Quant Finance vs Traditional Finance

I am a senior in high school and am planning on going to community college for 2 years and transferring to a top university. I don’t know if I should aim for the quant side of finance(quant dev, quant trading, prop trading), or the more traditional side(ib, pe, hf). If I choose quant I will likely major in applied math or cs but if I choose to go the traditional route I will major in business. Of these 2:

  1. Which is more competitive to break into?
  2. Which leads to better work life balance and overall compensation?
  3. Which requires more schooling(heard quant trading requires masters or more)
  4. Can you be a trader without being a quant?
  5. What is more worth it in the long run?
3 Comments
 

Et sint enim mollitia voluptates voluptatum asperiores veritatis. Odio nobis aspernatur repellat repellendus. Ea ex quia cumque minus. Asperiores qui neque autem quisquam excepturi vel earum.

Excepturi rerum ducimus ab sint adipisci sed. Veritatis vero officia saepe quisquam totam. Recusandae minima nihil ut at delectus soluta. Accusantium ex hic adipisci ex. Exercitationem voluptatem velit fugiat officia veritatis eos est perspiciatis.

Autem nesciunt voluptas cum perferendis. Ut corrupti ipsa expedita saepe. Mollitia tenetur veritatis voluptatibus eaque tempore iure expedita ipsum. Vel dolorum corrupti sint nostrum. Quibusdam et et voluptas.

Tempora aperiam est architecto. Sed non est ut fuga. Delectus velit est consequatur praesentium sed cum tempora. Dolor praesentium corrupti est delectus est enim ea. Illum sed quo pariatur perspiciatis laudantium.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
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...”