Unusual Path to HF

Hello my fellow apes. I am finishing a phd in molecular biology. I have an undergraduate degree in finance and bio and went into graduate school post undergrad. I've worked ER jobs in the sell side before and a few other finance related internships. I am gaining near to the end of my program and am wanting to get into biotech HF. Do you guys have any recs on how this may be possible? is this impossible? or what should I do next. 

6 Comments
 
Most Helpful

1 - It's feasible to move from MBB w/ a bio PhD to a HF. I know a few ex-McK PhD types who made this move. 

2 - I would reach out directly to BD at a few HC hedge funds and platforms. I find headhunters not highly value add in the HF industry, except for finding niche funds that you wouldn't know about. It's easy to understand who the big HC HFs are. Often HF headhunters take your CV and send it off to the same HFs you can reach out to. I've been 'cced on emails from headhunters to HFs and there's nothing special about their placement. Directly reaching out directly shows initiative and it's much cheaper for the HF. Reaching out directly could result in your building a relationship with the fund for a future opportunity that may not exist today.  

3 - The sell side makes introduction to their various HF clients, if you have any PB contacts it's a great resource. 

Feel free to DM me if I can help! 

Best of luck! 

 

Consequatur animi perspiciatis quasi maxime excepturi nihil a odit. Ea similique veritatis natus. Aut velit sint molestias. Eos eum nemo reprehenderit dicta exercitationem dolor soluta. Dicta blanditiis dolore iure earum aut non ipsum.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 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

July 2026 Hedge Fund

  • Magnetar Capital 99.0%
  • D.E. Shaw 98.0%
  • Blackstone Group 97.1%
  • Citadel Investment Group 96.1%
  • Millennium Partners 95.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Hedge Fund

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

Total Avg Compensation

July 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 (77) $191
  • Analysts (242) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (29) $145
  • 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

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...”