What companies to target for trading or do PhD (Trading)

Semi-target freshman, landed top SWE internship at one of {DRW, Two Sigma, Jump} for 2020 summer. ~3.8 GPA with a quantitative major (CS + Statistics). What companies should I target to land a quant trader job right after undergrad? Since I landed my SWE internship, I thought the sky is the limit, but I want someone to give a realistic perspective on what companies to apply to. Should I target tier-3 companies Like Belvedere, or only interview for tier-1 or tier-2 companies (think Akuna, Jane, Jump, DRW) Also, what are long term perspectives in this field for someone without Ph.D.? What should I do if my end goal is to manage $200 million at Millenium? Also, what are realistic salary expectations for 1, 3, and 5 yoe in this field? Is it realistic to make 7 figures with 8 yoe?

1 Comments
 

Modi tempore velit quo et distinctio error quasi. Sint quam eaque quae tempora omnis sapiente. Dolorem possimus amet a eligendi culpa accusantium. Reprehenderit voluptas voluptates est ea eos.

 

Et voluptas accusantium esse qui. Voluptatum nisi ea excepturi aut. Odit quo non quia incidunt maxime.

Sed ducimus et vel nobis esse. Quia laborum praesentium inventore est est et voluptatum. Repellat quo fuga est dolor voluptatibus sit et. Et quod enim aut aut aperiam. Doloremque pariatur ducimus necessitatibus rerum iusto consequuntur. Et quis ea tempore et esse nam.

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 (47) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (74) $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
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
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...”