MassachusettsInstitute of Technology

Masterof Finance Online Chat 19th Feb

LOBBY

mmy1129: Hi everyone, this isMengyun Miao from Shanghai. I am currently working in UBS Shanghai office. Ibenefitted a lot from previous chatting and made a lot of new friends. Thus, Ithink it will be useful to continue our discussion about finance and MFin afterthe online chatting. I have built a GOOGLE Group. If you are interested infinance and MFin, please feel free to join this group. Here is the Link: https://groups.google.com/d/forum/mit-mfin-class2015

Harriet (Admissions): Goodmorning, everyone, from a wintery day in Cambridge. We will begin in about twominutes and we won't be answering questions in the lobby. Please go to theappropriate chatrooms (e.g. Admissions, Career Development). See you there!!

king807: Thanks mmy

tomxiong: hello everyone! greetingfrom Hong Kong!

jiziliang618: thanks! mmy

CAREER DEVELOPMENT

Anita at Career Devt Office: Goodmorning everyone! My name is Anita Arbogast and I am one of the career advisorsfor the Master of Finance Program.

SThorold11a8eb: Good morning Anita

qiaoyingzhangruc[在] yahoo.com: Goodmorning Anita!

Anita at Career Devt Office: Good morning folks! Thank you for joining!

Anita at Career Devt Office:

In case anyof you have not had the chance to look at our most recent employment report forthe Master of Finance Class of 2013, please see this link:   https://mitsloan.mit.edu/pdf/Cla ... ployment_report.pdf

Anita at Career Devt Office: The largestportion of graduates accept roles in investment management, followed equally byinvestment banking and consulting.

yuanzhan: I'm sorry but the report isfor MBA class isn't it?

TReid968c78: Hi Anita, you gave us thelink of the MBA report, not MFin.

vip37d2a1: Hi Anita,I understand thefinance research practicum is for companies but is there any chance to do aproject with agovernment agency or government office?

shameek124: Hello Anita, would itpossible for you to shed some light into the class of 2014 employment report.Just a highlight as to what % have already obtained job ?

Anita at Career Devt Office: Apologies:https://mitsloan.mit.edu/pdf/Cla ... ployment_report.pdf

Anita at Career Devt Office: shameek124:The Class of 2014 is tracking fairly closely to the Class of 2013 this year sothe report should provide a good indication of what to expect three monthsafter graduation in October when the data is finalized.

Anita at Career Devt Office: vip37d2a1:Each year our faculty organizers make great efforts to expand the number andscope of sponsors. If there is interest in government agency / governmentoffice, make sure you let the professors know so that they can do their best toaccommodate your interests. In the past, we have had projects from governmentfinancial agencies.

vip37d2a1: thank you very much anita

SThorold11a8eb: Do most students find workafter graduating in the same area as their project?

shameek124: Anita, there is good amountof shift from people getting jobs in IBanking to Imanagement, is there aparticular reason ? Is the admissions committee looking to enroll more studentswho want to get a job in Imanagement.

Anita at Career Devt Office: SThorold11a8eb:Most projects utilize quant, financial and analysis skills and studentsgenerally graduate into roles that require these skills. With that said, whenyou select your Finance Research Practicum, you submit your ranked preferencesfor the project descriptions. Usually, your preferences for the projects willreflect your preferences for your role on graduation so there is usually a goodcorrelation between the two.

SThorold11a8eb: Cheers

SThorold11a8eb: How far along the programdo students select their preferences for the Finance Research Practicum?

king807: Morning Anita - foron-campus recruiting ("OCR"), do MFin students interview alongsideundergrads or MBA students (or both)?

Anita at Career Devt Office: shameek124:I believe this is largely a shift in hiring based on the financial crisis in2008. Investment banks are hiring fewer traditional M&A advisory analystroles, and more middle and back office functions to support the increasedregulatory environment we now operate in. Students who love the traditionalfinance work of evaluating investments and want to build on those skills(whether they are fixed income, equities, commodities, or companies andmergers) have been choosing investment management as a better option for theircareers.

shameek124: Thanks for the answer, andyour time.

Anita at Career Devt Office: king807: Asan MFin candidate, you are fortunate to have access to employment resources atSloan and the MIT main campus. For Sloan OCR, you will be interviewing withemployers on an interview schedule dedicated to Master of Finance students. Youare unlikely to be interviewing with MBAs as those roles are usually reservedfor students with 4-5 years of work experience prior to Sloan.

For MIT maincampus opportunities, you may be interviewing with seniors from theundergraduate programs, but this ultimately depends on what the employer islooking for.

king807: Great - thank you for thedetailed answer.

martin2098＠hotmail.com: Hi Anita. Since job applications start as early as September, whenMFin candidates would only have had about two months of Sloan experience, doesthat mean students should have a clear idea prior to Mfin of which industry toenter? Thank you.

ADMISSIONS

Harriet (Admissions): Ok, folks, we are ready to begin. Do you have any questions regardingAdmissions.

sishit1809: Hello Harriet! I waswondering if there a provision for the enrolled students to take a gap semesterin the middle of the year?

jurals: Yes, I would like to askwhen you plan to issue final decision for admission for 2014 Fall?

Harriet (Admissions): Hi sishit:I have never heard of anyone taking a gap during the year.

Harriet (Admissions): Hi jurals:All decisions will be sent out by the afternoon of March 10th.

utkarsh_1992: Hi, for the students whohave already interviewed, will you be releasing decisions on 10th only or wecan expect something before that also?

PMattam228dfb: Hi, I would like to knowwhether the application deadlines for 2014 are over for Mfin program.

Harriet (Admissions): One thing I want to suggest if you haven't seen them already is to checkout the student blogs. The latest posts are about the Finance ResearchPracticum and the Warren Buffet trek where they go to Omaha to meet with theirhero. Here's the link:

Harriet (Admissions): http://mitsloan.mit.edu/mfin/student-experience/

jurals: Thank you for your promptanswer, Harriet. Among those who have gone through the interview process,approximately how many of them will be admitted?

shameek124: Good Morning Harriet! Isthe MFin program planning to increase the size of the class for the incomingclass, given that this program is becoming more and more recognized ?

Harriet (Admissions): Hi utkarsh: I really do expect that we won't be releasing any decisionsbefore March 10th.

haibei: Good morning Harriet, I amjust wondering, if I have another opportunity that requires me to respondbefore 3/10, is it possible to get a sooner response from MIT?

haibei: I do not mind waiting andpaying the deposit thought since MIT is my first choice.

haibei: *though

Harriet (Admissions): Hi jurals: Last year about 1/3 of the pool got interviewed and about 1/3of that subset got admission offers.

utkarsh_1992: Hi harriet, thanks! Also,any chance that the result will be available after 10th? Because i need to askfor an extension from other universities regarding the initial deposit.

utk101: Hi Harriet! Once accepted,are students allowed to defer if they want to get work experience or due tosome other unusual circumstances? If yes, how long can they defer for?

Harriet (Admissions): Hi everyone: Our Program Office staff member has now arrived and issetting up. She was stuck in traffic. Sishit, if you want to resend yourquestion which was more program than admission-related, please do so.

Harriet (Admissions): Hi Utkarsh: No, I can pretty much guarantee that all decisions will goout on the 10th, as long as technology gods are smiling on us.

Harriet (Admissions): Hi utk: We have deferred admission in the past and are always willing toconsider requests on a case-by-case basis.

utkarsh_1992: Thank you so much for theinformation.

utk101: Thanks for the informationHarriet!

PMattam228dfb: Hi, Iwould like to know whether the application deadlines for 2014 are over for Mfinprogram.

Harriet (Admissions): P.S. The deferrals have usually been for one year.

voyaoyuxing: Good morning Harriet, Ihave a question that since I noticed from previous chats that you are trying tosend out all interview invitations by 2/14, for those who haven't receivedinvitation, is that an automatic rejection? Thank you very much!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi PMattam: Well, the deadline was January 2nd so off the top I would sayit really is too late. We finished reading and will be finishing interviewinglater this week. But if you want to email me privately I will confirm with theDirector of Admissions whether or not we could take a very lateapplication.

shameek124: GoodMorning Harriet! Is the MFin program planning to increase the size of the classfor the incoming class, given that this program is becoming more and morerecognized ?

mmy1129: Hi Harriet, this is MengyunMiao. Very nice to meet you again. Since I have been interviewed ten days ago,I am care about that will you send out the rejected letter first or send outthe offer first?

utk101: Are we expecting amoderator on the Current Students chat window? I had a few questions!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi shameek: I have not heard anything about expanding the size of theclass in the future. I know for sure that this year we are holding with our aimfor 120 or so students.

Harriet (Admissions): Hi mmy: We have written to applicants we are not planning to interviewand so the next time we will be writing to applicants is March 10th. Please bepatient.

Harriet (Admissions): Hi voyaoyuxing: I think this answers your question too.

emmanuel.quevedo.hernandez: HiHarriet!I have a question: additional letter/email recommendations fromMITSloan alumni are well-received?

ikerduke: Hi Harriet! Is theadmission letter sent out on March 10th an unconditional offer or conditionaloffer? If conditional, conditional on what?

SThorold11a8eb: Is work experience infinance given much weight in the admissions process?

Harriet (Admissions): Hi emmauel: Absolutely, we love to hear from anyone in the MIT communityincluding alumni, so have that person write an informal letter of recommendation.

mmy1129: Thank you, Harriet! Inoticed that the interviewer was taking a lot of notes during the interview.Thus, I am wondering whether the admission committee will discuss these notestogether or the interviewer's opinion is the main factor of the admissiondecision?

Harriet (Admissions): Hi ikerduke: Well, the admission letter might be contingent on proof thatthe candidate actually got the undergraduate degree or we sometimes might ask acandidate to take a course online before matriculation or an English languagecourse, but generally most admission letters are not conditional.

martin2098＠hotmail.com: HiHarriet, Similar question to the above: Is there a percentage breakdown ofvarious factors such as academic performance, letters of recommendations, etc.?

Harriet (Admissions): HiSthorold: Because there is no chance for an internship during our one year MFinprogram, it's great to have a finance related internship before matriculation,but I wouldn't say that it's an absolute must.

SThorold11a8eb: great, cheers

Harriet (Admissions): Hi everyone: Not that I want to push you all out of my chat room, butDebra from the Program Office is here and happy to answer program-relatedquestions as well as Student Life so please visit her in her own chat room

Harriet (Admissions): Hi mmy: The interviewer does a write-up (that's why I take copious notestoo because I'd never remember details) but then wehave all day admissions meetingdiscussing candidates so it is just one factor (albeit an important one) in theadmissions decision.

Harriet (Admissions): Hi martin: No, actually, there is no formula for admission whereeverything is worth a certain percentage. It's much more holistic,

Harriet (Admissions): viewing the entire application in relation to the pool.

mmy1129: Thank you so much, Harriet.One follow up question about the interview:even though I had deep and detailedconversation with my interviewer during the interview, can I provide additionalupdates from now to the decision released date?

martin2098＠hotmail.com: Thank youHarriet. This might be a strange question: Since March 10 is a relatively latedate, is there an opportunity for the more eager applicants like myself andmany others to submit a "pre-deposit" or the like to indicatepreference priorities?

emmanuel.quevedo.hernandez: Manythanks Harriet! Have a nice day!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi mmy: I've heard on the one hand that we aren't adding anything new tofiles at this point, but I have seen people expand on points made in theinterview during the thank you note.

robinlobo: Hi Harriet. Could youkindly elaborate more on the content of the interview? Will it be entirelybehavioral based? Thanks.

Harriet (Admissions): Hi martin: You really are eager!! No, there's no such thing as apre-deposit.

ikerduke: Hi Harriet! (1) Will alladmissions (Except for Waitlist) be sent out on March 10th exactly? Is thereany chance that someone would be notified of the admission in advance? (2)Would all applicants be notified via phone on March 10th? no matter it isadmission or rejected? Thanks!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi robin: The format of the MFin interview is a combination of threethings: specific questions that come from readers regarding your resumeandeverything submitted in theapplication, some behavioral based questions, andtime for the applicant himself/herself to ask questions.

Harriet (Admissions): Hi ikerduke: All remaining applicants will be notified electronically onMarch 10th (it could be admit, denied or WL). In the pastwe have called on the telephone those who were admitted and might well do thisagain.

ikerduke: Thank you Harriet!

mmy1129: Thanks a lot, Harriet.

martin2098＠hotmail.com: Thank youfor your time and efforts Harriet.

kcf28@cornell.edu: HiHarriet, I hope all is well! I have heard of the phone call too. How much priorto March 10th would that occur if it were to? Thank you!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi kcf: Itis my understanding the phone call would also be on March 10th.

qiaoyingzhangruc[在] yahoo.com: MorningHarriet! May I askroughlyhow many interview invitations were sent out?

Harriet (Admissions): Hi qiaoying, I have not heard any final numbers but I assume it is closeto last year

kcf28@cornell.edu: Great--thankyou, Harriet!

Harriet (Admissions): when we interviewed about 30% of the pool of 1583 applicants.

qiaoyingzhangruc[在] yahoo.com: Get it, thanks!

king807: Harriet - it seems clear that there is zero possibility of beingnotified of MFin admit status prior to March 10th. Does MIT have access to somekind of on-campus 'time machine' that MFin candidates can use to fast forwardto the admit date?

Harriet (Admissions): hi king: Tee hee! That will be the day.But rest assured that between now and March 10th we will be having

long,comprehensive admission meetings to pick the best class possible.

wx111: H Hi, Harriet! I wonder how many of the applicants be interviwedcan get admissions? Thank you!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi wx, last year only about 1/3 of thoseadmitted got offers of admission.

robinlobo: Hi Harriet. This may be a rather general question. Could you takeus through how the interview process is weighted in the overall assessment of acandidate? What attributes exhibited via the interview have historicallystrengthened a candidate's application? Thanks.

ikerduke: Hi Harriet! I am wondering what would you be discussing aboutafter you have interviewed all the interviewees. Thank you!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi robin: Actually, there is no weightingscheme so I can't answer your question, but my feeling is that the interviewcan go either way in terms of helping or not.

wx111: Get it! thank you Harriet!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi ikerduke: I can't go into any more detailabout the topics we discuss in admission meetings.

ikerduke: Thank you Harriet!

robinlobo: Thank you Harriet!

Harriet (Admissions): Hi everyone: Thisis a 5 minute warning solast call for questions.

SThorold11a8eb: Thank you for your timeHarriet

ikerduke: Thank you for your time!

king807: Thank you Harriet

Harriet (Admissions): Well, I've enjoyed talking to you all and hope it was worthwhile. If youthink of anything else, you are welcome to writetomfinadmissions@sloan.mit.edu or join us at a future chat.

qiaoyingzhangruc[在] yahoo.com: Thank youfor your time and patience Harriet!

mmy1129: I appreciate your time,Harriet! Thank you for the useful answers.

liuyilinapp: Thank you for your time

martin2098＠hotmail.com: Thank youfor hosting the event Harriet!

haibei: Thanks for your time!