Multidisciplinary Financial Engineering Hub Launched at Baruch

May 14, 2021

Baruch College has announced the launch of a new, multidisciplinary collaboration between the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences and the Zicklin School of Business. Named the Financial Engineering Hub at Baruch College, the intiative will build on the school’s world-renowned Master of Financial Engineering (MFE) program, draw on the expertise of faculty in both schools, and grow to include new degree offerings and create a Center for Financial Engineering for corporate engagement and partnership.

President S. David Wu, PhD, in a message to the Baruch community, said, “I am thrilled to announce the launch of the Financial Engineering Hub at Baruch College. Our MFE program embodies the best that Baruch has to offer—grounded in rigorous academics, leveraging world class talents and resources of New York City, while providing access to diverse students from all over the world.”

The Financial Engineering Hub will extend Baruch’s expertise worldwide with a range of programs and resources, presenting students, alumni, and industry professionals with comprehensive opportunities for intellectual and professional advancement and engagement throughout their careers.

Baruch at the Vanguard of Financial Engineering

Baruch’s MFE program is internationally acclaimed for the rigor of its academics, the real-world experience it provides students, and the success of its graduates.

Among its many accolades, the program was ranked #1 in the U.S. in the 2021 QuantNet Ranking of MFE Programs and #2 worldwide in the 2021 Risk Quant Finance Master’s Programs Ranking. Baruch’s MFE graduates are highly sought after on the job market, and due to both the program’s reputation for excellence and an intensive focus on individualized career placement, more than 90 percent of all graduates currently employed in the financial industry.

The crown jewel of the program’s offerings is the real-world training provided in Baruch’s state-of-the-art Wasserman Trading Floor. Faculty mentors work closely with students to train for—and succeed in—trading and financial competitions around the world. Among the outstanding wins, Baruch teams have placed first in the Rotman International Trading Competition in 2021, 2020, 2017, 2016, and 2012 and in the International Association of Financial Engineers competition in 2020, 2017, 2016, and 2015.

Financial engineering will continue to expand and become more integral in global finance, and the new Hub will prepare Baruch students to be innovative leaders, poised to capture new opportunities as they are presented. Every shock to the market—from the dot-com crash in the 1990s, to the stock market collapse in 2008, and the economic fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 and beyond—has pushed finance to adopt more “quant” methods, with algorithms that incorporate science, mathematics, and data-driven objectivity.

Global Reach and More Benefits for Students

Already under development, the Financial Engineering Hub will extend Baruch’s expertise worldwide with a range of programs and resources that will roll out in the coming months and years. In the short term, co-leads for the Hub and a steering committee comprising faculty from the Weissman and Zicklin Schools will be named. Monitoring the evolution of this rapidly changing field, the steering committee will make recommendations for curriculum refinement and envision and facilitate the development of new offerings, such as dual-degree, executive, and nondegree programs.

In the fall, the forthcoming public-facing Center for Financial Engineering, which will be based in Zicklin, will offer partnership and networking opportunities and will be assisted by an advisory council comprising industry leaders and experts. Weissman’s renowned academic Financial Engineering program will continue to evolve and grow with the advances of the field, offering students the finest education in the discipline.

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