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Is Quant a good choice for me?

Zhenghao Li

Joined
2/10/14
Messages
32
Points
18
Hey guys I think I need some advice.

I am a senior student at a Top 20 University and is going into a top-tier MFE program. I'm both a statistician and an economists so basically I'm not a pure Tech guy. I have a lot of experience in economics, as well as programming, time series, simulation, and other advanced quantitative skills. At first I wanted to become a Quant (that's why I go for the MFEs), but recently I got a summer internship offer (just for 10 weeks in the summer, no Full Time roles. It's great since I can go to my graduate program afterwards) from a Macro Global and Fixed Income relative value hedge fund with really good track record and decent pay. I kinda start to think about the future route of a Quant since from my research the Quant route doesn't lead you to the Portfolio Manager role directly (kinda 'far from money'?). If my goal is really to have my own investment philosophy and to become a Portfolio Manager in the future, is a Quant (eg. Goldman Sachs Strats team) really a good choice for me? I really don't care about the compensation difference at the entry-level.

Please help me out. Any help would be appreciated. I'm kinda confused right now. If possible, please also help me compare what you can learn from both roads. Thanks! (ps. The role in the hedge fund is still within their quantitative team, but requires less programming and quantitative stuff and more maco-economic background than usual 'quant' jobs)
 
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Do you enjoy writing code? That's basically what it comes down to... Maybe you should go for an MBA or PHD in economics instead.
 
Take your summer internship seriously and enjoy it. I'm sure you will have a much better idea of what you like and dislike at the end of the summer. Consider the long hours, the mundane tasks, the pay, the new knowledge, etc.
A lot of what you think is ideal job won't have the same luster after a few weeks working in the industry.
 
There's no clear path to becoming a portfolio manager. These kinds of people can come from the quant world just as easily as they can be lawyers, but honestly, you don't become a portfolio manager because of how well you do in school. You become one by convincing someone that you can be trusted with that kind of responsibility. No specific job, or MFE program will teach you that. That has to come from yourself, and then you need to put that in front of someone who has the power to put you in that seat. A job that can expose you to that is the best place to do that, but honestly, every place is different. If you really want to prove yourself, put your own money behind your words, and start putting some skin in the game. That gutsiness (even if you lose money) will both teach you a lot, and help to convince a prospective employer that you have the personality to handle a portfolio.
 
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