LSE vs UCL for Quant

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Reply 20

Why don't you go Oxbridge or Imperial?

I got rejected from Oxbridge post interview and Imperial is what I'm aiming to firm ofc as its a non brainer that its better than UCL/LSE so Im asking for my insurance as UCL has contextual route and LSE has quite low req. Im not a fortune teller so I can't say for certain if ill make the grades. My grade as of now are the highest they can be but doesnt mean Im gonna gamble.

Reply 21

Anonymous #1

Original post by Anonymous

Also go read Alex Karp's book "The Technological Republic" and aim to make an actual, real impact in the world in modern industries. You have decided to close off your mind to a small subset of the finance space that largely serves itself and I urge you to rethink while you still can. Don't kid yourself that the world of finance is there to improve the world either; it's not - it's out to enrich itself and occasionally its clients too.

Thats good intentions within the message, but in no comment have I stated I am solely aiming for quant. It is an aspiration as ik how competitive it is, and I enjoy math so its natural to want to do a job full of math. The finance bit is ofc for the allure of money but when people say things like this including this HF manager, whats the point? Might aswell become a monk and meditate for life? No I need to work and make money in the future. I also understand that Im not special so whilst Im not against bettering the world, Im not gonna trick myself into thinking id have a major impact. Quant is the only part of finance im interested in due to the math so I can tell u now I have not closed my mind into a small subset of finance because I asked 1 question on it on TSR.

Reply 22

Anonymous #1

Original post by Anonymous

I would suggest that you compare the optional maths modules offered by UCL against those offered by Imperial/Warwick. The number of optional maths modules at Imperial/Warwick is at least 3x of those offered by UCL. Imperial/Warwick maths students can tailor their study to take more quant-related courses. Perhaps this is the reason why we find COWI maths grads are stronger in terms of technical skills. UCL maths is generally perceived as "easier" compared to COWI.

I have done this already before I decided on where to apply. The difference is strongly attributed to very mathematically abstract modules that doesnt have a direct impact on quant work. Imperial may be 3x more UCL modules, but Warwick's (whilst probably more) is not substantial especially not enough to put it above Oxford. Im not sure if you know how to check but Oxford modules are "hidden" on a link to further modules offered on their website, and their math page that only shows a few modules arent the only ones they offer...
Fair enough you may consider UCL easier. Have u searched Warwick youself? Their 3rd year can be up to 50% modules outside of the maths department. It can be physics or cs which is quantitative still and for sure useful but thats why their course is seen as more flexible, as you can do things like econ for your final year...

Reply 23

Anonymous #1

Original post by Anonymous

https://www.quantstart.com/articles/The-Top-5-UK-Universities-For-Becoming-A-Quant/
I stumbled upon this article. Even though this was written a few years back, most of the comments written by the author still hold imo.

Thank you thats quite useful. The HF manager on this thread states their believe Warwick is above UCL and Oxford, but this article says otherwise. Do you think thats to do with anecdotal variation or whats your opinion on the sites ranking?

Reply 24

Anonymous #1

Original post by Anonymous

100% agree with you. Nowadays, when you look at all those social media, literally every kid wants to pivot to quant roles regardless of their academic background and strengths. Perhaps they are drawn to this because of the "insane" pay made to new hires by firm like Citadel, MLP etc. But I guess most of them do not know what being a quant is all about, and whether it is something that would interest (other than money) them in the long run.

I dont have social medias outside of tsr so as to whether thats true of not I cant comment. My friends relative is a quant so I luckily got to have a "shadowing" of quants so yes you could argue its not enough of an experience to learn much but what do u expect? Do u think kids all have knowledge of what job they want for the future and that they can only aspire for jobs they know all about? Its logical to research (which I have done/am trying to do) about the job u want and that's the best we can do, so to assume the aspiring kids havent done any searching or that any experience they have is insufficient, and for that to be something to knock them for is an insane level of thinking. "I guess most of them do not know what being a quant is all about" really?

If I knew 100% about the industry I wouldnt have asked this. I like maths but I dont know the general opinions of these unis in quant industries- my 1 experience with them cant capture all opinions. Idk if rankings are good (if you look online most people say they arent). Im not aiming for places like Optiver or Jane Street either I just want to have a shot at the industry, and if it doesnt work out tough luck, but u dont want anyone thats not Cambridge to have aspirations?
And someone being attracted to a job for money isnt bad solong as its not the only incentive. Its almost as if the kids that are interested in maths want to have money in the future... couldn't have guessed that. Idk what assumptions you have made but (whilst the money is attractive) what do u want? "I have been allured by financial markets since 2"... I like maths and finance is interesting -thats the extent of it.

Reply 25

Anonymous #1

Original post by aedf

Oxford is below Warwick? Second-Tier? Are you serious?

That surprised me insanely as well. It may be true for their firm but their reason of Oxford being less flexible is (imo) very weird. They also stated things like being pushed in interviews from a technical front with things like ODE and PDEs, but that branch of maths is more sell side quant as opposed to buy side and they said they manage a hedge fund?. I could be wrong and they may specialise in derivatives that could use more sell side techniques but the list of topics they gave sounds like a "What math do quants use" google search.

Reply 26

Anonymous #5

You need to chill bro

Reply 27

Anonymous #2

Original post by Anonymous

You need to chill bro

Indeed. The OP asked for advice in this post. So I gave my honest opinion. Even though this may not be something he wants to hear and does not agree with me, it is perfectly fine. We live in a world of freedom and each should respect other people’s thoughts. I just do not see why he needs to be upset and hating.

I am just shocked how a young mind is already closed, no more room for other opinions. A good university degree can only bring you that far, the rest really depends on how you deal with other people at work or elsewhere.

Reply 28

Anonymous #1

Original post by Anonymous

You need to chill bro

All ive commented on is the assumption u "seniors" have made on a younger. I just denied your assumed claim. Doesnt matter whether its in a relaxed manner or not.

Reply 29

Anonymous #1

Original post by Anonymous

Indeed. The OP asked for advice in this post. So I gave my honest opinion. Even though this may not be something he wants to hear and does not agree with me, it is perfectly fine. We live in a world of freedom and each should respect other people’s thoughts. I just do not see why he needs to be upset and hating.
I am just shocked how a young mind is already closed, no more room for other opinions. A good university degree can only bring you that far, the rest really depends on how you deal with other people at work or elsewhere.

Theres no hating...? "I am just shocked how a young mind is already closed". This is mad ironic because all i've done is disagree with some of your opinions and pointed out that saying stuff like "literally every kid wants to pivot to quant roles regardless of their academic background and strengths" is a condescending backhanded comment on my post- and if thats your opinion im so shocked to see someone apparently smart enough to manage a hedge fund makes a generalised comment on all young people based off the sample they see on social media. You seem to be the one with a closed off mind if you rank oxbridge lower than Warwick and if you believe me defending my self against 2 supposedly "wiser" peoples trash assumptions on me wouldnt get my upset welldone your mad smart. I pray if you have children you dont make bad backhanded commented assumption on them and try act all high and mighty when they try defend themselves. God forbid how they will turn out.

Reply 30

Anonymous #1

This post has taught me even if manage to run a hedge fund (atleast claim to) you can still be very ignorant and absurdly contradictory when a child points out their obvious mistakes e.g with uni modules or math needed in the industry, and instead goes to "errrmmmm I think being young and disagreeing is shocking". And another dude tranna dictate someones life as if they the modern Ghandi to "make and impact".

Reply 31

Anonymous #2

Yes thank you. I have a loving son, 17 yrs old now in Y13. He got accepted into a couple of COWI and UCL maths. Perhaps under my influence, he wants to be quant as well (just like you and many other students). I have already warned him the competition is super intense, but he still wants to try. So I have put him to do internship with a quant fund which my friend runs, and will see if he has the potential to succeed in this field.

Anyway, this is my last post to your question. I do not wish to waste anymore of my time with people who do not know how to respect other people. In any case, I wish you the best in your future endeavours.

Reply 32

Anonymous #5

Original post by Anonymous

^^correction: "make an impact"

Reply 33

Anonymous1*

Original post by Anonymous

I run a hedge fund. Our tier-1 UK unis for quant are Cambridge, Imperial and Warwick (maths) - these three names are considered equally competitive, and it all gets down to the technical skills that the candidates have acquired (and the courses that they have taken at university). Second-tier unis are Oxford and UCL. LSE unfortunately does not make the cut as it is not well known for maths.

I know this is completely separate, but do you think Cambridge chemical engineering is suitable for quant roles. I’ve seen a few engineers from Oxbridge and imperial on linked in end up top hedge funds. I’m aware it would require individual learning if some maths and technical knowledge but I just want to know how feasible it is.

Reply 34

Anonymous #2

Original post by Anonymous1*

My first degree was engineering (25 years ago), and I managed to pivot to HF (granted, I also did an MBA, and the competition back then was much less intense (actually not too many of people knew what a HF was)). So to your question, yes, it is possible for you to get an interview (with a First in Cambridge engineering). But the most difficult part is the interview. I have seen countless candidates with stellar CVs have faltered at the interview stage. If you really want to try to get into HF, I would suggest you go deep on those maths topics which are useful for quant (e.g. Stochastic PDE, Optimisation, Statistical processes, probability/stochastic process/brownian motions etc). Also having some coding experience (like python etc) would be advantageous.