Questions about Bridgewater / Reading Philosophy?

  1. What is the day-to-day work of an investment associate right out of college?

  2. How much do they care about GPA, and what is their approximate threshold to get a 1st round interview?

  3. I asked someone from my college who will work for them this summer (he's extremely smart), and I asked him about his interview process, and he said "it's all philosophy, you just need to read a lot of philosophy and you should be good"... I'm not sure how to interpret that... Does reading philosophy really help in the recruiting process? lol

  4. I will be interning at a BB for my sophomore summer, and I haven't chosen my industry group yet. What do you think would be the best groups if I want to work at a hedge fund like Bridgewater junior summer and after college?

Please answer as many or as few questions as you can.

7 Comments
 

I skimmed over the short pdf version that he posted on his website in 2011, and what I read really resonated with me. What is your take on the book so far? Is the entire book worth the read, or is it mostly a reiteration of a few key points?

 

The book starts with a small autobiography of around 100+ pages. The second part are his work and life principles which are formatted like a study book, this will probably be more or less a reiteration of what you've read.

Personally I think it's worth the read if you're young and ambitious.

 
Best Response

A superficial understanding of Freidrich Nietzsche, John Stuart Mill, and Adam Smith summarizes every "philosophical" finance professional I have ever met.

On Macroeconomics, Ray is very knowledgeable and extremely engaging, but I don't understand why he (and many of his fans) thinks his "true meritocracy" culture is groundbreaking. Everyone believes in meritocracy, but not everyone believes in the same merits.

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt." --Abraham Lincoln
 

Error iste pariatur voluptas accusamus dolores velit. Corrupti sed necessitatibus aut ipsa. Non quo nostrum assumenda nobis hic. Voluptates aspernatur ex omnis. Atque rerum eos et voluptatem quidem. Atque nihil est ipsam ut labore quo. Repellendus quia odit consequatur odit.

Eum vero tempora quo velit. Magni tempora distinctio consectetur quia id. Doloremque itaque sunt facilis enim molestiae accusamus nesciunt laudantium. Perferendis ut quas temporibus eius. Modi laboriosam inventore ut cumque aut et fuga. Distinctio qui voluptatum asperiores et provident suscipit incidunt labore.

Asperiores iure quis nihil culpa enim eaque. Ipsam numquam tenetur incidunt. Ducimus et dicta eos quasi vel et perspiciatis. Officia eaque earum optio minima nostrum.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Point72 99.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 98.1%
  • Citadel Investment Group 97.1%
  • AQR Capital Management 96.2%
  • Magnetar Capital 95.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Magnetar Capital 99.0%
  • Millennium Partners 98.1%
  • D.E. Shaw 97.1%
  • Blackstone Group 96.1%
  • Citadel Investment Group 95.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Hedge Fund

  • AQR Capital Management 99.1%
  • Point72 98.1%
  • D.E. Shaw 97.2%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.2%
  • Magnetar Capital 95.3%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Portfolio Manager (9) $1,648
  • Vice President (27) $464
  • Director/MD (12) $423
  • NA (9) $320
  • Engineer/Quant (86) $288
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (26) $284
  • Manager (4) $282
  • 2nd Year Associate (32) $253
  • 1st Year Associate (76) $192
  • Analysts (240) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (28) $146
  • Junior Trader (5) $102
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (282) $96
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”