Life after Proprietary Trading?
- Thread starter ethanbrooke
- Start date
If you plan on staying in the trading or financial field, it's probably useful to remember that there are alot of MBA's with big-league Wall Street desk experience that are walking the streets right now. I live next door to one.
If I had to do it all over again, I would probably get an M.S. in Statistics, Physics, or some sort of quantitative field. I think that would be much more useful for trading.
This country is saturated with M.B.A.s. I think the best time to have had an M.B.A. was before the late 80's. The sensation has come and gone.
I quit B-School at Chicago ten years ago when I started making money trading. Those guys still aren't making that much money, and the hours are institutional slavery. Not for me.
If I had to do it all over again, I would probably get an M.S. in Statistics, Physics, or some sort of quantitative field. I think that would be much more useful for trading.
This country is saturated with M.B.A.s. I think the best time to have had an M.B.A. was before the late 80's. The sensation has come and gone.
I quit B-School at Chicago ten years ago when I started making money trading. Those guys still aren't making that much money, and the hours are institutional slavery. Not for me.
The thing is, IMHO, no one studies Physics to go into finance - they study Physics to explain the Universe, etc., etc.
I have several friends that were lured away from Math, Physics, CS, etc to go to Wall Street - almost all of them hated it...
Today they have Econo-Physics which is the major that you go into if Quant "Finance" is what you want to do.
nitro
Most folks on the street dont seem to realize the level of mathematical analysis that physicists possess. Applying the techniques to the financial markets takes a bit of shifting gears but it is not difficult.
I started off on the exchanges and went to study further. When I came back I discovered that much of my research techniques could be used for analytical studies of financial data. Of course, these techniques only help with trading to a certain degree and can not automatically be used without other inputs. This is why I look at trading as a type of art form. There is a "gut" component to it.......
I started off on the exchanges and went to study further. When I came back I discovered that much of my research techniques could be used for analytical studies of financial data. Of course, these techniques only help with trading to a certain degree and can not automatically be used without other inputs. This is why I look at trading as a type of art form. There is a "gut" component to it.......
The thing is, IMHO, no one studies Physics to go into finance - they study Physics to explain the Universe, etc., etc.
I have several friends that were lured away from Math, Physics, CS, etc to go to Wall Street - almost all of them hated it...
Today they have Econo-Physics which is the major that you go into if Quant "Finance" is what you want to do.
nitro
you know the funny thing is, as much as trading is challenge, it is quite different from any other career. I look at it as a sport not a "job". A person in physics, or math, is interested in creating things, whether they be equations or theories, but some solution to a problem. Yes, i know we create our own theories about the markets, but only in this business can you work harder than the guy beside you, your up 1000 at 3:00pm and by 4:00 pm you lost your winnings while he had one good trade that netted him 2500. That kind of a challenge we love. Most acedemics hate it. Believe it or not i thought about being a professor of economics. As boring as it sounds, it seemed interesting. But the lure of the markets changed my heart, and i never looked back.
cheers
I have several friends that were lured away from Math, Physics, CS, etc to go to Wall Street - almost all of them hated it...
Today they have Econo-Physics which is the major that you go into if Quant "Finance" is what you want to do.
nitro
you know the funny thing is, as much as trading is challenge, it is quite different from any other career. I look at it as a sport not a "job". A person in physics, or math, is interested in creating things, whether they be equations or theories, but some solution to a problem. Yes, i know we create our own theories about the markets, but only in this business can you work harder than the guy beside you, your up 1000 at 3:00pm and by 4:00 pm you lost your winnings while he had one good trade that netted him 2500. That kind of a challenge we love. Most acedemics hate it. Believe it or not i thought about being a professor of economics. As boring as it sounds, it seemed interesting. But the lure of the markets changed my heart, and i never looked back.
cheers
For what its worth - investment banks primarily use MBA's as a screening tool. Believe me - every vp on the street that has hiring responsiblity realizes that new MBAs know precious little about markets. The MBA primarily says you took the time and effort and gave up 2 years of your life to attain the degree. With so much competition for so few openings for desirable jobs in ib or trading it seperates the haves from the have nots.
As for MBAs that can't make money trading - I can only speak for myself. I seem to have overcome that stereotype. Then again I'm a bond trader which is a whole other world in itself.
As for MBAs that can't make money trading - I can only speak for myself. I seem to have overcome that stereotype. Then again I'm a bond trader which is a whole other world in itself.
Yannis - my MBA may not have taught me how to trade but it taught me a lot about how to think critically and quickly not to mention the competitiveness it instills.
"Its not how you play the game - its if you win or lose!!!!"
"Its not how you play the game - its if you win or lose!!!!"