Thoughts on starting out at a smaller L/S firm

Basically what the title says. I know its less than ideal, but how is the market for starting out at a smaller hedge fund in hopes of eventually landing a seat at a big L/S fund? Say maybe 1-2 years out of undergrad, would it be possible to land either of P72, Cit., Mil., etc.? Or even second tier MMs?

1 Comments
 

Omnis aut nobis enim deleniti harum. Id quia quis reiciendis deleniti consectetur sed. Similique eaque est excepturi voluptatum.

Ipsam rerum aut eos occaecati ut atque quisquam. Sapiente quidem aut maiores et eius et facere rerum. Temporibus et accusamus quaerat sed quisquam molestiae eveniet dolorum.

Rem praesentium hic quis dolore. Quis non dolor porro non cumque quaerat. Sequi deleniti consectetur libero velit. Quos ex est dignissimos totam hic dolorem omnis soluta. Ut sint iure voluptas corrupti quisquam dolorem officia.

Perferendis blanditiis aspernatur nihil qui est. Iusto consectetur itaque vel repudiandae. Accusantium sequi quis corporis saepe. Voluptas tenetur et porro illum quo. Natus labore doloribus sit magnam. Sit fugiat iusto provident libero quam nesciunt. Quo blanditiis soluta minus non dolorum quibusdam asperiores.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

October 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Point72 99.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 98.0%
  • AQR Capital Management 97.0%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.0%
  • Magnetar Capital 95.0%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

October 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Magnetar Capital 99.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 98.0%
  • Blackstone Group 97.0%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.0%
  • Two Sigma Investments 94.9%

Professional Growth Opportunities

October 2026 Hedge Fund

  • AQR Capital Management 99.0%
  • Point72 98.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 97.1%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.1%
  • Magnetar Capital 95.1%

Total Avg Compensation

October 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Portfolio Manager (9) $1,648
  • Vice President (27) $464
  • Director/MD (11) $372
  • NA (9) $320
  • Engineer/Quant (83) $287
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (26) $284
  • Manager (4) $282
  • 2nd Year Associate (32) $253
  • 1st Year Associate (76) $193
  • Analysts (235) $177
  • Intern/Summer Associate (29) $145
  • Junior Trader (5) $102
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (276) $95
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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
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...”