u/Fine-Cauliflower-186

I am currently a sophomore majoring in Applied Mathematics at Columbia and plan to pursue a PhD in the future, likely in Operations Research, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, or Machine Learning.

My long-term goal is to work in quantitative research at a top-tier hedge fund rather than remaining in academia. Which option would you recommend?

My current understanding is as follows:

* MIT’s strengths lie in its theoretical training, research intensity, interdisciplinary resources, and overall academic reputation;

* Columbia’s strengths lie in its New York location, closer ties to the finance and quant industries, and greater convenience for internships and networking.

If the ultimate goal is clearly to enter quantitative research rather than pursue a tenure-track academic career, do MIT’s research training and brand prestige outweigh Columbia’s geographical and industry advantages?

I would also appreciate insights from anyone familiar with the MIT ORC, Columbia IEOR, or Applied Mathematics PhD programs regarding program culture, research pressure, mentorship, quant placement, and the actual employment experiences of international students. Thanks!

I am currently a sophomore majoring in Applied Mathematics at Columbia and plan to pursue a PhD in the future, likely in Operations Research, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, or Machine Learning.

My long-term goal is to work in quantitative research at a top-tier hedge fund rather than remaining in academia. Which option would you recommend?

My current understanding is as follows:

* MIT’s strengths lie in its theoretical training, research intensity, interdisciplinary resources, and overall academic reputation;

* Columbia’s strengths lie in its New York location, closer ties to the finance and quant industries, and greater convenience for internships and networking.

If the ultimate goal is clearly to enter quantitative research rather than pursue a tenure-track academic career, do MIT’s research training and brand prestige outweigh Columbia’s geographical and industry advantages?

I would also appreciate insights from anyone familiar with the MIT ORC, Columbia IEOR, or Applied Mathematics PhD programs regarding program culture, research pressure, mentorship, quant placement, and the actual employment experiences of international students. Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I'd love to get some advice from experienced nannies and nanny employers.

By Spring 2027, I'll have been with my current family for one year. based in Manhattan, and currently $35/hour.

During the school year, my responsibilities include:

• Caring primarily for three boys (all older than 7, one teen)
• Driving/taking them to extracurricular activities
• Helping them with their second language/homework
• Light household tasks related to the children (emptying the dishwasher, tidying up, taking out the trash, etc.)
• Occasionally caring for the family's 2-year-old toddler when needed

I'm wondering whether it's reasonable to ask for a raise after one year, assuming my responsibilities remain about the same. If so, what hourly rate would you consider fair for this position in Manhattan?

I'd really appreciate hearing both nanny and employer perspectives. Thanks!

was recently admitted to Columbia University’s School of General Studies through the BMCC–Columbia New York City Scholars Program. However, I was not selected to receive the full-tuition New York City Scholars Award.

I am an international student and have already submitted the CSS Profile. So far, I have only received my admission letter and have not yet received a financial aid package or information about other GS institutional scholarships.

For international students who were admitted to Columbia GS:

1. Did your financial aid package arrive separately from your admission decision?
2. Approximately how much institutional scholarship or grant aid did you receive per year?
3. Does GS offer substantial need-based aid to international students, or are awards usually limited?
4. Did the amount increase after submitting a financial aid appeal?
5. Is there any additional application required for regular GS institutional aid after submitting the CSS Profile?

Columbia is my first choice, but I would need substantial financial assistance to attend. If you are comfortable sharing, it would be very helpful to know your approximate annual scholarship amount, financial circumstances, and whether the award was renewable.

Thank you!

Hello everyone, I’m a live-in nanny working for a family this summer. My job mainly involves taking care of the children, primarily driving them around and helping them with their second language. They have a housekeeper who comes every day, so I’m not responsible for deep cleaning—I just tidy up after the kids have finished playing. They have food delivered weekly.

My current work hours are over 60+ hours per week. On weekdays, I work 50+ hours: 6:30- 9:30, 11:30-1:30, 4:00 -9:00. I often don’t finish work until 10:00 p.m. On weekends, they want me to start around noon because all four children are home.

I really enjoy working with this family, and they treat me very well, but 60 hours is simply too much.
Does anyone have any advice?
I’d really love to hear perspectives from both nannies and parents. Thank you!

Hi everyone,

I'm an international student with a question about U.S. college admissions.

Several years ago, I attended a university in my home country but left before completing my degree. I stopped attending classes but did **not** complete a formal withdrawal process with the university. After leaving, I cut off contact with the university and no longer have any of my academic documents or contact information from that time.

Since then, I've completed about two years at a U.S. community college, and I'm now applying to a four-year university.

I'm **not requesting any transfer credit** from my previous foreign university. I only plan to transfer my U.S. community college credits.

Has anyone been in a similar situation where the admissions office waived the requirement to submit a transcript from a previous foreign university? If not, what alternatives were accepted?

I'm not trying to hide my academic history. I'm only trying to understand whether exceptions are ever made in situations like this.

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone with personal experience, especially international students or admissions professionals. Thank you!

Hi everyone,

I'm an international student with a question about U.S. college admissions.

Several years ago, I attended a university in my home country but left before completing my degree. I stopped attending classes but did **not** complete a formal withdrawal process with the university. After leaving, I cut off contact with the university and no longer have any of my academic documents or contact information from that time.

Since then, I've completed about two years at a U.S. community college, and I'm now applying to a four-year university.

I'm **not requesting any transfer credit** from my previous foreign university. I only plan to transfer my U.S. community college credits.

Has anyone been in a similar situation where the admissions office waived the requirement to submit a transcript from a previous foreign university? If not, what alternatives were accepted?

I'm not trying to hide my academic history. I'm only trying to understand whether exceptions are ever made in situations like this.

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone with personal experience, especially international students or admissions professionals. Thank you!

Hi everyone,

I'm an international student with a question about U.S. college admissions.

Several years ago, I attended a university in my home country but left before completing my degree. I stopped attending classes but did **not** complete a formal withdrawal process with the university. After leaving, I cut off contact with the university and no longer have any of my academic documents or contact information from that time.

Since then, I've completed about two years at a U.S. community college, and I'm now applying to a four-year university.

I'm **not requesting any transfer credit** from my previous foreign university. I only plan to transfer my U.S. community college credits.

Has anyone been in a similar situation where the admissions office waived the requirement to submit a transcript from a previous foreign university? If not, what alternatives were accepted?

I'm not trying to hide my academic history. I'm only trying to understand whether exceptions are ever made in situations like this.

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone with personal experience, especially international students or admissions professionals. Thank you!

Hi everyone,

I'm an international student with a question about U.S. college admissions.

Several years ago, I attended a university in my home country but left before completing my degree. I stopped attending classes but did **not** complete a formal withdrawal process with the university. After leaving, I cut off contact with the university and no longer have any of my academic documents or contact information from that time.

Since then, I've completed about two years at a U.S. community college, and I'm now applying to a four-year university.

I'm **not requesting any transfer credit** from my previous foreign university. I only plan to transfer my U.S. community college credits.

Has anyone been in a similar situation where the admissions office waived the requirement to submit a transcript from a previous foreign university? If not, what alternatives were accepted?

I'm not trying to hide my academic history. I'm only trying to understand whether exceptions are ever made in situations like this.

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone with personal experience, especially international students or admissions professionals. Thank you!

This semester I took a Physics course that included both lecture and lab on the same day.

At the beginning of the semester, the professor told us attendance would not affect our grades. During the semester, due to some personal circumstances, I missed 3 morning labs, but I attended every lecture.

Around week 11, I met with the professor to discuss my academic progress for the semester. He did not open the grading system or mention any concerns, and simply told me that “everything is okay.”

Before the final exam, he wrote on the board that TWO lab grades would be dropped. However, after final grades came out, only ONE lab was dropped. Also, all missed labs became automatic zeros, which was never clearly explained at the beginning of the semester.

In addition, the syllabus never included:

* a detailed grading breakdown

* a grading scale (A/A-/B+ etc.)

* clear policies regarding missed labs

After the final exam, I received a much lower exam grade than expected. I emailed asking to review my exam and understand the point deductions, but now the professor has stopped responding.

My question is:

Can professors change grading policies like this if they were never clearly written in the syllabus? And is it normal to not provide a grading scale or score breakdown?

I’m not trying to argue for free points — I genuinely want to understand whether this is considered acceptable policy-wise in U.S. colleges.

Hi everyone, I took my NY road test today.
The examiner tested my left turns, right turns, and parallel parking, but did not ask me to do a U-turn or 3-point turn.

At the end, he told me to pay attention to my turning speed, and then said “you’re safe” before ending the test.

The test ended earlier than I expected, so now I’m nervous.

Hi everyone, I took my NY road test today.
The examiner tested my left turns, right turns, and parallel parking, but did not ask me to do a U-turn or 3-point turn.

At the end, he told me to pay attention to my turning speed, and then said “you’re safe” before ending the test.

The test ended earlier than I expected, so now I’m nervous.

Hi everyone,

I’m currently waitlist #1 for an online summer class.

I’m an international student and I also need to go back to China during the summer, so taking an online course is kind of my only option right now.

Would it be appropriate to email the professor directly or the math department to ask whether there’s any possibility of an override/additional seat?

Has anyone had success with this before, especially for summer online classes?

Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I’m currently waitlist #1 for an online summer class.

I’m an international student and I also need to go back to China during the summer, so taking an online course is kind of my only option right now.

Would it be appropriate to email the professor directly or the math department to ask whether there’s any possibility of an override/additional seat?

Has anyone had success with this before, especially for summer online classes?

Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I’m currently a math major at BMCC and I’m trying to take Calculus I at Brooklyn College through ePermit.

The issue is that my ePermit application says:

>

But I am currently enrolled in the prerequisite course (MAT 206) this semester

Has anyone dealt with this before?

I’m trying to stay on track academically, so I’d really appreciate any advice or experiences. Thank you!