Msc Finance Bocconi-HEC-SSE-Sciences-Po-ESADE
Hello,
I am finishing my undergrad in a well known Canadian University and would like to continue my studies in Europe. I have applied to the following schools and would like some help to rank my choices. I want to start working in Europe (I am a EU citizen).
-HEC Msc international Business, was shortlisted and final results should come up next week.
-Bocconi Msc Finance, got accepted last week.
-SSE, Finance & Accounting
-Sciences-Po Finance & Strategy
-ESADE Msc Finance
Any constructive comment is welcomed.
Bocconi would have the most name recognition among US-based quants.
Hopefully you can get more help from a continental European on this.
Right in the order you listed them. I assume you are french?
Bocconi is a 2 year programme, which means twice the chances, right? Sort out the best ones here, and take a 2 year programme.
There is also this thread here.
2 year programme implies being able to apply for summer analyst after 1st and 2nd years. 1 year programme means 1 available summer. And yeah, it's pretty lame if not attending classes is not ok.
Thank you very much for all your quick answers. The ranking I provided in my original question wasn't intentional (lol). Yes I am french, I am right now at the McGill University in Finance.
It's true I might be more attracted by 2 years programs. Especially since I'm only 20 years old. I have never seen HEC MIB in any ranking... The placements they provide on their website look extremely good, but I would assume employers consider first students from the MIF, right ? Also, I was wondering why is the Bocconi so low in the FT ranking? Any idea? I've already gone through a lot of forums but couldn't find a clear answer. If I were to choose between SSE and Bocconi, what could be the pro and con of each program?
So I think the average student entering Polytechnique is 20 and they are getting a free education from the French government. Have you considered a program like that?
Haha I see you are not from France, Polytechnique is certainly the most elitist school in the world, you get there only through the best "prep schools" in France. Moreover it's originally an engineering school which is not my field. Also it is to be noted that I am lucky enough to not have to take into account the fees (otherwise obviously, SSE being free for 2 years I'd go there right away) into my final decision.
Yeah. I'm not from France and I'm probably missing a lot of stuff. But my understanding is that the math prereqs for an MS in Finance at Bocconi (Calc I-III, Calculus-based probability, differential equations, linear algebra) look a lot like Polytechnique's. Furthermore I've been under the assumption that admissions in Europe is fairly straightforward and based on various test scores. (I could be off base here, too.)
My question is- you've been studying this stuff at McGill, UofT, or wherever for three or four years and they've only been studying some of this stuff for two years. Can you beat these people on the admissions exam?
http://www.admission.polytechnique.edu/home/ingenieur-polytechnicien-program/admission-process/a-competitive-admission-process-24026.kjsp
No way, not even worth trying. I'm pretty sure a Honor student in Mechanical Engineering at MIT wouldn't get into Polytechnique. But this is not the topic of the discussion. I've studied mathematics, so I guess I can meet the quant' prerequisites for Bocconi, now the question I'm asking is what's the best program I can possibly choose between HEC MIB, SSE finance and Bocconi Finance (as it seems the other 2 are a bit behind).
Since you are french, HEC should be a no-brainer even if MIB is not their best offering but McGill undergrad will probably help distinguish you IMO. Can't say much about Bocconi except that it's harder to stand out with a 250 student class size. Should be on par with SSE for London IBD (also free tuition and amazing city)
Ok thank you fours, I will seriously consider SSE if I get in. HEC might indeed offer the best job prospects of all the programs I listed above, but I assume there's not huge gap and I'd rather go for a 2 years program. If anyone can provide more informations regarding SSE and Bocconi that would be great.
I think neopolitan raised a valid point here: what do you want to get out of your Master studies and where do you want to work (both profession and location)? Broadly speaking it's HEC > Bocconi > SSE > ESADE > Sciences Po from my point of view but that might change if you want to target a specific industry, country, want some internship experience, study abroad, etc...
It would certainly help a lot if you laid out here what your plans for the future are. Do you want to work in IB/PE or at a Quant HF?
Speaking plainly brand-wise, I'd say the HEC brand clearly beats Bocconi, and SSE by far. This is particularly true if you want to work afterwards - if you want to get a PhD or do very quant-heavy work (which usually requires a PhD), whichever program is the most quantitative (I don't know) might be the best for you. Otherwise, I'd say HEC is a no-brainer, even if you weren't French.
One huge caveat here: I don't know anything about the specific programmes mentioned, so the picture might change if there's some aspect of a program which you're particularly interested in or if one programme is regarded as a 2nd choice at that particular school. And a 2-year program also seems preferable to me, given how young you are.
Thank you a lot answering my question, I really appreciate it and I hope it will help other people in my situation in the future. I have now made my decision. I have been admitted to all the programs I had applied to, except Sciences-Po... No regret since as it was said above, it clearly isn't as recognized as SSE, Bocconi, Esade and HEC. I have hesitated between Bocconi and HEC and in the end I am going for HEC MIB. I think it is the best suited program for me as I am not sure in what industry I want to work in (certainly not IB, but who knows). The one thing that had me hesitating was that HEC is only one year, so I'll start working young. But the HEC brand clearly beats all the others, and the courses there look amazingly interesting. Wish you all the best.
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