Hey markuswair:
Thanks for reaching out to me. To be honest, I do not believe that you are going to have a problem getting into any of these programs. Your 750 GMAT score Speaks volumes when it comes to decisions admissions committees have to make.
The reputation of your undergraduate institution is not going to matter as much as the nature of your responsibilities at work. Even though your undergraduate institution may not be a top Indonesian University, you really maximize your opportunities there (academically) with your 3.9 GPA. The fact that you are even from Indonesia – perhaps with some work experience around Southeast Asia – will add to the diversity of any MSc class.
Keep in mind that an MSc in finance is a very focused program. They are not as interested in your leadership per se. What they want to know about is your Analytical ability As demonstrated by the nature of your role. Whereas an MBA program would be looking for more well-rounded individuals with a diversity of leadership experiences, you do not have to worry about that as much with an MSc in finance. So I know you did not mention any extracurriculars as an undergraduate. While I am sure you had at least one or two that you are involved in, it is really not that important. I am going to guess that your involvement could not have been to in-depth given the fact that you graduated at the age of 19. It does not leave a lot of room for "getting involved."
I did have another thing that you should consider – geography. What is the nature of your work experience? International? In the US? With multinational firms? I did take a look at your current firm's website and I see that CLSA is a heavy prominence in Asia. I am going to guess you are still working over there. However, I also see that you pass both levels of the CFA. So maybe you are actually working or planning to work in the United States. I am not sure, but regardless, these MSc programs are very focused on your ability to get a job coming out of school. They do not need a bunch of people going home to live with their moms and dads. So pitching your work correctly, and your familiarity with analytical work covering – let us say – US domestic markets, will be incredibly valuable. I would suggest that you stress this type of geographic centric work experience on your resume when applying to schools.
That is all I can think of for now. Overall, you should be competitive at these programs with perhaps – just perhaps – a little more work experience.
Respectfully,
Paul Lanzillotti
markuswair wrote:
Hey guys,
I've just started to work full-time since September 2014 and planning to apply for MSc Finance in US for 2015. Here's my profile.
Age: 19 (20 as of next year)
Nationality: Indonesian
IELTS: L9 R8.5 W7 S7.5
Undergraduate: Major in Management in Finance, Best Graduate with 3.93/4.00 GPA at an Indonesian university (not a top one)
GMAT: 750 IR8 Q50 V41 AW6
Math/Programming Course: Calc I-III, Intro to C++, Intro to VBA, Probabilistic Theory, Linear Algebra
Work Experience: (1)Equity Analyst Intern at CLSA Securities, (2)Equity Analyst Intern at Deutsche Securities, (3)Investment Analyst at a Singaporean private equity (asset under management c.USD470mn)
CFA: Passed Level II
Others: (1)Won several national finance competitions, (2)scholarship from Indonesian government for master studies in finance, (3)authored a computer book
I'm planning to apply to following programs (based on priority):
1. MIT Master in Finance
2. Columbia Master of Financial Economics
3. Washington University in St. Louis Master in Finance
4. JHU Master in Finance
5. UCLA MFE
I got a scholarship from Indonesian government, thus I can only apply to the listed universities and those are the only American universities in the list offering Master in Finance.
Which of the five universities do you guys think are within my reach? Thanks in advance!
_________________
Paul Lanzillotti | Founder|
About | mba@amerasiaconsulting.com | 877.866.9251
Schedule a Consultation |
Twitter |
BlogDownload "How To Apply" Guides |
INSEAD |
Columbia |
Harvard |
Wharton