Is anyone here pursuing (or already have) the CERA credential? Any insights?

YennVIP

I am not familiar with UK universities. You might want to throw in Heriot-Watt into your list though.

There are a lot of programs under maths. It doesn't just have to be pure maths. I went to uWaterloo; you can see what they offer under the math faculty. Although I do understand that most universities lump it under BSc. You can also consider taking a minor to supplement yourself.

Again, yes it can help. But it may not be the best choice. Look at the UW list of programs there - you should be able to see other alternatives. And I am sure other universities have those similar programs.

I covered only Econs 101 and 102 for my degree (taken at INTI SJ). Statistics covers a majority of it, and I suppose followed by finance. But you will need the math background to work through those two areas.

This post has been edited by Crazy.SoT.Gila: Jun 30 2013, 11:46 PM

Just asking you to view it as a reference on what programs are available out there. Not in any way asking you to go to Waterloo.

A bit late to the conversation, but I'll weigh in my experience. Waterloo grad here, currently working in Canada.

I do not have first-hand account of UK university life, but from what I have heard from 2 exchange students from Heriott-Watt is that things are more stressful in UW. That is partly because we used to not have any exam exemptions - so students need to focus on school and SOA exams.

CIA now has exemptions so that may ease off some stress, but as I don't qualify for it I have not really looked into the details. One thing to consider is whether or not SOA recognises the exemptions.

As for job opportunity, I believe in most places supply definitely outnumbers demand. However, an equally important consideration is work eligibility. Again, I am not familiar with UK's POV. For Canada, there's a Post-Graduate Work Program (PGWP) Visa.

PGWP gives you an open work visa (any employer - any field) for a length up to the length of your study, capped at a maximum of 3 years. Acceptance is almost guaranteed, and you do not need to have a job lined up. Also an important merit of the PGWP is that employers do not need to apply for a special Labour Market Opinion to hire you despite being a foreign national. This means that you are playing a level field vs. Canadians (shh, don't tell them that).

After this, PR requirements do not seem too hard to meet either. This of course, may change by the time you're done with school - who knows?

As for joining UW as a regular student (which I did so because of lackluster grades in my ADP) - personally I'd advise against it if you qualify for co-op, but I know of at least one senior who quit co-op (due to additional fees) and handled his own "work terms". Most of my friends did their first co-op in Malaysia or Singapore, and managed to get Canadian positions after that. But yes - it is tough and competitive. You need to juggle your studies and job search at the same time. Kudos to the co-op students, really.

If you do not go into the co-op program, make sure you try your very best to imitate the program yourself. I did not and I regret it. Upon graduation, I was competing with my peers who have 2 years of work experience. No shit, it took me a long time and it was tough - not to mention I'll consider it luck that I got my current role. Most friends who were in co-op managed to secure an offer/multiple offers before graduation. Those that did not, had their roles shortly after.

Another plus of the co-op program - pay is good. From low twenties to high twenties (and rare low thirties) per hour. You can support a few terms of tuition through co-op pay. Not sure about internship pay, but I would assume that it is similar/slightly lower.

Wherever you go, try looking into their exchange program. That's another thing I regret not doing.

Last piece of advice - look into other programs that the universities offer. You may find something that interests you more. Personally, I was drawn to Computing and Financial Management at UW but unfortunately it was a co-op only program.

All the best!

This post has been edited by Crazy.SoT.Gila: Mar 19 2014, 02:14 PM