JMU Quantitative Finance Degree

Background: I have been on WSO for a while now and through that time I have figured out IB is not for me. I love the markets and that is what I want to do in the future. I believe I want to do something in the trading world. I know this is broad but I'm only 18 and still figuring it out. I don't know what area of trading/product I want to pursue.

Question: From researching trading roles they like someone with a quantitative background. They like people with Econ, Math, Stats, or any type of STEM major. I do not want to be an algo trader, I don't love coding but I do not mind it. I believe a commodity trading role will be best for me because prop trading firms heavily rely on algo. The degree will have me major in Quantitative Finance with an econ and math minor, or you can be a Quantitative Finance major with a double major in Math. My question is how good is the JMU Quantitative finance degree for someone who wants to pursue a trading role? Should I major in Quantitative Finance and Math or pick Quantitve finance with econ and math minors? Will it give me the basic knowledge for someone who wants to be a trader? If not, Would I be better off getting a degree in Econ, Math, or Stats? 

Curriculum: https://www.jmu.edu/cob/quantitative-finance/acad…

Thank you! 

1 Comments
 

Sed voluptates et eum rerum. Sapiente cupiditate consequatur consequatur cupiditate ut nam. Rem veritatis voluptas est sed non quidem. Id eos eveniet necessitatibus quo sit quas. Enim est qui eos tenetur optio et quod veritatis. Sit pariatur rerum est. In ab laudantium nostrum qui expedita aperiam sit.

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

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (48) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $101
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
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
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...”