• Congratulations to the Class of 2024 on your results!
    Let us know how you went here
    Got a question about your uni preferences? Ask us here

Still don't know what to choose!! (1 Viewer)

carrotsss

New Member
Joined
May 7, 2022
Messages
4,453
Gender
Male
HSC
2023
how much should travel times play into it. one uni is 1 hour and 15 mins (2.5 hours round trip), the other is like 1 hour (just over 2 hours round trip), should this play into my decision considering the 25-30min difference per day (round trip)??
then theres also another uni (not as good) that is 40 mins each way
I mean how much do you value 30 minutes of your time - if you want to contextualise a bit thing about how much you can make in 30 minutes at work and then multiply that over a year
 

pikachu975

Premium Member
Joined
May 31, 2015
Messages
2,739
Location
NSW
Gender
Male
HSC
2017
how much should travel times play into it. one uni is 1 hour and 15 mins (2.5 hours round trip), the other is like 1 hour (just over 2 hours round trip), should this play into my decision considering the 25-30min difference per day (round trip)??
then theres also another uni (not as good) that is 40 mins each way
Makes no difference just skip class and watch the lectures online 🫡
 

liamkk112

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2022
Messages
1,059
Gender
Female
HSC
2023
how much should travel times play into it. one uni is 1 hour and 15 mins (2.5 hours round trip), the other is like 1 hour (just over 2 hours round trip), should this play into my decision considering the 25-30min difference per day (round trip)??
then theres also another uni (not as good) that is 40 mins each way
if i was u, id probably just take the 1 hour each way uni if theyre both good (if referring to unsw and usyd they are honestly both great), it differs for each person but a 1 hr commute already saps a fair bit of energy not to mention the earlier wakeup that u might have to possibly do. that being said the weaker uni might not be the greatest choice, but depends on the field / degree coz obviously if its law or somethin then u want the better uni, but something like engineering prob wont matter as much
 

scaryshark09

∞∆ who let 'em cook dis long ∆∞
Joined
Oct 20, 2022
Messages
1,618
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
1999
ive enrolled for unsw actuarial studies and advanced mathematics (honours), however today i received a scholarship offer from Macquarie for 5000 p.a (20,000 total over 4 years). it is for actuarial studies and applied finance.

ive heard great things about the actuarial studies degree at MQ, however i definitely prefer the double degree option of advanced mathematics at unsw over applied finance at MQ. (but honestly idk much about applied finance at MQ)

do you think the scholarship should sway my decision at all? Would both degrees be equally employable??
 

synthesisFR

afterhscivemostlybeentrollingdonttakeitsrsly
Joined
Oct 28, 2022
Messages
3,310
Location
Getting deported
Gender
Female
HSC
2028
ive enrolled for unsw actuarial studies and advanced mathematics (honours), however today i received a scholarship offer from Macquarie for 5000 p.a (20,000 total over 4 years). it is for actuarial studies and applied finance.

ive heard great things about the actuarial studies degree at MQ, however i definitely prefer the double degree option of advanced mathematics at unsw over applied finance at MQ. (but honestly idk much about applied finance at MQ)

do you think the scholarship should sway my decision at all? Would both degrees be equally employable??
It’s only 20k imo that’s not a lot anyways I think do what u want to do then worry abt the rest
 

scaryshark09

∞∆ who let 'em cook dis long ∆∞
Joined
Oct 20, 2022
Messages
1,618
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
1999
hi, so im not sure if im gonna go mq or unsw, but my schoolarship offer for mq is about to expire, so i need to decide quick

for mq, im choosing between 'applied finance / actuarial studies' and 'science / actuarial studies'

if i did science, i would major in maths which is what i enjoy. applied finance seems boring, however i would assume that it is more competitive as a degree vs science. (science doesnt seem to mesh as well with actuarial studies compared to applied finance)

what are your thoughts?
is there much difference in terms of employability / competitiveness?
is it worth sacrificing a bit of enjoyment for a better degree which is more competitive?
 

Ksalu

>:))
Joined
Mar 4, 2022
Messages
221
Gender
Male
HSC
2024
100% reckon you should choose maths. Maths provides more pathways into things like data science and quant trading. You'll also genuinely enjoy it more. I dont think doing a finance degree makes you as competitive as doing a maths degree since there are more ppl doing finance than maths in uni. Take my advice with a grain of salt as Im till in high school
 

Ksalu

>:))
Joined
Mar 4, 2022
Messages
221
Gender
Male
HSC
2024
BOS member, Vall does actuarial and maths at Maqu but im not too sure how active he is.
@Vall

You could also just transfer from one uni to the other if things don't work out.
 

idkkdi

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 2, 2019
Messages
2,572
Gender
Male
HSC
2021
hi, so im not sure if im gonna go mq or unsw, but my schoolarship offer for mq is about to expire, so i need to decide quick

for mq, im choosing between 'applied finance / actuarial studies' and 'science / actuarial studies'

if i did science, i would major in maths which is what i enjoy. applied finance seems boring, however i would assume that it is more competitive as a degree vs science. (science doesnt seem to mesh as well with actuarial studies compared to applied finance)

what are your thoughts?
is there much difference in terms of employability / competitiveness?
is it worth sacrificing a bit of enjoyment for a better degree which is more competitive?
imo do actl/cs or maths/cs

and unsw probs has a stronger cs degree
 

liamkk112

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2022
Messages
1,059
Gender
Female
HSC
2023
hi, so im not sure if im gonna go mq or unsw, but my schoolarship offer for mq is about to expire, so i need to decide quick

for mq, im choosing between 'applied finance / actuarial studies' and 'science / actuarial studies'

if i did science, i would major in maths which is what i enjoy. applied finance seems boring, however i would assume that it is more competitive as a degree vs science. (science doesnt seem to mesh as well with actuarial studies compared to applied finance)

what are your thoughts?
is there much difference in terms of employability / competitiveness?
is it worth sacrificing a bit of enjoyment for a better degree which is more competitive?
if i was u i would pick the degree u want. math + acturial is a good degree anyway, as others have said it would give you access to more of the quantitative world as well as benefiting you in certain financial roles such as quant or trading as well. if you find applied finance boring, you will probably find the job you would get with the degree boring, so theres really not much point in picking it even if it did give you better career prospects.

in terms of mq or unsw, aside from the scholarship i would also consider the commute and the structure of the degree. unsw has trimesters whereas mq doesn't, so the degree would probably be less compacted at mq - might mean the degree is longer, but less intensive study (12 weeks including exam period at unsw, 17 at mq - makes a significant difference imo). unsw is also obviously much more central than mq, so if you live in northwest/north it would definetly be way more convenient to get to mq, the time difference adds up very quickly.

the acturial degree is probably 1:1 at mq and unsw since its standardised, but the math major at unsw has slightly difference structure than at mq - mq doesnt appear to have discrete math (proof writing basically) required and u get a bit more flexability in the classes you pick, eg you can choose to study real analysis or not, whereas at unsw its required. this is both good and bad, since you get to choose which classes you prefer but might also be at a loss as you might not be studying as "traditional" of a curriculum pattern as at unsw, mq appears to be on the more applied/industry side and less about academics though, which is fine since you're study it to go into industry anyway. however, im sure both courses would be fine, some people might say that the course is not as rigorous or is easier than at unsw but so long as you study the subjects deeply enough you will be fine.
 

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 0, Guests: 1)

Top