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bwstrom
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Joined: January 7th, 2009, 3:18 am

Seeking advice from people in the field

January 28th, 2009, 1:25 am

Im sorry if this has been asked before, and im quite sure it has, in some variation, but I couldnt find a thread based on the questions I have. Essentially, im seeking a bit of career advice as im facing an existential crisis of sorts. A little about my dilemma/"experience":After getting a BS in honors math from the University of Michigan and an MS in applied math at Northwestern, im currently working on a PHD in Mechanical Engineering. I had thought that I wanted to go into quantitative finance upon the completion of my degree, but now im second guessing myself. Im not sure if I want/need to stay in school to be a Quant, if doing the PhD in ME (Computational/Theoretical focus) is "a waste", if becoming a trader would be better, etc. Im basically doing some soul searching, because this is, lets say, a bifurcation point in my possible career track.Trader or Quant? PhD in ME or cut my losses? Any other advice?Thank you in advance for any advice you may offer. Its rather stressful coming to this fork in the road; I want to make an informed decision...
 
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louist1013
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Joined: August 5th, 2008, 7:05 pm

Seeking advice from people in the field

January 28th, 2009, 4:42 am

bwstrom,im in a similar position as you. how far into your PhD work are you? i am close enough to finishing (1 1/2 to 2 years) that i've come to the conclusion that its in my best interest to just tough it out at this point. in general i think the PhD helps, rather than hurts. additionally, i got myself an internship this upcoming summer in one of the areas im interested in (algo trading) to help see if thats really what i want. id suggest doing the same. try to find and internship this summer (unless you already have done an internship and are in this situation...) and maybe that will help coalesce your thoughts?on a side note, when did you graduate with your MS from ESAM at NU? i am an EE PhD student at NU and work at the far end of the ESAM hallway.... are you pursuing your PhD at NU?good luck!
 
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hamster
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Joined: October 12th, 2008, 3:51 pm

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January 28th, 2009, 7:01 am

What is your thesis/research about? I would ask myself whether I could start a service business with my professional knowledge?
 
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bwstrom
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Joined: January 7th, 2009, 3:18 am

Seeking advice from people in the field

January 29th, 2009, 5:27 pm

loiist1013,Im not far into my work. I just finished my MS last June, and im still here at NU in the ME department right now. And yeah, small world! At the end of the ESAM hallway, huh? Thats crazy, because thats pretty much where I lived all of last year! hahahamster,my thesis topic hasnt been officially picked yet, but will likely focus on computational methods applied to solids and/or fluids. Ill basically code stuff all the time.QUESTIONS:Who makes more money, Traders or Quants?Will there be a trend in the future for trading job being replaced by computers/software? Or rather, is it likely?Would a PhD be a waste if I were to do trading rather than Quant work?
 
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louist1013
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Joined: August 5th, 2008, 7:05 pm

Seeking advice from people in the field

January 29th, 2009, 5:39 pm

from my (very limited) experience so far, the fact that i am going for a phd proved extremely helpful in finding my summer internship in algorithmic trading. there are a lot of people on here that know a lot more about the how the phd interacts with trading vs. quant, but my report from the front lines tells me that it helped a lot, especially in the current environment.
 
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MikeNN
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Joined: January 12th, 2009, 6:02 pm

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January 29th, 2009, 6:56 pm

In my very humbled opinion, you don't need a Ph.D to be a quant or a trader. I feel as qualify as any quant and I don't even have a masters degree (I do have an undergraduate engineering degree). I just think that in this industry, it's not your education that matters, but the amount of money you can make. I just think that it just so happens that people who have Ph.D tend to have the characteristics and personality that fits well to be a quant. Maybe I am wrong, and I certainly don't know everything, but think about this: Do you believe that your work so far in graduate school has advanced your ability to think about finance?
 
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sigmaPi
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Joined: February 21st, 2008, 4:06 am

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February 2nd, 2009, 4:21 am

Mike NN is correct: You do not need a PhD to *be* a quant - but you need one to *become* a quant. Market forces ...
 
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ppauper
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February 3rd, 2009, 1:34 pm

there are plenty of folks with MFEs who are quants
 
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sigmaPi
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February 12th, 2009, 12:33 am

ppauper,this is correct in general. I doubt there are many left though given the flood of PhDs. My point is that becoming a quant is now much more of a PhD game. We do not have a single MFE quant; exclusevely PhDs - I am talking the real quant work not back office quants et al.There are people winning the lottery but I would still not buy a lottery ticket.Sig