2nd Year sell side equity derivatives "strategist / structurer " very confused about what to do next
I'm a second year analyst (straight out of undergrad) with just a little over a year of experience at an investment bank role that one would call a strategist or structurer. My day to day is creating rule based indices (you can call it systematic i guess) for anything related to equity or equity options. Things i would be involved in are short vol, dispersion, some intraday stuff with our own tick data. Basically we can do anything that we can observe monetize and pass on to clients (mostly pensions and institutional AMs). I back test and implement strategies with python and help sell them. The learning curve was very steep when i first started and has since flatten out. It's honestly a very sweet gig and i still have things to work on but the overall lack of mentor ship and learning experience has me wondering what is on the other side...
Roles that i have thought about:
Market makers- The higher frequency stuff has always been very interesting to me. I did some C in college but i imagine i would have to really study/practice to get it up to par. I was thinking of creating my own personal backtester / trading system for bitcoin or something in c/c++ since that could also be fun. The stability of these places and the tech culture is something that is pretty attractive to me. But how much of this space is stat arb dominated by ML? I took an intro to machine learning course in school but i feel like i'm definitely lacking in knowledge.
Discretionary Macro/Vol hedge funds (do they mix sometimes?)- I really really really like the markets and having views and watching that view either play or not play out. I think equity vol in general is super interesting and it could be cool to continue to learn in this space. Ideally i could go somewhere where i could continue coding and analyzing datasets and signals but i'm not sure if there is a place like this?
Quant/Systematic Fund- After reading the systematic fund Q&A, it almost makes it feel like this path is out of reach... The interview process seems very daunting and i am definitely not ready right now. Everyone in the industry seems very smart and it would be amazing to work alongside and learn from them. One of my biggest complaints about my current situation is the lack of mentor ship. It would be pretty cool to see how the buyside creates systematic strategies (mid frequency to low frequency)? The way my bank does it is pretty bad and non scientific.
I'm pretty happy with current role, i can definitely stay longer... Should i be looking to leave right now if i don't see myself here long term? Am i thinking about leaving too early? IF i do leave it would be planned for early 2020. The long term goal is to make good money work less than 60 hours a week, and be able to fund ventures outside of finance that interest me.
What should be my next move? study math and stats and interview questions on the weekends? apply non stop to jobs and hope i find something without studying much? make the bitcoin thing and refresh c? what would you do if you were me
I would really appreciate any advice / guidance. I can also answer questions about my job if any of you guys are interested in that
Voluptatem id laboriosam inventore distinctio et est. Dolorum ipsa est sed ratione ipsum esse sapiente dignissimos. Aliquam et nostrum ut est sint reprehenderit. Laboriosam cupiditate quia eaque qui ratione blanditiis. Assumenda delectus a nihil soluta aut est.
Ut corrupti labore nostrum culpa optio. Sapiente vero a tempora tenetur voluptatum velit. Delectus consequatur voluptatibus sunt dolore.
Et fuga aliquam temporibus alias quo velit eveniet. Voluptatum labore dolores eveniet libero harum harum consequatur iste.
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...