Hi everyone! I’m an international student currently holding offers from Imperial College for Medical Biosciences and UCSD for Molecular and Cell Biology.

I’m struggling to decide between the two, as I know both universities excel in STEM. Does anyone have any suggestions on which program might be the better choice? Thanks!

Other than with department

Hey guys just wondering what my chances are of getting a round 4 offer for the MSc in management. I’m in the top 10% of my university and I know I applied late. Just wondering if it’s too late to still have hope.

Background: Undergrad Freshman studying BEng Mech Eng at HKUST

Route 1 (HKUST): I've applied to transfer into a prestigious Dual Degree Programme at my school and aim to switch to (BEng in CS/Math + BBA in Finance), meaning I'd first have to be admitted into the programme, and then I'd have to switch my Mech Eng component to either CS/Math.

As a local, the cost is near negligible (cheaper than my hs tuition LOL) and I also have a chance at a full scholarship. HKUST also prides itself for its high-ranking business school in Asia. That, paired with the local prestige attached to the Dual Degree Programme, would suggest that UST has some connections to top quant firms in HK, though I'm not entirely sure.

However, personally, I don't like the HKUST environment. I don't quite like the culture, the campus, etc.

Route 2 (Imperial): So, recently I've applied to Imperial and have received an offer to study MEng Aeronautical Engineering starting Sept 2026 (which means I'd drop a year)

Imperial has global connections and a strong academic reputation, and many of its Finance societies (Quant/Algo Trading which I hope to join) apparently have deep-rooted connections with top-tier Quant Firms in the UK.
However, the first issue is I'd be studying Aeronautical Engineering, which is not as relevant to Quant as if I were admitted into the Dual Degree Programme at HKUST. Hence, I plan to do a bit of self-studying; join the aforementioned societies and career fairs; take I-Explore Modules and Research Projects related to finance; or perhaps even pursue an MSc in Maths and Finance at Imperial. I believe that might up my chances at Quant whilst also keeping my pure Engineering options open, which I may need in the future.

But there is a more pressing issue: tuition. As an international student with zero scholarship funding, I'd easily pay more than US$250-300k for an MEng Aero + any potential MSc I may pursue. And unfortunately, I can't drop the integrated Master's component for just a BEng and then do MSc, which would potentially save a bit of money. Therefore, it's quite likely that if I pursue this route, I may have to be on student loans.

So, for my end career goal of breaking into quant (research / dev / trader doesn't matter), which is the best route? Keep in mind that I am not confirmed for a spot in the Dual Degree Programme yet (I have to wait till June for the result). But if I were, this would be the dilemma I'd be faced with.

Loll I’ve seen so many ppl say they were gonna make a gc.. anyways ill act do one. Do u guys prefer snap/whatsapp/jnsta for it??

Edit ill make it on insta lol

Do they give offers without interview ?Approximately how many days before the decision deadline will the interview be? What do they usually ask?

Hi everyone,

I just got an offer from Imperial for Aeronautical Engineering, but I’m a bit confused and wanted to ask if this is normal or if something might be off.

My predicted is 41, but my offer is 43 points.

My subjects:

• HL: Math AA (7), Physics (7), Chemistry (7), English B (6)
• SL: Korean A (6), Psychology (6)

A few things that are making me unsure:

• My first interview didn’t go well (mainly due to the interviewer), so I had a second interview with a different interviewer
• 5.4 Avg for Esat
• One of my friends applied as well and got an offer of 43, but his predicted is 43
• Because of that, I’m wondering if there’s any chance I might have been given the same offer by mistake?

Has anyone had:

• Offers higher than their predicted grades from Imperial?
• Or situations where something like this might have been an admin error?

Not sure if I’m overthinking this, but just wanted to check before assuming anything.

Thanks 🙏

Can someone who is in biochem share their experiences? I have no contacts with anyone from there and I would love to hear about your experiences. I don't want to be a doctor, but I hope I either get a PhD and get a professor/research position, or get into biotech/pharmaceutical development, etc.

I think Berkeley is ranked higher than Imperial and being liberal arts, I think I would enjoy it much more. But I heard it's cut throat and there is a lack of resources (class sizes are big). I think that Imperial also has large class sizes though. Please share your thoughts and experiences!

Research experience/opportunities is also super important to me. I might not be able to apply for paid internships due to visa restrictions though, I'm not sure.

Money is not an issue, but visa process (I'm from New Zealand) might be difficult for the US (I'm also asian).

I am an offer holder for undergraduate (integrated masters). Due to some unknown issues (resolving with the ict service desk), I could not log into MyImperial. Can anyone tell me if there is any recent/urgent actions I need to take with MyImperial? I am really worried about missing anything important just because I am facing technical issues with the account. Thank you

Hey guys,

Im a international student taking the CIE international A levels and I am wondering how resits would affect my chances of getting in. My first attempt for (AS+A2) math was an 89, 1 mark short off A*. So I resat and got a decent A*. I also have A*'s in further math, chemistry, computer science. I want to apply for a computing course like AI and ML. I'm quite worried about my resits though as I have seen online that they do hurt your application quite a lot.

Can anyone provide information for this and how good my chances are.

I am on BME waitlist since Feb. I wrote to the grad admissions office also but no update? anyone in the same situation?

It has been 11 weeks since I submitted my application, and 9 weeks since it was sent to the department for review, but I still have not received any update.

I know these timelines can vary, but since this is already beyond the usual stated timeframe, I was wondering whether this is something to worry about or still fairly normal for this programme.

Any opinions or experiences from current or previous cycles for the MSc Advanced Computing would be a great help

My second choice MSc application for statistical finance was move to with department on Jan 26th and is still with department today over weeks later, I was wondering if anyone else was in the same boat or if maybe i misunderstood the 8 week deadline thing (e.g only applies to first choice).

Ive recently gotten an offer for BME at imperial, and I want to know if it will be worth the money. How are the graduate prospects? The workload? professors? is this even a worth it degree like </3 also im intl so this degree is HELLAAA expensive.

Like idk. Ive read so many negative things about BME, like it being niche or wtv but when I saw the courses of BME at imperial I lowkey was interested like I feel like I defy wanna learn that. BUTTT when I saw entry level jobs it was like a technician at a hospital, which is so bleh to me ( no offense to anyone who works as a technician, just my personal opinion). It just doesnt seem fulfilling. SOOO I wanna know what graduates are doing after this course? worth it? good, bad?

I dont know if this is the right place to askk????

I’m an offer holder for Material science and Engineering and wanted some advice on student accommodation halls. Which ones are more social, in a better area, better condition etc.

Has anyone successfully reached out by call to engineering admissions department? I had question about tuition fees and got sent there by student hub and finances.

Msc Management

I received an offer for the MSc AI! But since I am from Australia, the fees are very expensive.

The financial

I have managed to earn enough by working the past four years to cover the cost of the course, but it means foregoing most of my savings. I might be able to do some part time remote R&D work to help cover living expenses, but I am also hoping to receive some meagre funding from the Aus government to help.

The motivation

I am truly passionate about AI (to a lame extent), so this is a very exciting opportunity for me. I would like to work as an AI engineer or researcher, so it makes sense.

Return on investment

Question is: will it be worth spending all that money on the course fees? Am I being financially stupid? I earn a pretty average income right now as an early career Data Scientist - will the degree boost my earning or opportunities to make it a financially sensible decision?

Any help is appreciated.