Cambridge MPhil Finance Entry 2014

I received an offer from the Masters in Quantitative Finance programme at ETH Zurich. The cost of that programme + cost of living would be half that of cambridge, lse, or any other uk university. Its also a pretty good place for pursuing mathematical finance as they have one of the strongest maths/computer science department in Europe. What are your takes on it? Im still considering my offer.

Same stage as me then. Camsis has been down so very slow now, we may have to wait to next week to get our offers


PS! I applied in February too, but quite early.

Maths with Econ, UCL 2013

I turned down an offer from that programme a month ago but some friends are going there next year. In terms of quality of teaching it is aproximately the same as Cambridge or any other top programme in Europe (I actually like the curriculum there more than that at Cambridge). In terms of costs it is not as extreme difference as you suggest. It is 3 semesters long and living costs in Zurich are extreme. If you take the suggested 2000CHF per month you are at about 34k CHF (roughly 23k GBP) which is completly the same as at Cambridge (without factoring in the opportunity costs of the additional 6 months). I am not saying you cannot survive on less but you can also spend less at Cambridge if you want to.

The largest difference is probably its reputation. The brand name exists virtually only in Switzerland whereas places like Oxbridge are respected around the world. I remember reading somewhere on Wilmott forum from some recruiter that it is unknown in London which alone puts it behind 10 best universities in UK regardless of its quality. You have to think about where you want to end up. For London or New York it is not the best choice but if you would be able to land a job in Zurich the costs would return within 3 months. Just be prepared that it is very hard to get a job without being proficient in German and many people have to return to their home countries.

I have seen some from UCL on the forum, I think there may be some from Econ 2014 that has(have) received an offer. I graduated last year and I have friends and classmates studying at Cambridge this year, I don't know if any are on MPhil Finance, but some on MPhil Fin and Econ and Math/Stat(?).

What are your profile?

Congratulations on your MFE offer

I am waiting for the outcome of MFE, applied late Nov. I think my case with MFE is that I am studying Econometrics now since I didn't do it as a part of my UG, combining it with working in Finance.

Which course would you prefer: MFE or MF?

Would you guys mind sharing your profiles? Cheers.

Hey, how are you liking this course so far? How are the modules in terms of content and rigor? Are the finance modules too mathematical or economics based? Are you planning to do PhD or go into the industry after you graduate?

I really like the course on the whole & especially cambridge. The rigor of modules depends a lot on what you take... i took some math faculty courses which are extremely rigorous (as you could probably imagine). some of the judge modules are less so. you get a lot of flexibility in terms of what you study though so you can make it as difficult as you like, and you can choose modules to suit your strengths

Asset pricing and fundamentals of competitive markets (aka advanced micro) are highly economics and maths based. but it's not excessively difficult. There is a maths/stats pre course which gives you all the tools you need in terms of calculus, matrix algebra, etc etc

I am going into a PhD, but many people in the class entering industry next year. I think there is 4-5 people from a class of 22 who will do a PhD

I really like the course on the whole & especially cambridge. The rigor of modules depends a lot on what you take... i took some math faculty courses which are extremely rigorous (as you could probably imagine). some of the judge modules are less so. you get a lot of flexibility in terms of what you study though so you can make it as difficult as you like, and you can choose modules to suit your strengths

Asset pricing and fundamentals of competitive markets (aka advanced micro) are highly economics and maths based. but it's not excessively difficult. There is a maths/stats pre course which gives you all the tools you need in terms of calculus, matrix algebra, etc etc

I am going into a PhD, but many people in the class entering industry next year. I think there is 4-5 people from a class of 22 who will do a PhD

For the 17 who won't do a PhD, is it a choice?

Hi, I am still not completely sure between the cambridge Mphil Finance and the LSE finance and econ msc.

I am pretty sure I want to do a Phd and what worries me is the lack of economics in the mphil finance (I am a maths graduate)

What kind of phd admissions do people on the programme get? did anybody get into top US PhDs?

Also, do people go in pure finance Business school programmes or do some manage to get into econ departments too?

Thanks and sorry for all the questions!

Yes it is a choice. Everyone who applied for PhD got one



there is some economics in the mphil - graduate level micro, and graduate level econometrics x 2. Plus asset pricing in the faculty of economics is very micro-focused.

I would strongly advise the mphil for phd continuation. It is purposely a research focused degree, and will add a lot of weight to phd applications, especially for US. I believe LSE MSc Finance and Econ is less research based (but I may be incorrect with that assumption)

Out of this year then the PhD placements are very strong: MIT, London Business School, Cambridge economics, Cambridge Judge, and Cambridge engineering (but related to finance i believe).

There was one person this year who got accepted into an economics phd at Cambridge. But the rest are finance. Since there are other MPhils (e.g. Economic Research in the economics faculty) for those who want to do an economics phd.

Yes it is a choice. Everyone who applied for PhD got one



there is some economics in the mphil - graduate level micro, and graduate level econometrics x 2. Plus asset pricing in the faculty of economics is very micro-focused.

I would strongly advise the mphil for phd continuation. It is purposely a research focused degree, and will add a lot of weight to phd applications, especially for US. I believe LSE MSc Finance and Econ is less research based (but I may be incorrect with that assumption)

Out of this year then the PhD placements are very strong: MIT, London Business School, Cambridge economics, Cambridge Judge, and Cambridge engineering (but related to finance i believe).

There was one person this year who got accepted into an economics phd at Cambridge. But the rest are finance. Since there are other MPhils (e.g. Economic Research in the economics faculty) for those who want to do an economics phd.

Same stage as me then. Camsis has been down so very slow now, we may have to wait to next week to get our offers


PS! I applied in February too, but quite early.

Not yet, still with BOGS...

However, my MPhil Fin and Econ application moved to BOGS this afternoon too and I received an emal from the Econ Dept with my offer and conditions. They told me that I had to wait for BOGS, but that I would rceive my offer in due course

What about you?