- Joined
- 9/27/24
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Hello!
I will be a BS-MS (it's an integrated program where you complete both degrees together) in Mathematics from a top (but small and new, hence unknown) Indian Institute in May 2025. I have an offer from a BB in their Model Validation team, and it will probably be posted with their Traded Pricing Model Validation group as I join. UGPA is 8.0/10.0, and the MS part is a 1-year thesis-based research MS. I have a solid background in Stochastic Calculus, Algorithms, and Discrete Math. My MS thesis is in Theoretical Computer Science. I also have a publication in the same field at an A* conference where I (along with co-authors) designed a new algorithm.
My low GPA is because my Math Department is very stringent with grades and sometimes even refuses to award the top-most grade, saying that class performance hasn't been as they (the profs) expected. In addition to this, the classes were really small (6-10 people at max), and even for classes clustered together, they awarded different grades for small mark variations (as low as a 0.5 difference in total score out of 100 can get you from a A to a B+ or even B!). I plan to take the CFA exams and hopefully clear it till level 2. My thesis and research work is unrelated to finance, but coursework involved a lot of measure theory, measure theoretic probability, stochastic calculus, and a project on stochastic calculus in addition to many data science, statistics, and core math courses (like abstract algebra and topology).
I just wanted some general evaluation of my profile and comments on things I can do to improve it. How long should I stay in Model Validation? Seniors from my program who joined similar jobs say there will be opportunities where you may be moved to FO after 1.5 years of experience, but I'm not banking on this. The work in traded pricing validation is mathematical, but I'm afraid it'll get repetitive soon. What should be my strategy on this front? Should I keep interviewing for FO jobs, or does it not matter? It's quite hard at present to get an interview if you're not contacting a company through your career support cell. I don't have the option to enroll in seminar courses at reputed institutes because of my location. I'm pessimistic about getting into the top 10 MFE programs, but I guess I will try. What would be your advice? I'll be an international student targeting US schools if that matters.
I will be a BS-MS (it's an integrated program where you complete both degrees together) in Mathematics from a top (but small and new, hence unknown) Indian Institute in May 2025. I have an offer from a BB in their Model Validation team, and it will probably be posted with their Traded Pricing Model Validation group as I join. UGPA is 8.0/10.0, and the MS part is a 1-year thesis-based research MS. I have a solid background in Stochastic Calculus, Algorithms, and Discrete Math. My MS thesis is in Theoretical Computer Science. I also have a publication in the same field at an A* conference where I (along with co-authors) designed a new algorithm.
My low GPA is because my Math Department is very stringent with grades and sometimes even refuses to award the top-most grade, saying that class performance hasn't been as they (the profs) expected. In addition to this, the classes were really small (6-10 people at max), and even for classes clustered together, they awarded different grades for small mark variations (as low as a 0.5 difference in total score out of 100 can get you from a A to a B+ or even B!). I plan to take the CFA exams and hopefully clear it till level 2. My thesis and research work is unrelated to finance, but coursework involved a lot of measure theory, measure theoretic probability, stochastic calculus, and a project on stochastic calculus in addition to many data science, statistics, and core math courses (like abstract algebra and topology).
I just wanted some general evaluation of my profile and comments on things I can do to improve it. How long should I stay in Model Validation? Seniors from my program who joined similar jobs say there will be opportunities where you may be moved to FO after 1.5 years of experience, but I'm not banking on this. The work in traded pricing validation is mathematical, but I'm afraid it'll get repetitive soon. What should be my strategy on this front? Should I keep interviewing for FO jobs, or does it not matter? It's quite hard at present to get an interview if you're not contacting a company through your career support cell. I don't have the option to enroll in seminar courses at reputed institutes because of my location. I'm pessimistic about getting into the top 10 MFE programs, but I guess I will try. What would be your advice? I'll be an international student targeting US schools if that matters.
