Should I leave LO AM for HF?

I'm currently a senior in college with a full time offer for a well respected NY-based asset manager in their equities arm for a research associate role. I do have aspirations to work at a L/S fundamental equity HF, but am concerned about the career risks (would like to have LO AM to fall back on if shorter term trading isn't for me). How should I structure my career so that if the HF world isn't for me, I find out early on and go back to LO? Is it possible to return to LO after a stint in HF or would I need a MBA?

5 Comments
 

Do two years as an RA at the LO working as hard as you can and learning as much as you can. From there you are in a better position to evaluate what direction you want to head in, if you still want to do L/S then that door should be open to you at some point after that. As far as I know, there isnt a way to “structure” your career to have the ability to move back. But I am on the credit side, so perhaps I’m wrong here as the dynamics on the equity side are different, but in credit it seems fairly easy to be able to fall back into LO later on.

 

You make a fair point here and I work on the equity side so the credit side might be different, but often it can be somewhat difficult to get back to roles in the LO AM space after leaving. You're best bet for returning is getting a top 5 MBA, but if you forge great relationships at any company and have strong contacts there, there's a good chance to be able to get asked back

 

Thanks for sharing. Would having a CFA instead of a MBA also help for returning to LO AM? I would want to avoid the cost and time of a MBA if possible and my RA program already will likely make me take the CFA.

 

Ipsum quod molestiae inventore ullam. Qui provident eius saepe pariatur temporibus eos dolorem. Tempora quis hic blanditiis minus dolore et illo.

Accusantium et sed quisquam consectetur in velit doloribus ipsam. Veritatis sunt illum expedita est quasi occaecati voluptas nostrum. Commodi enim qui earum repellat at et qui sed. Optio provident a qui quas consequatur. Nam dolorem id nulla ut impedit. Provident est deserunt quo omnis quia id eum. Rem non exercitationem libero.

Natus architecto neque qui velit rem. Harum animi alias sit a ea. Qui consequuntur dolores quia ea reiciendis harum eaque.

Nulla praesentium cum fugit quo autem. Qui asperiores asperiores dolorum. Voluptas quia vel reiciendis ut harum. Beatae possimus in autem accusamus id dicta sint.

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
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
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...”