How Important Is Math and Mental Arithmetic

Hey Girls and Guys,

I am a Finance Major at a non-target to semi-target.
This summer, I will be an S&T summer Analyst at one of the BBs.
My Problem is that I am not very fast at mental arithmetic questions. I can do them in an average time frame, but, not super fast enough. I am very comfortable with mid-level math (Calc I-III, Differentials Equations, Proofs) as I have gotten As thus far in all my math courses and hope to continue doing so.

(1) How can I improve the speed of my mental calculations to speeds necessary for traders?

(eg 84x27 takes me roughly 30secs and probably a bit more if caught off-guard)
Easier questions like some I have gotten before in interviews 5^4 and 16x14 took 2-8 seconds

 

suggest you go learn VBA right now...practice building spreadsheets that do something. move data around...use loops to implement some logic problem...build a word scanner and implement a diffusion index to characterize an FOMC statement or Philly Fed vs previous versions. These might not actually be useful, but you'll learn VBA skills that are useful

just google it...you're welcome
 

Depends also on your Excel skills, and if you are at least a bit used on programming (general conditions eg IF and so on) I would say that overall though, is not that long to learn most important things There is a nice YouTube channel called WiseOwl that teaches you the basics, is quite good and for free. Check it out

 

the competency you described is easily adequate. agree with the poster that said learn VBA and data manipulation. don't stress yourself out about the math. you're fine. get some experience with programming and database R, SQL etc

 

there are few prop shops that are antiquated and ruthless for filtering based on mental math. beyond those few, even if you get some mental math qs wrong, it isn't a dealbreaker anymore if you have a compelling background and relevant skills. def helps if you nail their trick questions about stats, programming and markets - all of which are arguably far more relevant.

this may be surprising to some prop shops, but we don't trade in the pits anymore. knowing hand signals and being able to add up fractions quickly doesn't provide any advantage to a trader.

 

Thanks, everyone for the advice!

I have some programming experience as I was introduced to it in high school and understand programming logic I guess. I tried VBA, however, I could not find anything useful to do that I could not otherwise by using core excel. Any help in generating imaginative cases for which VBA will be an asset?

 

There is no way to actually know whether someone is smart once you get the job, so people learn to flex as a means of displaying competence. A lot of flexes are weird flexes, but an accepted flex is useless displays of mental math ability. There then becomes a culture of uselessly displaying mental math ability, regardless of whether it improves investment performance. Interestingly, my own finding is that stocks do not tend to go up depending on your ability to calculate numbers in your head; that said, many seem to firmly believe this is the case.

As a result of this phenomenon, people start to believe mental math ability is somehow important as part of the job and so it is used as a filtering mechanism. It is stupid and useless, but it will not be removed from the culture of certain firms.

 

Aperiam dolores eius ad laborum iste. Tempore reiciendis beatae facilis officiis eaque dolores explicabo. Ut excepturi quidem et qui non eligendi fuga. Nisi explicabo aut assumenda suscipit. Ratione enim rerum nemo dignissimos maxime quos. Quaerat alias sunt impedit harum totam. Quam qui animi nesciunt velit sunt quae.

Quis quidem voluptatem ut veniam. Et et harum eos sapiente laborum accusantium quo.

Consequatur ex nostrum et et enim. Inventore non dolor consequuntur veniam ut dolorem. Odio aperiam similique dolor laudantium dolorum dolorem.

Quis et tempore id est asperiores. Eius aperiam ullam voluptatem. Excepturi eligendi officia enim asperiores occaecati sunt quia. Quia ipsam culpa id rerum dolorem dolorum facere.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. (++) 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (202) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (144) $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
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
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...”