I got into the UIUC iMSM. What do you guys think of the program?

Inactive User

3 6

Posted Sep 29, 2020 09:47

I am currently interning at an information technology firm. In the past, I have worked in financial services and the automotive sector. I applied to the iMSM because it seemed to be a good program at a very reasonable rate, however I am a bit confused about what to do. I dont have a clear goal or aim in mind. I had a below average gpa from a top 20 school but the schools that i applied to didnt seem to mind. I did get into cass, ucd, tcd, asu, nova, durham, etc but chose the iMSM instead. Since my GPA is low, i feel that these are the best programs that i can realistically get into and since I am not sure of the location I want to be in, I would like to go ahead and complete the iMSM as it offers the best value out of all these programs.

quote

aslamo

703 216

Posted Sep 29, 2020 11:14

It sounds like you are part of the way through the programme so I assume you are going to complete it? It's difficult to give you any advice if you have no clear goals in mind. I suggest focus your energy on completing the programme first and towards the end maybe, start thinking about short to medium term career goals. E.g. is there a chance you could convert your internship into a permanent role? Or would you like to work in another sector? If you have some breadth of experience in tech, financial services and automotive then that should be a good base to start thinking about longer term aspirations.

It sounds like you are part of the way through the programme so I assume you are going to complete it? It's difficult to give you any advice if you have no clear goals in mind. I suggest focus your energy on completing the programme first and towards the end maybe, start thinking about short to medium term career goals. E.g. is there a chance you could convert your internship into a permanent role? Or would you like to work in another sector? If you have  some breadth of experience in tech, financial services and automotive then that should be a good base to start thinking about longer term aspirations.

quote

Duncan

13.776 15.332

Posted Sep 29, 2020 13:11

Good advice there. It doesn't matter what the programme is like if you don't clarify your goals.

quote

Inactive User

3 6

Posted Sep 30, 2020 20:34

It sounds like you are part of the way through the programme so I assume you are going to complete it? It's difficult to give you any advice if you have no clear goals in mind. I suggest focus your energy on completing the programme first and towards the end maybe, start thinking about short to medium term career goals. E.g. is there a chance you could convert your internship into a permanent role? Or would you like to work in another sector? If you have some breadth of experience in tech, financial services and automotive then that should be a good base to start thinking about longer term aspirations.

The classes have not started yet. However tbh I am satisfied doing whatever job I get. As mentioned earlier I have worked in luxury brand management, financial services, analytics, accounting and project consulting. If I were to choose one thing out of them then it would be luxury brand management. Apart from that I would also like to switch my location and potentially move to Canada.
Also, my undergrad degree was in finance. Most of my classmates in the iMSM are engineers, coders, art students, law grads etc. I am wondering if the iMSM will actually be valuable for me or will it mostly be a repetition of what I have already studied at University. I am not trying to be condescending but am genuinely curious as to how helpful the iMSM will be in terms of what I learn etc. Is it a degree for people who have not taken many business classes at uni? How would you compare the course content to say imperial or Cass msc in management?

[quote]It sounds like you are part of the way through the programme so I assume you are going to complete it? It's difficult to give you any advice if you have no clear goals in mind. I suggest focus your energy on completing the programme first and towards the end maybe, start thinking about short to medium term career goals. E.g. is there a chance you could convert your internship into a permanent role? Or would you like to work in another sector? If you have  some breadth of experience in tech, financial services and automotive then that should be a good base to start thinking about longer term aspirations. [/quote] The classes have not started yet. However tbh I am satisfied doing whatever job I get. As mentioned earlier I have worked in luxury brand management, financial services, analytics, accounting and project consulting. If I were to choose one thing out of them then it would be luxury brand management. Apart from that I would also like to switch my location and potentially move to Canada. Also, my undergrad degree was in finance. Most of my classmates in the iMSM are engineers, coders, art students, law grads etc. I am wondering if the iMSM will actually be valuable for me or will it mostly be a repetition of what I have already studied at University. I am not trying to be condescending but am genuinely curious as to how helpful the iMSM will be in terms of what I learn etc. Is it a degree for people who have not taken many business classes at uni? How would you compare the course content to say imperial or Cass msc in management?

quote

Inactive User

266 92

Posted Oct 02, 2020 01:12

As a consideration to the people providing advice on this board, perhaps you can consider using the same username/alias for your posts? It makes it easier to string together your posts. You're obviously the same person who has posted multiple times about diplomas in Canada, iMSM, etc. And each time you use a different username. Is it too hard to have just one username? Thank you.

As a consideration to the people providing advice on this board, perhaps you can consider using the same username/alias for your posts?  It makes it easier to string together your posts.   You're obviously the same person who has posted multiple times about diplomas in Canada, iMSM, etc.   And each time you use a different username.   Is it too hard to have just one username?  Thank you.  

quote

StuartHE

1.092 654

Posted Oct 02, 2020 04:09

You asked: How would you compare the course content to say imperial or Cass msc in management?

There's three main differences to a UK MSc:
- More taught content (36 credits/72 ECTS of courses rather than 60 ECTS in the UK).

- Way bigger core (24 credits/48 ECTS) versus 30 ECTS, so much strong quant foundations in accounting, finance and operations.

- No summer research project, typically one-third of the degree based on a summer internship or consulting team.

You asked: How would you compare the course content to say imperial or Cass msc in management?  There's three main differences to a UK MSc: - More taught content (36 credits/72 ECTS of courses rather than 60 ECTS in the UK). - Way bigger core (24 credits/48 ECTS) versus 30 ECTS, so much strong quant foundations in accounting, finance and operations. - No summer research project, typically one-third of the degree based on a summer internship or consulting team.

quote