A one year MS in Finance degree can assist non business majors develop skills to break into the Finance industry. Lots of business schools seem to be offering these types of mini Masters programs targeting liberal arts and non business majors. Unlike the MBA, these are usually pre-experience degrees.
My son just got accepted to the UT McCombs School of Business, Master of Science in Finance Program.
If you have any questions about this program or MSFs in general, feel free to ask questions
@perazziman : What were your son’s standardized test scores (GMAT or GRE) that enabled him to get into this masters program or what is the range of scores for accepted students?
Any post undergraduate full time work experience ?
Profile
2013-17: BS TAMU (non-target)
GPA 3.4
Major Economics
Minor Math
Capstone Research: Math of Financial Options / Derivatives (A)
(A) grades also in Engineering Calculus Linear Algebra, Differential EQ, Probabily Theory, Econometrics Statistics etc
AP Calculus AB/ BC 5/5
Lowerclassmen GPA 3.2
Upperclassmen GPA 3.6-3.7
Excellent recommendations from Math and Econ professors
GRE 330 (equivalent to GMAT 720)
CFA Level 2 Candidate (June 2018)
No relevant work experience. Seeking MSF to change career paths from seeking a PhD in Economics to Banking
Here is a list of 30 best MSF Programs. They are ranked from most to least affordable. MIT is least affordable, but ranks #2 in quality. UT is 15th most affordable and ranks #1.
I would take these rankings with a pinch of salt, but they are a good place to start looking
https://www.master-of-finance.org/best/affordable-degree-programs/
The UT Program’s average GMAT is 690. Average GPA is 3.44. Job Placement is 100%. Av. Salary is about $70k
TFE has come out with the 2019 ranking of Masters of Finance Programs. Here are the top 65:
1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
127 Votes
2 Princeton University
64 Votes
3 Washington University in St. Louis
70 Votes
4 Vanderbilt University
75 Votes
5 University of Rochester
56 Votes
6 University of Southern California
53 Votes
7 University of Notre Dame
47 Votes
8 University of Texas
44 Votes
9 Arizona State University
46 Votes
10 Brandeis International Business School
87 Votes
11 University of Texas at Dallas
82 Votes
12 University of Florida
28 Votes
13 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
46 Votes
14 Boston College
30 Votes
15 Georgia State University
36 Votes
16 Villanova University
47 Votes
17 Ohio State University
24 Votes
18 University of Utah
27 Votes
19 Michigan State University
15 Votes
20 Texas A&M University
30 Votes
21 Rochester Institute of Technology
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22 University of California, San Diego
25 Votes
23 Auburn University
13 Votes
24 Illinois Institute of Technology
27 Votes
25 Louisiana State University
12 Votes
26 Temple University
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27 Santa Clara University
10 Votes
28 Syracuse University
12 Votes
29 University of Connecticut
15 Votes
30 University of Alabama
8 Votes
31 University of Arizona
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32 Purdue University
15 Votes
33 Johns Hopkins University
45 Votes
34 Tulane University
11 Votes
35 Indiana University
10 Votes
36 University of Delaware
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37 University of Maryland
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38 Florida State University
12 Votes
39 Claremont McKenna College
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40 University of Colorado Denver
15 Votes
41 West Virginia University
11 Votes
42 Northeastern University
8 Votes
43 Pepperdine University
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44 Hofstra University
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45 University of Tampa
28 Votes
46 University of Tulsa
6 Votes
47 Drexel University
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48 Lewis University
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49 Baruch College
3 Votes
50 Thunderbird School of Global Management
5 Votes
51 University of Massachusetts Boston
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52 University of Illinois at Chicago
2 Votes
53 Portland State University
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54 DePaul University
3 Votes
55 Seattle University
3 Votes
56 George Washington University
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57 University of Baltimore
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58 University of San Francisco
3 Votes
59 Virginia Commonwealth University
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60 Fordham University
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61 University at Buffalo - SUNY
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62 University of Denver
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63 University of California, Riverside
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64 Southern Methodist University
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65 Bentley University
2 Votes
Here is their Methodology:
30% Mean GMAT Scores
25% Mean Starting Salary and Bonus
15% Mean Undergraduate GPA
15% Acceptance Rate
10% Full Time Graduates Employed at Graduation
5% Full Time Graduates Employed 3 Months after Graduation
Please be aware that some of these schools effectively have Financial Engineering Programs not really MSF programs, such as Princeton. Also some of these schools have combined their Finance program stats with MS in Accounting, Analytics, Quant, MBA etc. For example Rochester and Notre Dame MSF programs may not be as competitive as they appear in this ranking.
The Notre Dame MSF for example, is in Chicago where they also hold EMBA classes. It is basically a part time program. The age of an average student is 30 years.
So this isn’t the typical pre-experience full time MSF Program that helps new college grads get into high finance. The school doesn’t share average GPA or GMAT scores for this specific program. It generally lumps them together with all its Masters programs.
@perazziman: Thank you for sharing this information !
Some of the information from the cite in post #4 is incorrect. For example, second most affordable Texas A&M, listed at about $5,500 for in-state master’s degree is incorrect. I believe that the correct figure is over $30,000, maybe over $35,000 for residents.
You are welcome @Publisher
The UT Austin tuition numbers are also incorrect ? They charge between $40-40k for the 10 month program
I’m not sure how TFE ranked Arizona State University in the top 10 (as #9)
According to the university:
The Av. Salary is between $50-70k. So about $60k
Admit 66%
GMAT 613
GPA 3.46
https://wpcarey.asu.edu/masters-programs/finance/class-profile
https://wpcarey.asu.edu/sites/default/files/fastfacts_finance_2012-13.pdf
$60K was my son’s starting base salary in investment banking when he graduated (BSc Economics with finance concentration) back in 2004. Granted that it was NYC salary but still …
These days base for IB Analysts appears to be around $85k to $90k. So, better MSF programs in the south such as Vanderbilt, Wash U St. Louis and UTA have Average salaries in the $70k range. In the north they are usually 10% to 20% higher
Is your son still in IB or did he shift to VC HF PE etc.? Also was he recruited in UG? Or did he move into IB after a Masters?
So is the cost of living.
My son was in IB for 3 years before switching to hedge fund where he’s been ever since. He was recruited out of UG for IB. He has not needed a graduate degree but he is a chartered CFA through self-study.
He’s been very lucky in that he didn’t need to look for work; he was recruited by both his employers. Finance can be a very rewarding and highly compensated career.
Good luck to your son.
@cbreeze thank you for sharing
You are quite right, cost of living is lower in the south, so starting salaries in the south are lower too.
I would be wary of MS in Finance Programs in the northeast or west coast or Chicago area with average salaries below $70k claiming to regularly place pre-experience graduates into high finance / IB Analyst positions. This is unlikely since programs in the south that place in high Finance have average salaries of $70k + such as Vanderbilt, U Virgina and UTA etc