Should the quant profession have an exam track

[IlyaKEightSix]

Part time != full degree. You do it in more time because you have to fit it around your normal schedule by taking a lighter load. Anyway, it'll be character building.

Well I can take some MFE courses in my last year of college (stochastic programming, global finance, derivatives, already have random processes)

 

[Nahed]

ah Thank you !
Anyways , as I say you'll get rewarded for your hard work one day or another. it's only a matter of time. I have a friend who works around 100 h per week studying and working. He is only 25 and bought his first appartement (without the help of his parents...). ...and it's only the begining for him !

 

[chrisd]

Ilya, Are you going into your senior year?

Are you aware that some firms recruit for quants at the undergraduate level, ie they specifically recruit for analyst-level jobs? If you're coming out of Lehigh, have a degree in the maths/sciences, can program, and have taken MFE-courses, you should be able to get interviews, particularly if the companies recruit at Lehigh. And once you have the interviews, it's really a matter of how much you know. You might consider going this route, and trying to brush up on interview questions as much as you can (I'd recommend Tim Crack's book and Mark Joshi's new book).

 

[IlyaKEightSix]

Ilya, Are you going into your senior year?

Are you aware that some firms recruit for quants at the undergraduate level, ie they specifically recruit for analyst-level jobs? If you're coming out of Lehigh, have a degree in the maths/sciences, can program, and have taken MFE-courses, you should be able to get interviews, particularly if the companies recruit at Lehigh. And once you have the interviews, it's really a matter of how much you know. You might consider going this route, and trying to brush up on interview questions as much as you can (I'd recommend Tim Crack's book and Mark Joshi's new book).

Yes indeed. I'm intending on applying to every single huge bank on Wall Street. I have taken an MFE course already and am intending on taking as many as I can get my hands on this year (woot for AP courses meaning my senior year is more or less OPEN). I am considering going this route, because I'm downright too BROKE to do anything else >_<--and I hate owing things personally! (Maybe not such a good trait for a wall streeter since so much is based on leverage >_<)

 

[bigbadwolf]

I was just thinking: should there be an exam track for would be quants? I think it could go a long way into weeding out those who can't hack it in the profession, and at the same time, offer those that *would* want to be in the profession with a cheaper and possibly quicker alternative than to shell out tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars more for higher education that may or may not get them a career (and woe upon those who don't find one with their debts!).

Perhaps an exam track such as basic prob and stat, basic finance, then more advanced derivatives based finance, then C++, stochastic calculus, and then modeling at the upper levels? I think if someone were to have a few exams, they'd show promise, and then would have a greater chance of landing a position than if the market was inundated with higher-ed people that may or may not have what it takes.

I agree. Make the quants more like a guild in the same manner as physicians and actuaries. Professional exams provide standards. Graduates of quality programs like Baruch, Haas, and CMU will find the exams a breeze. Grads of the many second-rate programs will stumble and fail. Makes it easier for employers to judge candidates. Makes it easier for would-be-quants to know where they're lacking and why the school to whom they shelled out tens of thousands of dollars botched up it so badly. We already have standardised tests such as SATS and GREs on the one hand, and professional certification in other professions on the other; why not standardised professional certification for quants?

 

[bigbadwolf]

And as for little me, I haven't even had a job on Wall Street yet! How does that justify me shelling out a bazillion dollars for higher ed with no guarantee of landing a job, ESPECIALLY in this cut-throat environment in which people get dropped from their jobs like rocks, assuming they land them in the first place?

These are legitimate apprehensions. It's a tight job market. You have to shell out tens of thousands of dollars in fees, and yet more money in opportunity cost -- with no guarantee of a payoff at the end. In a game where there are currently more losers than winners.

 

[hedgie]

That would be great if they had a Financial Engineering Exam! Of course, it will not happen as FE is still in early stages and academic programs will make sure that the only way to get accredited is by paying tuition. Lots of business will be lost, should recognized FE charter ( like CFA w/ scores instead of GPAs) be introduced. But I would love this: they can break it into exams with titles like backgound maths, programming/stats package background, quantitative trading strategies, etc... Score % will be administered ( and your score will be taken seriousl). Standarized exams is really the most efficient and accurate method to compare all students.