OWS RIP
As it turned out, my trip to Zuccotti Park on Sunday while on a trip to New York was just in time, as the protesters were moved on less than 48 hours later. It struck me as a pretty benign … Continued
MBAs as a way to find a husband
It’s not something readily spoken of, but one reason for doing and MBA (or MFin perhaps) is to find a wife or husband. Very few people will own up to this, though I have had someone personally tell me this … Continued
Rules versus discretion
A long standing theme in macroeconomic policy is the question, when is it best for policy makers to be tied to a rule and when should they have freedom to decide what to do (“discretion”). It’s easiest to see why … Continued
Non-finance activities
MFins have many hidden talents. Some of them formed a band this year and were kind/foolish enough to invite me to play along with them on a couple of songs after a dinner at Churchill College. On this rather hazy … Continued
Financial Times rankings
On Monday 23 June the FT is expected to publish its first ranking of master of finance degrees. The FT consulted a number of business schools about this to try to make sure the rankings made sense, especially in comparing … Continued
Changes to the MFin programme for 2011-12
Changes to the MFin programme for 2011-12 We are making four changes to the MFin teaching programme for the next academic year. Some of these changes reflect an increase in the workload in other parts of the programme because some … Continued
Graduation weekend
The MFin class of 2009-10 graduated last Saturday. I need to explain what this means. In Cambridge, you aren’t actually allowed to use the title MFin (or whatever degree you’ve got) unless you graduate, either in person or in absentia. … Continued
Class size: small but perfectly formed
We are getting close to the end of the admissions process. There is always a large margin of error at this stage but it looks likely that next year’s class will be a bit bigger than this. I’d suggest a … Continued
The impossibility of keeping everyone happy
I wrote a while back about the potential benefits of restricting student choice. I’m feeling even more inclined in that direction after the annual group consulting project (GCP) round. We try to offer students a choice over which project to … Continued
The power of the brand
The University of Cambridge is a brand. To an economist, a brand is a piece of information that helps consumers by overcoming asymmetric information. In the commercial world, a good brand allows the producer to charge more than for for … Continued
Ever less choice
Since the MFin began two and a half years ago, we have been steadily reducing student choice. Not in the sense of cutting out electives – on the contrary, there are more options than ever. But in the sense of … Continued
The non-finance stuff
There has been a discussion in the Financial Times recently on the theme that business schools ignore business. A professor at London Business School, Freek Vermeulen, argued that most of what is taught at business schools is not based on … Continued
MBA and MFin
There is an amusing FedEx TV commercial available on YouTube which has the slogan “Even an MBA can do it.” Perhaps this shows there is a gentle backlash against the pretentions of MBAs in the US, the numbers of which … Continued
GMAT, GRE and GPA
The Cambridge MBA uses GMAT as one criteria for selection, the MFin does not. Why? GMAT is a standardised test aimed at management students. It is supposed to test a range of skills or aptitudes suitable for the varied course … Continued
MFin and MBA
A common question is whether someone should apply for a master of finance degree or an MBA. In the US, the conventional two year MBA allows time to cover the same modules as a one year finance masters. In that … Continued