Seeking Guidance: Path to MM Hedge Funds (Citadel, P72, BAM, Millennium) as a 30-Year-Old
30 year old currently working as a data analyst in the Middle East with 8+ years of experience. I’ve been managing my small personal portfolio, where I learned the concepts of L/S Market Neutral strategies, and I absolutely fell in love with the process and the markets. Now, I’m looking to make it professional.
I’m trying to figure out the best and shortest path to a multi-manager hedge fund (MM HF) without going through a typical 2+2 route. Here are a few thoughts I have:
- Pursue a Master’s degree (preferably in the UK, as it’s typically one year):
- MSc Finance @ LSE
- MSc Financial Economics @ Oxford
- Imperial?
- UCL?
- LBS?
The idea is to use the Master’s degree to get into one of the following programs/internships:
- Point72 Academy
- The Citadel Associate Program
- Balyasny Bridger Program
- Millenium?
I’m looking for the best way to get a foot in the door. Since I’m based in the Middle East, where hedge funds are just starting to make their presence known, there’s very little knowledge or exposure to this industry here. Most Analysts/PMs are moving in from London.
I'm sure there are things that I dont know that I dont know :) Please feel free to point them out to me (even bluntly). Also, I believe its never too late to do anything in life and I will make it somehow.
I’ve considered doing the CFA, but I’m concerned it won’t open direct doors. I’m really looking for a streamlined path into hedge funds from people who are already in/around the industry.
Happy to discuss further or answer any questions in DMs!
Thanks in advance for your thoughts and suggestions!
Will be joining one of those grad schemes in london —> long story short you’ll have a chance from any of those masters for the summer internship, but not necessarily the graduate roles without IB/ER internship experience.
There’s also like 10 spots max across all of those funds combined for graduates each year, so I wouldn’t bet on getting an offer from them exclusively. You should also push for IB/ER too.
P72 Academy & CAP do summer internships. P72 Academy, CAP & Millennium’s equity analyst program are the graduate programs available - so there’s only really 3 as millennium doesn’t have a SA directly for the grad program
Thanks for the insights! That really helps. So from what you say, the plan seems to be -
I’m also thinking it’s better to spend time and focus on honing my financial modeling and idea generation skills rather than pursuing a CFA—seems like that aligns better with what these funds are looking for, right?
My current knowledge is very catalyst-driven, 1-3 month time frame L/S trades, which might seem to align well with pods at multi-managers. But I'm obviously open to SMs and other funds like Schonfeld, D.E. Shaw, Man Group, Marshall Wace, Brevan Howard, ExodusPoint, Verition, Walleye, etc. Most of them have L/S equity teams. From what you’ve mentioned, I assume that the path to entering these funds is also similar to the options mentioned above.
And once you’re in the industry, I assume people do transition between SMs and MMs..
Any other points that I should consider?
Most of the other funds you mentioned are also multimanagers outright or “soft” pod shops who also play the earnings revision game. Brevan Howard doesn’t do L/S afaik.
People move between these funds a lot, and between MM/SM with some exceptions for SMs which prefer to hire out of IB/PE.
But yeah, everything else you said stands and is probably how you should approach things. Would just be aware that masters are expensive and your odds of getting in anywhere are still somewhat low.
Hey!
I realized I have a strong chance of getting into Oxford’s MSc Neuroscience. I’ve read on WSO and other places that the degree itself matters less as long as it’s from Oxbridge/LSE.
My top choice is the Oxford MFE, but if that’s tough to get into, would MSc Neuroscience (Oxford) be a better option than LSE MFin/A&F or programs at LBS/Imperial/UCL?
I could join the student run Oxford Alpha Fund, participate in stock pitches, and network with Citadel/P72, etc. Does this strategy work at the master's level, or is the "any target degree" concept mainly for undergrads?
I could also spin my neuroscience background to position myself for L/S Equity in Healthcare. Would love to hear your thoughts!
Thanks!
Those are two completely different degrees... I have no idea why you would do Neuroscience if you're trying to switch careers. Out of all the targets, LBS probably has the highest placement rate for an experienced professional like yourself. Oxbridge/LSE places better at undergraduate level. Strongly advise against doing LSE MFin/A&F, you will not land a job. There's a thread somewhere about this as well, placement is terrible. Very academic, not too practical.
FYI, I came from a UK target, and spoke to two guys from Citadel and Balyasny. They hire exclusively people who did investment banking before (ideally 2 years minimum).
For the Oxford Alpha Fund, you cannot just join it. You need to apply for a position, and the recruiting process is a bit sus from what I heard, as it's the current students who decide whether or not to give you a spot.
Trying to be as honest as possible here. You're 30 so you're not considered an 'early career' professional, you have no 2+2 background, you're not doing an MBA, you don't have a CFA, you have no investing experience, the odds are really stacked against you. My take is doing an MBA would give you the highest chance of landing a job at the top MM funds. You'd probably have to do a year or two of investment banking first, then pivot after. Top MM funds will not hire you just because you have a master's degree, especially considering you are not a fresh graduate.
There’s no target degree, I study something completely irrelevant and got opportunities from most of the top MMHFs in london. The bigger issue is that there’s a handful of spots, so you do need to rely on luck to an extent. The bigger issue is whether these masters programs can help you break into IB/ER, since you’ll want to be targetting those too.
Hi OP, I’m in a similar situation. 27yo in law enforcement, came from target schools in the UK studying law, trying to lateral to MM via the P72 academy (though more realistically ER or a small LO shop first). Currently studying for CFA while maintaining an investment blog.
Didn’t know Baly or Millennium had programs for early career professionals. Would love some colour on that, if you have.
Anw, all the best to your endeavours 😊 Hope we both make it!
Hey!
Coming from a target school is already a great thing to have on your CV. From what I’ve read, the degree or course itself doesn’t matter as much as the university or school.
If a Master’s degree isn’t financially feasible, then the CFA, a strong blog, and networking could be a solid path, especially since you’re already from a target school. Getting into ER/smaller shop sounds like a sensible starting point as well.
Of course, take what i say with a grain of salt since I’m also seeking guidance myself, but what I’ve shared is based on what I’ve read on WSO and other forums. :)
By the way, please share your blog link with me (inbox?). I’d love to check it out and discuss further!
TBH, I’m also confused about the programs at P72/B/C/M. I have some idea. They all seem to have different entry pathways - Analyst Academy, Associate programs, internships (SA?). It’s a bit overwhelming since we didn’t have these concepts in the Middle East when I was in university. I asked ChatGPT to clarify, but I’m not entirely sure I got it right. Would love for someone to correct me if I’m wrong! :)
1. Do Citadel, Balyasny, Point72, and Millennium Have Analyst Academies?
2. What’s the Difference Between an Internship, an Analyst Academy, and an Associate Program?
Internship (Summer Analyst/Associate):
Analyst Academy:
Associate Program:
3. Who Gets Into These Programs?
Internships (Summer Analyst/Associate):
Analyst Academy:
Associate Program:
4. What Is a Summer Analyst (SA)?
5. Do You Have to Start as an Intern or Graduate?
Summary of Entry Paths:
Baly has an internship program for MBA students, you guys wouldn’t qualify for this.
Millennium has a graduate program that runs through UBS for a year with a pod placement year afterwards.
citadel/p72 have graduate programs with internships to boot
London Business School (LBS) seems to have a decent MBA (finance) program. Do Balyasny (BAM) and Millennium typically consider LBS MBA students?
It appears that the best universities in the UK for hedge funds (approx. in order) are:
That said, like you mentioned earlier, there might be alternative paths that could be simpler—such as starting with an Equity Research (ER) role/internship.
Do you think an ER full-time role can lead directly to a hedge fund role without needing a Master’s?
Otherwise, it looks like securing an ER internship may require a Master’s first, which could then lead to HF internships or graduate programs, right?
If you’re comfortable, I’d love to hear more about your personal journey (university/background) and how you broke into the HF pathway. Feel free to DM me if you’d prefer to share privately. Thanks!
Bumping to see if any other members have valuable suggestions to add.
Top comment is all you really need to know, for london to be clear
You’re right, the first comment is spot on for London! 😄
I’ve been doing some research and read that while the US/NY has more HF/MM/ER opportunities compared to London, I’m leaning towards London for several reasons:
London still has plenty of opportunities, right? Even if it’s not a direct jump into HF/MM, a year or two in ER/IB from one of the top schools (Listed above) should make transitioning into HF/MM a realistic goal, correct?
Am I thinking along the right lines? Or should i consider US as well? Would love to hear more thoughts or advice! Thanks!
London is fine, but the US naturally has more opportunities.
Not trying to burst your bubble here, but I think you are delusional to think that a Master's degree will somehow land you a job at a MM HF.
I'm not entirely sure what you mean by your role as a data analyst, but it seems like you have no experience in banking or investing. If you look at the calibre of people they hire every year in London, they either graduated from Oxbridge, went to M7, or done their required work experience in banking (HFs love this). This is the type of people you are competing with. Again, I'm not sure if you went to a target school here in the UK, but I can almost guarantee that your resume will get screened out if you don't have at least two of the above. US... if you don't have the right to work in the US, forget it.
What makes you think you have an edge?
This isn’t entirely true, not for the graduate programs anyway. Masters don’t make you a shoe in, but it’s not like they’re focussed on M7 MBAs or Oxbridge grads. No one I know with an offer at my shop has done actual time at a bank outside of internships - these graduate programs that Citadel/P72/Millennium are aimed at undergrads etc
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