Alumni
Many of our graduates have gone on to carve a niche in the financial industries, both in Singapore and internationally.
Here's what they have to say about their experience in the MFE programme:
Anand Goyal
Associate, Asia FX E-Commerce Sales
JP Morgan
"After graduating with a EEE degree from NTU, I joined JP Morgan. I wanted to gain in depth knowledge in the Financial Sector and decided to pursue a Financial Engineering Masters at NTU. I had no doubts about MFE being the course of my choice because it integrated Quantitative with Qualitative Finance. It’s a unique mix and such a skill set is really sought after if you are looking to make it to Wall Street. Apart from the various financial skills , I also learnt time management. Working and studying at the same time is not easy and this course taught me to manage time more effectively
In my role as an Associate in IB Technology, I found it so much easier to talk to the front office people and provide technological solutions to their business needs. Sometimes the Business people were really amazed with the skill set I possess and I thank NTU and its professors for equipping me with the same!
In Feb 2008, MFE also helped me in making a transition over to the front office and I am now responsible for selling the Electronic FX solutions of the bank. If not for the MFE, such a transition would not have been possible.”
Ang Eng Siong
MA, Market Risk Management
Group Risk Management
OCBC
“I was working as an economist at the Monetary Authority of Singapore prior to joining the MFE program. The position offered me a unique opportunity to witness first-hand the unfolding of economic and financial market events and their attendant effects on macroeconomic policies and financial market stability. In addition, I understood more clearly that mathematics is a useful tool to describe what we observe in the financial markets. It was this deep-seated desire to understand the nature of financial phenomenon that led me to apply for the MFE program at NTU, which is well-designed for a career in the financial industry with its intentional intensity. I knew that I would be able to learn a lot in a short time and have the opportunity to immediately apply them in projects and assignments. Indeed, the NTU MFE curriculum and it’s collaboration with CMU, coupled with the extensive alumni network, puts the program right at the top of the list of similar programs in the region.
I have certainly benefited immensely from the MFE program, given my lower “quantitative base” as compared to my classmates with engineering or computing background. The structured logic from the highly quantitative program complements my economics background, giving me better odds for success in this fast paced financial world. The gains from the program are, however, much more than that. I have learned to approach issues from an analytical perspective, using the logical sequence inherent in mathematics to help solve day-to-day problems and provide insights which are otherwise not immediately obvious from intuition. Looking back, the NTU MFE program is everything I could have hoped for. It has opened new doors for me in the banking industry, and the program's ideal blend of theoretical foundations and practical applications continues to help me in my present work in the area of market risk management."
Bikash Sarangi
Senior Trader
Credit Trading and Structuring
Standard Chartered Bank
"The Nanyang MFE program provides a good insight into the theoretical background behind basic asset and derivative pricing. Students are provided with grounding in financial mathematics, statistics and computing and electives are available to further solidify base in specific areas. I have been able to utilize the knowledge so gained into my work with reasonable ease."
Carolyn Sim
Deputy Director
Head, Financial Risk Management Division
Finance Department
Monetary Authority of Singapore
"The programme has given me a valuable insight into the various financial instruments, how they are structured and priced, and how their risks are managed. Such knowledge has been very useful in my new risk management responsibilities at MAS."
Catherine Tan
Standard Chartered Bank (London)
"Having graduated with a Mathematics degree from NUS, I embarked on a banking career, specializing in non performing loans. Two years on, I wanted to move into Risk Management which was fast becoming the cornerstone in the banking industry. This led me to enroll into MSc Financial Engineering with NTU (in collaboration with Carnegie Mellon University). With a Mathematical background and on-the-job training in Finance, this course that provides a good blend of Finance, Mathematics and Computing made my 2 years with NTU exciting, enriching and fulfilling. The rigorous curriculum and highly quantitative subjects that we handled helped in my transition into Credit Risk Management. Financial Engineering is fast catching on in the Financial industry. From Singapore to London, I have many opportunities to interact with many others who had obtained similar degrees in other universities and I can see how useful the knowledge we had gained during our Financial Engineering journey is in helping us move in time in this fast paced financial world."
Julien Jourjon
Corporate Sales Fixed Income Market
Calyon Corporate and Investment Bank
"Having graduating with a MSc in Finance from the EDHEC Business School (France), I started my career as a Structuring Sales on Interest rate Derivatives in Paris. I realized that to be able to succeed in the trading floor, I needed to develop and sharpen my quantitative knowledge and decided to join the rigorous and well-balanced Nanyang Master of Science in Financial Engineering programme within the South East Asian financial hub city, Singapore. This specialized one-year MFE curriculum integrates advanced mathematical, statistical, and computer science tools with finance theory as applied in institutional settings.
The programme is a challenging curriculum solidly based on the business school paradigm of providing students not only with technical knowledge, but also with the business knowledge and skills required to succeed in the financial industry.
Above all, the MFE programme has been a wonderful and humanly enriching experience which offered me the opportunity to grow up in a multicultural environment."
Koo Wai Ming
Vice President
Derivatives Analysis
Goldman Sachs (Japan) Ltd
"Pursuing a master degree in financial engineering was a turning point in my life. The NTU Financial Engineering program, with its well designed curriculum and partnership with Carnegie Mellon University, has provided me with the finance, computation and quantitative grounding I needed to make a successful transition to the finance industry. My experience at the NTU program continues to play a big role in my career development."
Laurent Borredon
Quantitative Analyst
Citigroup
"The NTU MFE course is a challenging but rewarding program. The rigorous yet practical training in Mathematics, Statistics, Finance and Computer Science prepared me very well for a quantitative career. The high standard of the various modules gave me strong foundations and analytical skills which I can now apply and build on to solve complex problems in my daily job. This program obviously required a lot of work but the opportunity to work with students from different backgrounds as well as the availability and motivation of professors made the learning process more enjoyable. Looking back, I think that my choice to come and study in Singapore was the right one."
Lee Beng Hong
Vice President
Deutsche Bank
"The programme involves a high degree of project work. A small class size helps, as we would know each other very well, in terms of strengths and working style.
The passion and inspiration from my fellow classmates kept me going and definitely helped me win the MAS Gold Medal."
Li Chanyuan
Senior Analyst, Fixed Income Division
Nomura
"I graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in finance from Fudan University. The Nanyang MFE program was an excellent choice especially for someone like me who wants to work in Asia as a head start. The MFE has given me a deep insight into the various financial instruments. The well-organized courses contain both quantitative subjects and practical financial curriculums and thus I could get quick access to both the fundamentals of financial product pricings and practical operations in real world. More importantly, it gave me the opportunity to knock at the door of top financial institutes worldwide, securing me a fantastic job at the end!"
Lim Ang Guan
Associate Director, Wealth Management Sales Investment Banking & Markets
HSBC (Australia)
"Winning the Reuters award came as a pleasant surprise. The practicality of the subjects taught in the programme , coupled with the hands-on approach, made the whole learning process fun-filled. I believe that when you are having fun, you tend to perform better. Looking back , embarking on the course has been one of my best career decisions. To me, it is the master key to a career in banking."
Lim Han Kiat
Manager
Risk Competency Centre
Thomson Reuters
“The integration of Finance, Computing and Mathematics at the post-graduate level is tough but powerful. It opens up an array of tools for finance professionals like myself, to understand the profiles of financial instruments. And I believe this sort of detailed and technical know-how will be increasingly needed to add value to the finance industry.”
Ong Puay Ing
Equity Derivatives Research Associate
Merrill Lynch
"After working as a semiconductor engineer for 10 years, I decided to pursue my interest in finance. The NTU MFE program has helped smoothen this otherwise arduous transition. Compared to other graduate programs, the MFE program placed more emphasis on the quantitative skills and fundamental theory of the finance and banking world. This gave us more confidence when implementing solutions in the finance industry. Moreover, strong links with the alumni and finance industry provided a much needed help to a successful career development. I am grateful that I was given the opportunity to enroll in NTU MFE program."
Patricia Sutrisno
Analyst
JPMorgan
"I came to Singapore seven years ago and graduated from NTU with a bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering. After working as an IT Engineer for one and a half years. I became interested in the financial industry and NTU’s Financial Engineering program came into the picture.
The combination of Mathematics, Finance and Computing in its syllabus was perfect for me, given my background. The course gave me fundamental knowledge in corporate finance, financial instruments, pricing theory and risk management. I also learned about the industry from a practical point of view from my classmates who already had prior exposure to the financial industry.
My current role as part of an Investment Banking Technology team requires mixture of knowledge in technology and finance. The ground concepts I learnt from the program are very useful and are indeed the stepping stones for a successful career in banking!"
Qin Zhen
Analyst, Credit Risk Management
Deutsche Bank
“The NTU Financial Engineering program combines rigorous academic traditions with a high quality training emphasis. The flexible curriculum allows us to follow a remarkable range of electives offered in related fields. The program's close links to the dynamic and vibrant financial industry broadened our career perspective and enabled me to graduate with a toolbox of skills that was proved to be an important asset on job market. The reputation of NTU MFE continues to open doors for me.
Moreover, the friendly and stimulating atmosphere in NTU MFE contributed to the ideal environment for an enriching and unforgettable Master program experience.”
Quah Chee Khoon
Senior Risk Analyst
GIC
“Juggling work and studies over the 1 year program was no easy task but it was well worth the effort. The MFE program has enabled me to make a successful career switch from the public sector to the finance industry. It has also provided me with a good grounding for my career endeavours. Last but not least, the people in the program have been absolutely great.”
Ragudaran Kumaradasan
Financial Consultant
Murex North America, Inc.
"With the state-of-the-art know-how acquired in the programme at NTU on derivatives pricing, risk management and other high-tech finance, I can leverage on my prior expertise in electronic securities trading system development and implementation in my consulting career. This programme has significantly added value to my career advancement."
Shen Xiaoxin
FX Options Structurer
Citibank
"Joining the MFE programme has been a watershed in my career: It has helped me tremendously in making a smooth transition from the engineering field to the financial markets in my dream job as a FX Options Structurer. The well-designed syllabus, combined with hands-on projects and knowledgeable lecturers, provided me with solid a background in the financial tools necessary for the rigors of my job, and strengthened my confidence in meeting any challenges ahead.
Working with and learning from all of my peers, who are at the top of their respective varsity disciplines, not only sharpened my technical ability but also improved my “soft” skills in time management and working as a team to tackle our demanding assignments. It is the enthusiasm and encouragement from my fellow classmates that motivates me to go further and climb higher, and it is ultimately the people, including the lecturers and admin staff, who have made my MFE days one of the most enjoyable times of my life!"
Sunny Tay
Structured Trade Review
Credit Suisse
“Wanting to build on my technical and business skills honed through my NTU EEE degree and Business minor, I looked for a program that would add on to these skills and allow me to navigate the finance industry successfully. I eventually chose NTU's MFE program for its rigour and I was not disappointed. In fact I now have no doubt that this program is one of the best that Asia has to offer -- it is an extremely challenging program which stresses exceptional discipline and endurance. In the same breath, it emphasizes "real world" soft skills such as teamwork and time management. My classmates are also highly intelligent and dedicated individuals which enhanced the learning experience.
The demanding training in finance, computing and mathematics has given me an edge in my current job in Structured Trade Review where proper understanding of option pricing, Monte Carlo simulations and risk/return trade-offs is critical. Taking on the Nanyang MFE program is one of the best decisions in my life.”
Wong Thian Boon
Head of Risk Analytic (Asia Pacific)
Global Risk Architecture
Citigroup
"NTU has established an excellent reputation internationally in producing a consistent stream of talents in the quantitative finance field. As a result, winning both the MAS and Reuters awards from this prestigious course has significantly boosted my career.
With a stringent selection process, I was surrounded by a group of talented and intelligent students from various backgrounds. The patience and guidance of the professors was of great help."
Wong Yun Zhen
Senior Associate Risk Management
Singapore Exchange Limited
"Having worked in technology in the exchange industry for a few years, I was eager to move into one of the keystones of the exchange business, risk management, which plays an important role in the unique regulatory environment SGX is in. MFE was my conduit of change, for it empowered me with the knowledge and the vigor to effect the career transition and to take on my new role with confidence.
NTU MFE provides the intellectual stimulus for those with a strong passion to learn and to strive in the quantitative arena; its rigor in content and curriculum challenges one to push beyond one's perceived boundaries. The tie-up with CMU gives an edge to the programme by offering the exposure in a renowned overseas university. This programme proves to be the right choice for me indeed, and will be for the career-aspiring future students-to-be."
Xu BingManagement Associate
Citigroup
"I graduated with a B.Eng degree in electrical engineering from NUS and a S.M. degree in computer science from Singapore-MIT Alliance. The Nanyang MFE program was an excellent choice especially for someone like me who wants to work in Asia as a head start. Compared to the US universities, it is also competitively priced, plus it has a collaboration with CMU, one of the top American universities.
The Nanyang MFE program boasts a lot of experienced professors specializing in this field and covers the basic principles of financial engineering, which underpins the methods we typically apply in the industry.
After my training as a Management Associate in Citigroup, I will be working either as a trader or structurer."