Can a Graduate Degree from Oxford U help me get a salaried position in trading?

[vanilla2]

IMHO this is indeed a professional communication venue (with a few uber-negative wannabes with issues tossed in)

Your level of research regarding this board, and trading in general is inconsistent with Oxford caliber work. This board is teaming with hugely successful professional traders.. most of them lurk more than post.

Trading culture in general is rife with horseplay, much of it personal. Thick skin is crucial. As negative as this board may sound, all you're seeing is brutal honesty, in most cases from people who can take what they can dish and do it all the time.

I used to work with a few thousand professional traders, and they would beat each other's egos to a pulp all the time. It was fun.

You should read "Liars Poker". I think those guys went to Oxford. Further, it sounds like your best bet is a graduate program at a bulge bracket bank. With your credentials, you're probably a shoe-in if you knock on enough doors. Your attitude blows though.

Trading requires honesty with self.

By the way, what's with your tag if you've never made a trade?

 

[FinStat]

you wanted attention......you found it.
pull yourself together then worry about a career.

 

[0008]

I think those looking for quants always want guys with higher degree in Math/Phys from a top tier univ. Is anyone doing that?

 

[lindq]

Quote from FreedomPhighter:



I believe that what folks are trying to tell you here...and what I will say...is that there is probably very little or no value to anything in your educational background that will prepare you to be a successful trader. (A systems developer, maybe. An analyst, possibly. But a trader? No.) And anyone considering you for an interview and/or position is therefore likely to have the same opinion, and won't be in a hurry to write you salary checks until you pay your dues, learn the ropes, and demonstrate proficiency. One of the great things about trading these days is that you can do all of those things on your own, anywhere. So why not get a job where you can earn a decent, regular income, while at the same time you can develop a system and style of trading that works for you? It is always better to leave your options open and give yourself time to learn, and doing it on your own will give you a lot more freedom once you become consistently profitable.

 

[cvds16]

Just as a reminder but a lot of traders I personally know are high school or university drop outs. The best trader I know and one of the bigger ones in Europe a few years ago (works for his own account, lost contact however so dont know how he is doing recently) went to school untill the age of 16. Like other people told you allready, its much more than just knowing a lot of things. It's about how you integrate them with your personality and emotions. Start to read everything you can here on EliteTrader; you will need it if you want to become good.

 

[catmango]

Quote from FreedomPhighter:



I have an honours degree in mathematics, and a degree in computer science from NYU. My gpa wasn't as high as the typical Oxfordian's gpa but high enough to get me in. I don't want to be a programmer........I want to be a trader. If it is difficult to find a salaried job in trading after I graduate from Oxford, maybe I'll apply to Harvard business school.....that should surely help me wouldn't you say (assuming, of course, that I were to get in).

Wow. I started reading through this thread initially thinking that this guy was being given a hard time for asking an innocent question, but with each response he's just getting more and more obnoxious and arrogant. This last one -- thowing out HBS as a fallback -- takes the cake. Who wouldn't want to slam this guy after that?

Sorry dude, but there are no high paying trading jobs for people straight out of school. Trading, like sales, is a pure meritocracy with little bearing on academic background. If you want to rely on your schooling to get you an "in", then you'll have to get at least a PhD with a thesis on cutting edge market analysis, and maybe then you'll be able to catch the eye of a hedge fund. If you're not up for that, then follow Htrader's advice and get a programming job.

 

[FreedomPhighter]

Quote from CalTrader:

Further schooling will not necessarily help you with finding work:

If you are on a free ride at Oxford then do it if your intellectual curiosity is peaked: the extra work dreaming up ways to construct algorithms and developing techniques for proof will only sharpen your mind.

On the other hand if you are paying a dime for the experience I would think twice about it ....... Universities are not the best way into well paying jobs. If you are truly brilliant AND market this within the university then it may lead to open doors ..... Oxford is no different than other academic institutions and also operates on the fallacy of the lottery, and offers limited assistance outside of academic placement - for which you need a phD.

I have been told by a friend of mine who holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from MIT that Oxford on my resume is as good as gold. I am not expecting my Oxford experience to land me a job but rather to land me many many interviews for trading positions. You are right when you say that Oxford operates on the fallacy of the lottery. I mean, only 12 students were admitted to my specific program out of over 350 applications. I believe I am actually the only US student who was admitted to the program (12 students are chosen from an international applicant pool). The likeliehood of acceptance can be analagous to winning the lottery indeed.

Thanks

 

[vanilla2]

it's increasingly looking like you came here to brag and convince yourself of something. nothing humble about that. typical.

 

[Ditch]

Quote from FreedomPhighter:



I have been told by a friend of mine who holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from MIT that Oxford on my resume is as good as gold. I am not expecting my Oxford experience to land me a job but rather to land me many many interviews for trading positions. You are right when you say that Oxford operates on the fallacy of the lottery. I mean, only 12 students were admitted to my specific program out of over 350 applications. I believe I am actually the only US student who was admitted to the program (12 students are chosen from an international applicant pool). The likeliehood of acceptance can be analagous to winning the lottery indeed.

Thanks

You still don't get it . Your analytical skills and Oxford degree will be to little benefit when you're a trader, because trading is about different skills and mindset: perseverence, determination, ability to control emotions and humility. You will be surprised what your
emotions will do to you when you start trading your OWN money.
Your Oxford degree may land you with numerous interviews for a trader's position, but that only shows the lunacy of the selection process for jobs at Wall Street.

 

[Nordic]

Quote from FreedomPhighter:



I have been told by a friend of mine who holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from MIT that Oxford on my resume is as good as gold. I am not expecting my Oxford experience to land me a job but rather to land me many many interviews for trading positions. You are right when you say that Oxford operates on the fallacy of the lottery. I mean, only 12 students were admitted to my specific program out of over 350 applications. I believe I am actually the only US student who was admitted to the program (12 students are chosen from an international applicant pool). The likeliehood of acceptance can be analagous to winning the lottery indeed.

Thanks

Listen up Winthorpe, You should immediately contact Mortimer Duke of Duke and Duke Trading Inc. located at 50 Broad Street. I here they are always looking for intelligent Oxford type individuals like you spanking off on the Internet all day.