trafigura apprenticeship
i have finished my GCSE A levels. I am interested in private equity, investment banking, hedge fund as well as quantitative finance. My main goal is to secure a high paying job. I dont really care about work life balance. I am currently on the final round of the trafigura apprenticeship interview. If I am offered a position, should I take it and continue towards their graduate programme? Or should I go to university and take on internships and hope to be offered a full time role later?
Curious what anyone who has real experience in this program has to say. My take is that if you really don’t care about not going to college AND know that commodities is your chosen career path, go for it.
But aside from the life experience, college also gives you a ton more career optionality. What if you did this for a year, started at Trafi, and end up hating it or get pushed out 2 or 3 years later? What if you are great but want to go to another firm because you are held back by a bad manager or need to wait until the person above you quits? Would BP or Vitol or Citadel consider someone from this program if they had no degree? (Genuinely curious). It’s not like Trafi is known for low turnover. And what if you wanted to leave the field entirely after 5 or 10 years? I don’t normally defend higher education but not having a degree seems like a huge risk in the world we live in, if you (like you said) just want to get a high paying job.
interviewed for the apprenticeship (geneva) in the past but did not receive an offer. i would echo oil_quant's statements and seriously consider going to uni/college for the aforementioned reasons. if you are currently tired of school/formal education and do get an offer - take it for a year and then go to college. trafi is known for high turnover, little permeability to trader positions and of course the risk of you not liking it.
you say you are interested in PE, IB, HF, QF and you now interview for a phys commodity role - these are different careers with different requirements. given that your "main goal is to secure a high paying job", on the balance of probabilities and on a long-term risk-adjusted basis you will have more optionality graduating with a first from LSE than doing this scheme.
in the short run you will earn money but in the long run it does not matter whether you launch your career at age 18 or 22. besides, despite my heterodox views on universities, they have some benefits that you only realize later. the ability to read and analyze, communicate insights etc is much more important than some BS theory
there are many more things (networking at uk unis) but i'll end with a final point. there are good chances that you'll find your significant other during uni times. there was a recent study published in germany interviewing 25-35 year olds about their greatest regrets - 65% mentioned not finding their spouse during college days complaining it is much harder once you start a career (particular this type of path!)
tldr: take the offer (if extended), do it for a year, go to uni
'Would BP or Vitol or Citadel consider someone from this program if they had no degree?'
BP no, Vitol yes, Citadel Maybe if traf on resume, though the role matters in that case. Turnover isnt high at traf for apprenticeship/grad program, trading ofc it is. I do agree with your "what if you hate it" comments though, very much need to be sure you want to do it if you do, but if you do, its a great place.
I did the apprenticeship. Yes I’d recommend accepting it if you are offered. College will always be there and if you do decide that you want to go back to school, you’ll be able to leave with Trafigura on your resume which will obviously help you get your foot in the door for other internships. Just be prepared for a lot of responsibility and stay curious. Great learning opportunity but the culture was horrible in my opinion. Working there felt like an every man for themselves kind of place, at least in my experience. They will put you up in a really nice condo though.
Just curious did you continue to pursue the graduate programme? and are you still working at traf?
Hello,
I am considering to apply for the apprenticeship programme. Would you mind sharing your experience with me?
Thanks!
Hello. I applied for the apprenticeship a week ago. Some websites say that there are aptitude tests to complete, some websites say there are phone/zoom/physical interviews to complete. Could you please tell me when I can expect to hear back from Trafigura? Thank you
Idk remember the time frame. Just relax and be yourself in the interview.
hi! anyone know what an apprentice at trafigura gets paid?? and is accom fully paid for or partially?
would appreciate any info on this :)
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