I was just accepted to GATech for CS and I am planning to a double major in applied mathematics. I am waiting for the ivies+CMU, but if I don't get in how is the OCR at GATech.
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honestly, not good. It's a nontarget. If you are serious about breaking into any of those firms I would retake SAT/ACT frequently, get a higher score and transfer ASAP
Bruh, why would you think I need to retake SAT lol. GATech CS is pretty hard especially OOS. But I will transfer
Because I go to an actual target/semi-target (think Duke/Cornell). "pretty hard" does not mean jack-shit if you are recruiting for Two Sigma, AQR out of undergrad. You have to be elite to even get looks at those firms and GATech isn't going to get you an interview unless you are a Native American woman
Agree that GT doesn't have a strong prestige appeal or OCR. However, the CS school is still a top 10 department and attracts some of the best and brightest. If you intern FAANG freshman and sophomore summer / do some great research work in ML/AI with renowned professors/ keep high GPA with a double major in applied math and network hard and do interview prep from day 1 I can't see why you won't be a strong candidate for the quant shops...they give interviews to most people but it is up to you to "prove" yourself and go above and beyond to show your raw intellectual horsepower rather than just go to classes and submit your resume.
Okay that isn't bad then. How much difference is the pay between the quant side and FAANG.
The pay is pretty comparable to start between FAANG and quant, with quant having higher outliers and usually having more volatility. Both will lead to extremely comfortable lifestyles, and one could argue that FAANG has a better expected comp since there is less volatility (lower risk of being fired) and more stability in the compensation. But again, on the upside quant has the higher comp.
Basically
FAANG: high stable comp, great work life balance, more bureaucratic, majority of comp in equity, you are usually a cog in a large machine and become pretty specialized in an area and rarely get good exposure early on, no non competes
quant: high but very volatile comp, usually meritocratic, low stability in career, depending on fund can be highly silo’d (so you can get stuck in comp and career progression), may require additional degrees (depending on fund), strict non competes.
As for comp, HFs is one of the only places where I have seen (and personally know) people making mid 7 figures before they turn 30, it can take people who are great and reward them; but this IS NOT the norm, everyone thinks they’ll be that person and most end up failing. Many people get stuck (in quant space) around $500k.
FAANG usually has a bit more structured path and comp growth, but entry level can be almost as high (know people who got $300-350k all in first year, but this includes vesting of 1 yr of the equity grant), but the cash component at the more senior levels is usually capped and most of the compensation is in equity. You will see 7 figures but those are senior managers/directors and that is a lot more about running teams and strategy than what you’d be doing at a HF.
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what about p72/cubist and schoenfeld?
I went to GT, there are plenty of alums at Citadel, Citadel Securities and various prop shops in Chicago.
I just ran a search and Citadel has 30 GT alums. AQR has 5. Two Sigma has 14. Citadel Securities has 15. Optiver and DRW both have 5-10 guys in various roles
OCR isn't amazing, but you shouldn't have much trouble finding a seat if you're good & willing to network.
To sit here and say GT CS wont get you to a quant shop is silly & smacks of regional snobbery. If you cant parlay the #5 CS program into a quant seat, nowhere will
Anyone saying that you cant win one of these roles from GT CS is a nut. Once of the great things about many quant firms is they will give a first round to just about anyone who asks - and if the resume screen doesn't work out for you, just email a recruiter - worked for me every time to get the test.
After that, just meet the technical bars in the interviews and make them think you will be easy / pleasant to work with. The latter point gets glazed over a lot in quant since people often assume the offers always goes to the top technical talent - this is not the case. If someone is marginally better technically than you, but you come off as much easier to work with, odds are you'll get the nod.
Just a heads up about CMU, it is not that good for quants, you're better off at an ivy/MIT. If you want SWE, there's nearly no better place.
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