Hi I am an Econ grad student that is looking into breaking into Algo trading but am not certain if I have the correct skills for the industry. I am really good at econometrics/statistics and have self thought myself C++ skills. In the process of learning programming I have discovered that i have absolutely no desire to be a developer (I don't mind advanced programming and am better than 98% of econ students but that doesn't mean I want to create software systems from scratch). my comparative advantage (as i see it) is in research, coming up with statistical algorithms and applying them to certain asset classes. The algo job board postings seem to be are entirely for developers. i like the idea of being able to come up with smart algorithms (i.e. implementing non parametric techniques, etc) but don't realistically know if such a position is required. my reason for glancing at algo trading is that I am not too interested in derivative pricing (specifically the PDE/Coupla approach) intellectually. I understand that many econ grads go into risk and fundamental departments of banks (some even <shudder> go into securities underwriting) but I have always found the small intimate scale of hedge funds alluring. I just hate bureaucracy and am inherently distrustful of large organizations. that being said, I am super open to any opportunity that comes my way. Am I looking in the right direction or should I move on to other finance fields?

No, you don't have the skills, you don't have the right attitude either, and your social views render you unsuitable for the work in any way.You can't be trained to do it, and if by accident you got such a job you'd be so unhappy it would be a race between you quitting and being fired.There are no variables in that expression.

I personally don't think there is any future in algo trading as a career many years from now, since it will be mostly populated by google lead engineer type coding studs. I don't think you wanna diverge that much. Being an ex CS guy, trust me, you wouldn't wanna work with them or be like them. Many of these guys are monsters and are so passionate about coding that you will be consummated in no time even if you do get in. But in your case, I think you should just look to get into trading or maybe a stat arb desk. Many of these stat arb strategies are not necessarily fully automated. You might be confusing stat arb with high frequency trading. Stat arb is generally low to medium frequency and does not need stellar coding skills, since execution latency doesn't matter as much.

You could try low frequency systematic funds like quantitative equity and Global marco. These do require a fari amount of econometrics and economics skills. Since they are lower frequency and speed is not that important the programming bit is farily easy as long as you can code your strategies and models you should be fine. These jobs tend to have mostly finance/economic phd's

QuoteNo, you don't have the skills, you don't have the right attitude either, and your social views render you unsuitable for the work in any way. You can't be trained to do it, and if by accident you got such a job you'd be so unhappy it would be a race between you quitting and being fired. There are no variables in that expression.I do not mean to offend DominicConnor. If I have done so, I apologize. I tend to use a bit of dry/dark humor that admittedly does not come off well in writing. That being said this is an internet forum where I behave differently than I have in the workforce as I am sure that you do. I am trying to be as honest as possible with myself and others so that I can quickly decide if the pursuit is for me. There is no point in me working very hard to obtain skills that I receive little joy from deploying or achieving a position that I am under-skilled at. Work is like a marriage, there has to be something in it for both parties and it should be a good match. people don't change very much and a bad match will just end in tears. my greatest fear is that I end up working in a high stress job for the sake of someone else (wife, kids, boss). If my ideal position doesn't exist in the quant world then I should either adjust my expectations, or look at a new field of work.

QuoteOriginally posted by: honeyoak87QuoteNo, you don't have the skills, you don't have the right attitude either, and your social views render you unsuitable for the work in any way. You can't be trained to do it, and if by accident you got such a job you'd be so unhappy it would be a race between you quitting and being fired. There are no variables in that expression.I do not mean to offend DominicConnor. If I have done so, I apologize. I tend to use a bit of dry/dark humor that admittedly does not come off well in writing. That being said this is an internet forum where I behave differently than I have in the workforce as I am sure that you do. I am trying to be as honest as possible with myself and others so that I can quickly decide if the pursuit is for me. There is no point in me working very hard to obtain skills that I receive little joy from deploying or achieving a position that I am under-skilled at. Work is like a marriage, there has to be something in it for both parties and it should be a good match. people don't change very much and a bad match will just end in tears. my greatest fear is that I end up working in a high stress job for the sake of someone else (wife, kids, boss). If my ideal position doesn't exist in the quant world then I should either adjust my expectations, or look at a new field of work.it does exist, you got the right attitude and finance seems like a good area for you. DominicConnor is a C++ guy, and since that isn't your planned forte, don't take it too seriously.