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In london, how difficult for a Warwick financial math PhD to find a quant job

MengziWang

Joined
5/17/12
Messages
7
Points
13
I heard that, in London, the quant recruiters prefer students from oxbridge, and london universities. Does Warwick Math PhD students have a disadvantage position in the application?

How difficult for a Warwick financial math PhD students to find a quant intern, and to find a quant job finally? Math, C++, and brain teaser won't be a problem for me. I only worry that the market is so competitive.

Thanks a lot,
 
The market is indeed competitive and there exists a subset of hiring managers who focus on Oxbridge, however the smarter end of HRs and HH typically interpret "Oxbridge" to mean IC,Warwick,QMC, as well as oxford and Cambridge, but not of course Reading which is in its heart a teacher training college.

It is the case that "top" university is very subjective and people who've not been in the UK very long are unfamiliar with names of Unis, hence the LSE still remaining a "target school" in spite of the decline in the output quality.

Given that you did your undergrad at Cambridge, I don't think you have any issues with branding, however I am intrigued why you think that Math,C++ and brain teasers "won't be a problem"?

Here's one I got asked when going for a job at Merrill Lynch, when I said (with all due modesty) that I was "pretty good" at C++
What does

42;

Do ?
Why does it do it ?
When would you use it ?
Which frequently used tool does this sort of thing ?
 
DominiConnor said:
The market is indeed competitive and there exists a subset of hiring managers who focus on Oxbridge, however the smarter end of HRs and HH typically interpret "Oxbridge" to mean IC,Warwick,QMC, as well as oxford and Cambridge, but not of course Reading which is in its heart a teacher training college.

It is the case that "top" university is very subjective and people who've not been in the UK very long are unfamiliar with names of Unis, hence the LSE still remaining a "target school" in spite of the decline in the output quality.

Given that you did your undergrad at Cambridge, I don't think you have any issues with branding, however I am intrigued why you think that Math,C++ and brain teasers "won't be a problem"?

Here's one I got asked when going for a job at Merrill Lynch, when I said (with all due modesty) that I was "pretty good" at C++
What does

42;

Do ?
Why does it do it ?
When would you use it ?
Which frequently used tool does this sort of thing ?
Click to expand...


Where is QMC? Never heard of it. If you're referring to Queen Mary's, then that's laughable, and I assume only included in the list because it's your alma mater.
 
DominiConnor said:
The market is indeed competitive and there exists a subset of hiring managers who focus on Oxbridge, however the smarter end of HRs and HH typically interpret "Oxbridge" to mean IC,Warwick,QMC, as well as oxford and Cambridge, but not of course Reading which is in its heart a teacher training college.
Click to expand...

Sorry to mislead you. I just mean I am confident to increase my ability in "Math,C++ and brain teasers" well. But if it is a brand problem, it is much harder to let a brand driven cruiter change his mind.
 
Barny said:
Where is QMC? Never heard of it. If you're referring to Queen Mary's, then that's laughable, and I assume only included in the list because it's your alma mater.
Click to expand...

Thanks for replying.
In a bad market situation, how difficult is it for a Financial Math PhD from Warwick to find a quant job? I think it will waste four years of mine if I need to compete with undergraduate students after completing a PhD degree.

Will a oxbridge financial math PhD student nearly secure a quant job for him?
 
Right now, you are behaving irrationally. You're thinking in terms of quant, quant, quant, and everything you do is aimed at being a quant. You need to think differently. Quant is over. Think about developing yourself as a human being for the kind of economy we have in the west e.g. service based.
 
Barny said:
Right now, you are behaving irrationally. You're thinking in terms of quant, quant, quant, and everything you do is aimed at being a quant. You need to think differently. Quant is over. Think about developing yourself as a human being for the kind of economy we have in the west e.g. service based.
Click to expand...

You are right. Thanks. I shouldn't be so struggled with quant quant.... The thing is I like math, and wish to have a good job in the future. It seems that quant is one of the best job for me. Also to be a math researcher in univeristy is also very good choice. Do you have any other suggestions except for those two options?
 
Being a quant and being an academic are indeed two great careers. Unfortunately they're also prohibitively hard to get. If you love math, then of course do a phd which you will love. Do not choose a phd based on the career you want after. Once you have a phd, you can re-assess. But be prepared to do a job that doesn't require a phd to do it.
 
Barny said:
Where is QMC? Never heard of it. If you're referring to Queen Mary's, then that's laughable, and I assume only included in the list because it's your alma mater.
Click to expand...

Merged with Westfield College some years back to become QMW. It's about a half mile walk from Mile End tube station.

Quant is over. Think about developing yourself as a human being for the kind of economy we have in the west e.g. service based.
Click to expand...

Jobs in general are over. But that could be the topic of another thread. The West has moved from industrial economy to post-industrial service economy (to some extent) on its way to implosion and collapse to a far simpler less energy-intensive economic structure.
 
Yes, Barny it is, that was to illustrate my point with one cause of subjectivity :)
Does it shock you that alma maters appear when people tell me what schools are good ?
However I note a contradiction, either you've never heard of QMC or it's laughable, you can't really have both.
QM did fall off a cliff, when I graduated we had the highest average starting pay of any Uni in the UK and the 3rd highest in Europe, a nuclear reactor underneath the Mile End Road and EE coursework included hacking into Russian satellites.

I agree with BBW that the idea of a "job" is dead, having been a temporary result of the first industrial revolution.
Before then, almost no one had a "job", ie something they'd expect to do most days for 5-10 years at a go.

There were a few professional soldiers, priests and a really small number of civil servants (many of whom were priests anyway).
Some people owned the business they ran like a farm, trading or blacksmith, but about 80 % of the population used whatever skills they had to do whatever people would pay them for that day.
There used to be "jobs for life" until I guess the 1990s, now if you called your job that people would assume you meant the exact opposite as some sort of black humour.

So, my standard view is that MengziWang is buying himself some career options, he doesn't need to choose quant or academia yet and to do so would destroy value.
 
DominiConnor said:
Yes, Barny it is, that was to illustrate my point with one cause of subjectivity :)

So, my standard view is that MengziWang is buying himself some career options, he doesn't need to choose quant or academia yet and to do so would destroy value.
Click to expand...

The last analogy is accurate. lol. But nobady tell me the value of the option...

Barny's option seems to be that it is prohibitive to get it exercised. So what is the probability to be a quant or academic each? (prediction error can be +- 20%)
 
DominiConnor said:
Yes, Barny it is, that was to illustrate my point with one cause of subjectivity :)
Does it shock you that alma maters appear when people tell me what schools are good ?
However I note a contradiction, either you've never heard of QMC or it's laughable, you can't really have both.
Click to expand...

I just find it funny that you include it in the same list as Oxbridge, Warwick, Imperial yet exclude e.g. UCL, and a whole host of other russell group unis whose research output and student quality is much higher.
 
Barny said:
Right now, you are behaving irrationally. You're thinking in terms of quant, quant, quant, and everything you do is aimed at being a quant. You need to think differently. Quant is over. Think about developing yourself as a human being for the kind of economy we have in the west e.g. service based.
Click to expand...
Agree Quant is over. Focus on doing something not for money. And you don't have to stay in the West. Russia is a good option so is Brazil
 
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