- Joined
- 3/7/17
- Messages
- 1
- Points
- 13
Background & Stats:
Name: Peter
Demographics: 21 yr old, Male
Location: New York, NY
Education: Finishing BS in Biochemistry in the next 6-8 months
Current Occupation: Medical Assistant
The Situation:
Hey there guys! My name is Peter and, at such a late stage of my college career, I have decided that "Hey, I don't really want to go to medical school are do anything medically related". I've spent a while preparing for a career in medicine but have decided that I have little interest and no passion for it. I find mathematics the most interesting field above all; and I find the idea of building something real and useful to other people exciting and the prospect of dealing with fast-paced, dynamic, and complex systems (such as the financial markets) titillating. For these reasons, I have set my sights on becoming a quantitative developer (or more vaguely a "Quant" since the term itself has become so ubiquitous and arbitrary).
Since I'm already finishing up my graduate degree, I believe I have mooched off my parents long enough; and so, continuing my education into a field more fit for a quant is out of the question (at least for now). I have just recently started teaching myself how to program/code in the past month or so and am close to finishing up my review of single variable calculus which seems to already have slipped out of my mind in just a few semesters.
I am familiar with websites like "QuantStart" and plan on using it as my road map . I am also taking advantage of all the free educational sources online in order to provide myself with a solid base, at the least, in computer science and everything math/finance related. As you can see, I plan to be almost completely self taught. I'm currently focusing on learning Python and following Scott Young's MIT Challenge as my intro to CS (I know, you must be cringing; but it's the best I've got right now).
The Question:
With all this in mind, my question is: I will mainly learn, or try to learn, to be a programmer/software developer. But, it seems a large majority of self-taught programmers get into web or app development and I haven't heard about anything else.
1) What kinds of positions should I/could I, as a self-taught programmer, look into in order to begin building my experience and would allow me to build a relevant skill set for quantitative development while providing me with enough money to feed myself?
2) Are there any "entry-level" positions, or internships, in the finance/e-finance sectors I can look into?
3) Should I just "start small" and become a web/app developer first, even if the skill set and knowledge I will acquire will be much different from what is used in quantitative finance?
I realize what a long road I have ahead of me and I realize that the only "easy way" will be through formal education and years of experience. But all I'm looking for is a way to switch careers into something I'm passionate about while providing for myself, financially, as I work towards my ultimate goal. Any and all advice is welcome. Thank you guys in advance!
Name: Peter
Demographics: 21 yr old, Male
Location: New York, NY
Education: Finishing BS in Biochemistry in the next 6-8 months
Current Occupation: Medical Assistant
The Situation:
Hey there guys! My name is Peter and, at such a late stage of my college career, I have decided that "Hey, I don't really want to go to medical school are do anything medically related". I've spent a while preparing for a career in medicine but have decided that I have little interest and no passion for it. I find mathematics the most interesting field above all; and I find the idea of building something real and useful to other people exciting and the prospect of dealing with fast-paced, dynamic, and complex systems (such as the financial markets) titillating. For these reasons, I have set my sights on becoming a quantitative developer (or more vaguely a "Quant" since the term itself has become so ubiquitous and arbitrary).
Since I'm already finishing up my graduate degree, I believe I have mooched off my parents long enough; and so, continuing my education into a field more fit for a quant is out of the question (at least for now). I have just recently started teaching myself how to program/code in the past month or so and am close to finishing up my review of single variable calculus which seems to already have slipped out of my mind in just a few semesters.
I am familiar with websites like "QuantStart" and plan on using it as my road map . I am also taking advantage of all the free educational sources online in order to provide myself with a solid base, at the least, in computer science and everything math/finance related. As you can see, I plan to be almost completely self taught. I'm currently focusing on learning Python and following Scott Young's MIT Challenge as my intro to CS (I know, you must be cringing; but it's the best I've got right now).
The Question:
With all this in mind, my question is: I will mainly learn, or try to learn, to be a programmer/software developer. But, it seems a large majority of self-taught programmers get into web or app development and I haven't heard about anything else.
1) What kinds of positions should I/could I, as a self-taught programmer, look into in order to begin building my experience and would allow me to build a relevant skill set for quantitative development while providing me with enough money to feed myself?
2) Are there any "entry-level" positions, or internships, in the finance/e-finance sectors I can look into?
3) Should I just "start small" and become a web/app developer first, even if the skill set and knowledge I will acquire will be much different from what is used in quantitative finance?
I realize what a long road I have ahead of me and I realize that the only "easy way" will be through formal education and years of experience. But all I'm looking for is a way to switch careers into something I'm passionate about while providing for myself, financially, as I work towards my ultimate goal. Any and all advice is welcome. Thank you guys in advance!