The Tech Mentality vs. the Finance Mentality
I know that the tech vs. finance comparison is overdone on this site, but I'd like to see it from another angle. What I'm wondering is, what kind of person would be the ideal fit for tech or the ideal fit for finance? In other words, how would a tech person's brain be wired, and how would a finance person's brain be wired?
My understanding is that tech professionals are more systematic and problem-solving oriented. These are the people who maybe enjoyed math the most in high school because there was always one right answer and an optimal path to get their. In contrast, the finance professional (read "investor") is potentially more big picture and critical thinking oriented. These are the people who enjoyed history in high school because it dealt with analyzing historical trends, causation, and more qualitative logical thinking. This is a general view of the tech vs. finance mentality, not to say that there isn't overlap between the mentalities.
How right am I here? I'm a young college student and I want to decide early on what kind of field is right for me (with recruiting constantly getting pushed up), and I thought this would maybe be a good way of thinking about it. Any comments?
On the other hand, finance seniors tend to have no life outside of banking, whereas tech seniors are dropping shrooms on the weekend for creativity.
The industries are so different, and if you want to figure out which you like, you're going to have to start putting in some work. If you dont take further finance classes, computer science classes, etc, you're not going to learn which subjects you enjoy most. And what about beyond courses, would you enjoy working on your personal coding projects in your free time? Stock pitch competitions? Hackathons? Case comps? Also, talk to upperclassman and professionals in the industry and ask them about their experiences in college and at work.
It takes some time but it's up to you to actually explore your options
Easy: do you like wearing black turtlenecks, wearing Allbirds, and saving the turtles? Tech. Are you a greedy capitalist who loves Patagonia vests? Finance.
That's really all you need to take into account.
In all actuality though, just spend some time figuring out what interests you more. Take a coding class this semester, take a finance class this semester along with it, and compare which one was more interesting. Get a useful internship (from as big of a company as possible) in either field for this summer and see if you genuinely like it. Take internships during school your sophomore year in the field you've decided you liked more (internships during both Fall and Spring on top of your classes) and you'll have plenty of experience for either field.
Everyone has a moment in their lives when they need to decide what they want to make of themselves. Everyone feels this lost at some point - the people who don't (the people who picked a path for arbitrary reasons and never really questioned it) often have a mid-life crisis where they realize they hate their job and regret chasing prestige/money. Almost everyone ends up feeling extremely pressed for time when recruiting down this path because you really don't have much time to figure it out and start getting experience.
Keep in mind though, you don't have to stress out too much at the end of the day. Many people end up taking extra time to get through college. I didn't even hear about investment banking until the fall semester of my 3rd year of college - I lit a fire under my butt, switched my major, extended my graduation by a year, took on two internships that fall (with 15 credits of classes)/one the following spring (with 14 credits of classes and while networking)/one the following summer (while continuing to recruit) and this summer I'm going to GS/MS/JPM.
Believe in yourself and decide quick, and you'll end up surprising yourself at the end of the day.
This is the only correct response
Double majored in Finance and CS
Would that make a virgin Chad?
yeah you wear Giuseppe Zanotti boots but have an enlarged prostate (source: am finance+cs double major)
For the first 10 years of your career in finance, you will be stuck under someone's thumb. Going into tech you have a bit more freedom as you can always leave a big TechCo and join a startup. Work / life balance is a lot less harsh which is also something to keep in mind. 80+ hr work weeks sound doable until you're a year into banking and realize that will be your life for the next 10 years...
Did well in math highschool currently math major but wouldnt go into tech because honestly cant stand the types of people in tech so pursuing finance
What don’t you like about the types of people in tech?
Dolores dolorem culpa maxime repellat consequatur et. Consequuntur sunt minus voluptas quis. Ad et qui tenetur eum quasi placeat corporis.
Esse ipsa architecto vel fuga dolorem ut architecto. Ratione sint ad nihil ratione. Et ducimus et quia ratione rerum. Optio officia praesentium quae ipsam.
Eos amet ad explicabo debitis est. Eligendi ullam voluptates et ullam ut sint dolorum. Et quae tempore quibusdam alias odio et doloremque. Velit maiores et aut autem asperiores ea odio. Sint iste et sit velit. Deserunt quis in quasi id. Beatae minima aut odit minus ipsum optio.
Et sed ipsa aliquam est et praesentium. Veniam nulla qui recusandae. Veniam atque omnis sunt voluptatum. Sed repellendus est perspiciatis. Aut adipisci delectus iure et dolorem excepturi. Nihil vero voluptatibus repudiandae doloremque consequatur. Quo aliquid nulla porro ullam.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...