a full-time job. Both the universities, based on current student's feedback, have really top notch professors. So, ur education experience should be pretty good. Both universities have many alumni's in BB firms. You should start networking from the first day. Hope this helps.

 

Yes STEM has over 3 years of OPT. But you can't use that all that time to find a job. After graduation, you have 60 days grace period to get something for yourself(even unpaid internship/jobs) to utilize that 3 year OPT. If you don't get a job during that grace period, you will get out of the country. OPT is only there because not all employers are willing to just sponsor grads after graduation, so you can work on your OPT without needing sponsorship. OPT is just to facilitate employers because they need to make sure you're worth it before spending 4-6k on your sponsorship.

Not just STEM, it is the same everywhere. You only have 60 days grace period to find a job, and when you find one, you can work without sponsorship until your employer sponsors you. STEM has just that 17 month extension. Normal non stem OPT is only 12 months.

 

I wanted to judge the quality of education in Baruch for MSF. i am figuring out my objectives at the moment and a job placement is not on that list. Would rather have a good learning experience and exposure , rather than go kill myself hunting for a job.

So do you think it is Baruch or Fordham I should look forward to for masters in finance?

 

I'm a bit confused, I was completely under the impression Fordham didn't have an MSF program? Is this the Global Finance program to which you're referring? I hadn't seen literally any information on that at all a few months ago, and even the school's own site seemed very, very thin at the time.

 

Yes it is a Master in Global Finance course.

Since both institutions have just started providing Finance courses in their Masters curriculum... Baruch's Ms in fin being relatively a year older than Fordham's MSGF. I am finding it hard to comprehend which will be a better course to pursue taking into consideration all the pros and cons

 

I went to Baruch for my undergrad so I know a lot about the programs. Fordham is pretty much the same as baruch, except that Fordham will charge you a lot more money and not give you a good return for that money. I barely see Fordham kids in front office roles. In fact, I see Baruch kids more often than I do Fordham ones..

Baruch has a name in NYC, however, recruiting from Baruch sucks. Firms only come here to fill back-office or middle-office jobs. For the analytical jobs, you have to fight tooth and nail to even get an interview. The curriculum is also pretty bad. Teachers rely on textbooks to teach and as a consequence, you don't learn any practical skills such as excel, financial modeling, applications of finance to the real world.

Now, if you have no other choice and are looking to save money, Baruch is not bad. Just know that you'll have to work hard to get a good GPA and then you might not get any jobs out of it.. The only graduate program worth attending at Baruch is the MFE. However, this program is ultra-competitive. World class mathematicians and scholars are basically only admitted to this program. You have to be really good at math and have great credentials to get in.

I think Duke or MIT has a MSF. I would recommend trying to get into those programs, or at least attend a Masters that is highly ranked.

 

hey Drushti.. even I have got admits into baruch and fordham.. can we connect on +919930423252 to have a discussion? I am not able to finalise between Baruch and fordham

 

Hi Drushti and Darshan,

Thank you so much for sharing your experiences here .

I've a similar situation like you both, did you guys make a decision, choosing schools?

If yes and you guys have started your classes/courses already then are these courses adding any values to your learning so far.

Lastly, what do you guys think is a better choice between 'Baruch MS FRM' and 'Fordham MS in Global Finance'?

Please advise.

Thanks.

 

Neither

From looking at your stats, you're going to have a hard time finding something from either school.

The reality is 1) you're an international student, 2) your stats are on the weak end of the spectrum (and very weak for the Indian apps) and 3) with a verbal score so low on the GMAT, I wonder if you have the needed English skills to network/land a US job as you're not going for a quant degree. To get sponsored you need to basically fill a job that employers can't find a US citizen for. When it comes to IB/consulting/tech, employers can make that case, but your CV isn't strong enough to set yourself up for those roles regardless of what school you attend. Even if you manage to attend a top US program, you would have trouble landing something after.

Also, it's a recession / global pandemic, there will be plenty of international's with much stronger stats, not even including US citizens, going after the same jobs you will be seeking. 

Sorry to be so gruff, but I'd advise you to rethink your plans or boost your GMAT to the 700+ level and pass CFA level 1.  

 

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