I graduated from UCSD in June with a degree in Math-CS. In college I focused on probability, statistics and stochastic processes. I also did internships in applied ML, AI automation and financial modeling.

I'm currently working as an AI Builder. Most of my work is automating reporting in Python and SQL and helping teams adopt AI tools. It's been a good first job, but math is my real strength and I'd like to move into quant.

The challenge is that I don't have any finance experience or a quant internship, and I'm on STEM OPT, so I'll need sponsorship down the line.

For anyone who has made a similar move, I'd appreciate your advice on:

1. Skills: What should I focus on? Probability and brainteasers, C++, statistics and ML, or market knowledge?
2. Networking: How did you get your foot in the door? LinkedIn outreach, alumni, events?
3. Companies: Is it worth applying to firms like Jane Street, Citadel and HRT right away, or should I start at a bank, asset manager or smaller prop shop?
4. Courses: Are bootcamps or certifications like the CQF or CFA worth it? What about a master's? Or is my time better spent on interview prep?
5. Applying: Is it mostly a numbers game, or is there a smarter approach?

Thanks in advance.

I am a 21M, currently in my third year at a tier-1business college. My plan is to work in traditional finance like in consulting or IB roles for the next one to two years. During this time, I intend to focus on studying advanced maths and programming languages.I am open to enrolling in distance learning programs offered by accredited top-tier Unis to improve my knowledge.

Subsequently, I intend to MFE or a Master's degree in Quantitative Finance/Computational Finance from institutions such as Baruch, ETH Zurich, NUS, NTU.

I have a few questions:

1.Considering my business and traditional finance background, is it practical for me? While I am not unfamiliar with programming or pure maths, it would require an effort on my part to prepare.

1. Would my age be a disadvantage? I'd be at least 26 when I graduate from my masters, but I've heard that firms tend to favor younger grads for QT.

2. Considering the current peak of Al, the job market being terrible, and increasing competition in this field, do you think pursuing this path is practical for me?

Thank you for helping me out.

Hi guys, I'm a 12th grader in ontario;

As a prelude: i currently have a 94 top 6 average, i took AP stats, and got a 4 on the exam too in grade 11, I'm taking AP calculus, AP pre calculus, and AP english; while also looking to take any other ap exams through self studying

I've been obsessed with finance for over a year now, and over the last 6 months ive gotten heavily interested in quantitative finance; even building my own app (allbeit, vibe coded since when i first started i didnt know much on coding) for helping with synthesizing research

More recently, I've begun to self study advanced maths, python, (after python im looking into C++), and finance, I've done this mainly through university courses posted online whether through Youtube or other sources; one course which i enjoy in particular is the mathematical finance course from MIT

I'm also the founder of the finance club, and co founder of the electronics and robotics clubs at my school; and im looking into maybe working on publishing my own research

I'm still far from even being a beginner in this field; but I know for a fact I want to get into this, and I'm trying to fix my lifepath too it; which is where this all ties in

What universities are best to break into quant? preferably in Canada or America, What are my chances at even breaking into quant? im currently looking at applying for Waterloo's double degree for Mathematical finance (or puremath, depending on advice) and a BBA specializing in finance from Laurier; but im unsure if that's the best pick for me

Any advice, experience, or help would be much appreciated, I'm a big beginner but I want to get ahead now while or if i have the chance

Aswell; if you guys have any ideas or recommendations for me to work on starting that would be very helpful, I dont want to miss out on any opportunities.

Hey everyone,

I made a post about this earlier, but looking back, I realized that I didn't explain my goal very clearly. So I'm making a new post to clarify what I'm actually looking for.

I'm 15 years old, from Germany, and really interested in quantitative finance. I want to learn how quant strategies work by building my own project, but I'm not sure where to start.

To be clear, I'm not trying to get into a hedge fund or land a job at a trading firm anytime soon. My goal right now is to learn the necessary skills and build a serious quantitative finance project from scratch.

I'm willing to put in a lot of work to achieve this. However, I also understand that working hard only helps if you're focusing on the right things.

One of my biggest problems is finding reliable information online. There are countless trading gurus promising unrealistic results, and it's difficult to distinguish genuine quantitative finance from marketing.

I'd love to hear from people with actual experience in quant research, algorithmic trading, mathematics, or quantitative finance.

Here are my main questions:

• Math: What mathematical topics should I learn first?
• Python: How much Python do I need before I can start building something meaningful?
• My first project: What would be a good first quant project for a beginner? For example, researching a trading strategy, building a backtesting system, or analyzing financial data?
• Learning resources: Which books, courses, or websites would you genuinely recommend?
• Common mistakes: What should I avoid when starting out, especially when it comes to backtesting, overfitting, and misleading results?

I live in Germany and am still in school, so I have time to learn the fundamentals properly. I don't expect to make money quickly, and I'm not looking for shortcuts.

I simply want to build something real, understand the mathematics behind it, and gradually develop my skills through practical work.

If you were in my position, what would you learn first, and what project would you build?

I'd really appreciate honest advice, especially from people who have actually worked on quantitative models or trading systems.

Thanks for reading!

Taking a stochastic modeling course this semester

Any tips on how to understand the material well?

I would also appreciate if you could share useful resources I can refer to

I still need to brush up my probability foundation, so it’s not the best position to start the module

An HRT candidate has passed a roughly half-hour Python phone screen and is preparing for a second technical round lasting about an hour.

The recruiter mentioned data structures, algorithms, programming languages, operating systems, and how computers work under the hood. Python candidates were also told to expect C questions aimed at low-level reasoning rather than C proficiency. That's the guidance for this interview, rather than a claim that every HRT round follows the same format.

How would you divide prep between coding and systems discussion? In particular, how much C reading practice is useful, and how deeply would you go into Python internals versus memory and OS fundamentals?

Hudson River Trading Interview Questions offer some concrete practice material, but candidate reports can't establish the exact second-round format. For anyone juggling other applications alongside prep, application autofill and Agent autoapply can cut down the time spent re-entering the same details.

General advice from people who've been through a similar round would be helpful, especially what was worth reviewing and what turned out to be overkill.

Disclosure: I operate PracHub and LandOffer.

I am 17F I am looking for high paying opportunities that could worth my upcoming 6-7 years college education my stream was PCB I scored 88% in 12th this year and I have been researching alot. First I got to know about this new field called UX researcher I got very engaged in it until I found out that getting entry level is really hard for this field than I got to know about quant UX but as I didn't take math I researched a bit and got to know that if I could do ba psychology,diploma CS, diploma statistics, mhci I could land this job very goodly but I am not sure on my research so I wanted to know opinion about this from experienced people or people who know deep about this type of industry if possible please do suggest more high paying opportunity...

Hey everyone,

I'm 15 years old, from Germany, and my goal is to become a quant. The problem is that I don't really know how to get there or what I should focus on at my age.

I'm willing to put in a lot of work to achieve this goal. My philosophy is that hard work can help you overcome a lot of disadvantages, including bad luck. However, I also understand that working hard isn't enough if you're working on the wrong things.

That's why I'm looking for advice from people who actually work in quantitative finance or have experience in the field.

There is so much misleading information online, especially from people selling courses and promising unrealistic results. I'd rather learn from people with real experience and follow a realistic path.

A few things I'd particularly like to know:

• Mathematics: What topics should I master first, and how advanced should my math skills be before I start learning quantitative finance?
• Programming: Should I focus on Python first? What kinds of projects should I build?
• Education: Since I live in Germany, what should I focus on in school, and which university degrees would give me the best opportunities?
• Getting ahead early: If you were 15 again and wanted to become a quant, how would you spend the next three to five years?
• Resources: Which books, courses, websites, or other resources are genuinely worth using?

I'm not expecting to become successful overnight, and I'm not looking for shortcuts. I want to build a strong foundation and make the most of the time I have.

I'd especially appreciate advice from quantitative researchers, quant traders, or people who have gone through the recruiting process at quantitative trading firms or hedge funds.

Thanks in advance for any serious advice. I really appreciate it!

Hi everyone!

If any alumni have appeared for the IMC Trading written test, could you please share the questions you remember? I’d be really grateful!

Also, if you cleared the test, could you share what to expect in the interview round and what topics I should focus on preparing?

Thanks in advance! 😊