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MSc QFin Summer Internship during Covid

youngs

youngs

Joined
12/12/20
Messages
3
Points
13
Here's the situation:
  • I'm in my first year of a (good but not elite) MSc quant finance program in Europe, and weighing my options for summer activities. My medium-term goal is to get into quant prop trading (ideally in crypto), but am reasonably open to other quant asset management-type roles.
  • Background: math undergrad (summa cum laude, PBK) from a fairly unknown US LAC, then 3 years as a research analyst/consultant for a crypto startup. For the last few years, I've also been a semi-professional poker player with net 6 figures in winnings.
  • I'm considering applying to some quant trading internships for this summer (hopefully it's not too late in the cycle?), either in the US or Europe. Obviously, this would be the most beneficial use of my summer from a career perspective. What would my chances be to get an internship at a mid-tier shop?
  • But, frankly, I've had a pretty rough/isolated year personally between dealing with covid and some other family matters. The concept of sitting in an office all summer while the world opens back up is pretty unappealing. So, as an alternative to doing an internship, I'm considering taking some time off, traveling, and probably playing a lot of poker.
I'm very on the fence about what to do here. When I go to apply for jobs after I graduate in 2022, will it be viewed badly if I don't do an internship this summer? This seems particularly a risk given that I don't have other professional finance industry experience, as I think many will still look at my crypto experience with skepticism.

Any thoughts/advice from folks experienced with these hiring processes would be much appreciated!
 
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