Finance Grad - for what it's worth: 1) Don't go into retail, it is a dying business. The internet has made sure of that. Unless you have 10+mm of family money that will come immediately with you and you think you can raise another 30mm in 2-3yrs, you will find it incredibly difficult to make it in that business. Retail is NOT ABOUT the market. It is about bullshting other people into giving you their cash. Is that what you want to do?? A sales job in this field has nothing to do about the market. In fact if you truly do this job correctly, you should be on the phone 9 hours a day solliciting money instead of looking at charts and trying to prognosticate the nxt move. If you care and are passionate about the market - it is a good way to get your foot into the Wall Street door, but it is not the career path you will want to take for the long term. 2) You need to immediately realize that you are NOT GOING TO MAKE ANY MONEY RIGHT OUT OF UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOL. LEARN THIS FACT NOW. Do not get caught in the fact that somebody threw you a low bid. As the gentlemen mentioned earlier, welcome to the real world. Someone earlier also mentioned go with a good firm - absoluletly if you are so lucky to be offered a job by one. A good firm with a big global presence will offer you many options internally (from a career perspective) down the road. Lots of opportunity inhouse. Your goal should be to get your foot in the door first and foremost! If you do that, the money will come. Don't think that "you are a college graduate and you are entitled to a high salary". You are not entitled to sht. And this is a grunt business with dedicated people willing to do a lot more for a lot less just because they love it that much. Your future employer knows that if you don't want it for a certain price, there are a lot of other guys/gals right behind you that will hit that bid running. Just get a job at a good firm, if you love the market and work hard - the rest will take care of itself. 3) Get the CFA. I can not express this enough. The test is brutal, but our business is becoming more and more competitive everyday. This will separate you from the others, and it carries weight in the field from an employment standpoint. Although the CFA will teach you ABSULUTELY NOTHING on trading, it is a hell of a backup and marketable bullet point for future employers. My suggestion - go into the Level 1 right out of college since you are still in the studying mode. The test is hard - so good luck. You are young, so God willing you get the CFA by 25-26, and trust me you will be glad you did it. TRUST ME YOU WILL BE GLAD YOU DID IT!! As Marty Schwartz says, ensure your family's security. You will do that by getting the CFA. If you want to trade later in life (thinking 30 and trust me it will come sooner than you can freakin imagine), having a CFA is a great backup in case you fail. So in summary, this is what I would suggest. 1) Graduate 2) Get entry level job into New York firm if possible and 3) get your new employer to pay for you to start the CFA via Level 1 immediately if you have reservations about trading on a desk. This will buy you time, which as a college graduate time is something you have. Now if you are sure that you want to trade in life, and if you can get a junior trader position on a great desk - HIT THAT BID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The hell w/the money - Next - We're done - when do I start!! You will learn more in 6months on a desk than 4yrs in a classroom. You are about to learn about the real world, especially if you decide to go into this business. It's brutal and it's going to knock you on your ass, but you'll love it bc it's the best business in the world. Go for it and never settle - Always push yourself. And go institutional over retail at all times. That's the best trade you can make right now. P.S. For our Junior in College boy - Although I love the passion, a piece of advice for you too. GO OUT!! get hammered with friends and enjoy these last 2yrs of your life. Because you are going to spend the next 50 years wishing you could go back there buddy.
easy Big Brent....people like you make working for a living exhausting...10 years from now you will know what i mean...
You guys seem to take trading too seriously. Do you know how i got into this business? Because I saw the TIME magazine 12-13 years ago with Nick leeson on it. read the story and and had a job lined up to be a Auditor with KPMG. I thought screw auditing trading seems FUN and applied for the graduate program at a investment bank in Sydney. Got the position and make shit load more than my audit buddies. My advice is do something that is FUN. Get on the graduate program so you work on the desks. working in a prop firm is stressful where in a bank you can lose $1m in a day and there are no questions from the risk manager. FUN = no stress = better sex
This is my final post within this thread. I have a social life, you do not know me so dont even comment on that. I take this business very serious because I really really love it. I am the type of person that gets immersed in something, that is just how I am. I am extremely competitive. Hyde you mention getting a job as an assistant trader like its easy. Bottom line is your going to send your resume out to shops and they arent even going to contact you. Its unfortunate but you cannot quit. Hyde if you know people that are hiring assistant traders please contact me with names and contact information. If they want an assistant trader i am sure they will be happy taking on a competent intern also. I would give a kidney to get into this business.
bigbrent, I hire people throughout the year and to me you sound desperate for a position. Desperate people = intense people = stress = dead man (eventually). How would you act when you have a 500 bund contracts moving to the point where your balls are being squeezed and with me yelling at you 2 meters away wanting a coffee and codiene?
Why are you so competitive? do you think you are not good enough as you are? Ive been through all these issues. I was one of the most cptve people you would have met. I learned. You are still learning. God bless.
I am competitive because it gives meaning to things. I grew up playing sports and always played to win. I believe if you are not competitive then you are passive and passive people get stomped on. Honestly im a little suprised you even asked this question. You make it seem like being competitive is a bad thing. It doesnt interfere with my life so I am not sure how it could be a bad thing. Why is being competitive a bad thing?
When you fear or hate others (or yourself) in the concept of competition, or you are not happy because of FEAR of loss (or fear of being stomped on), that fear/hate will reduce your character, and life. Life is about making right decisions and taking right actions. Love of oneself and others is often a right action. Competition and love of oneself or others are sometimes at odds.
Two problems with being hypercompetitive are that it is unattractive and the resulting instability. It's important to give a full effort and take pride in your endeavor, but not to the point where you become a raving lunatic who could be confused with someone with roid rage. There is a point at which competitive behavior becomes self defeating. Another downside is that the hypercompetitive person ignores the process and focuses only on the result. This is acceptable in trivial activities, but doesn't lend itself well to learning and understanding your mistakes.