Will be interesting to see how HFT hiring holds up if market vol falls off, now that HFT strategy(ies) is(are) saturated with newcomers and P/L is tougher to come by.
Well, I tried pitching edges to low-tier firms but they don't have the infrastructure or assets under management that I need. High-end firms have very strict requirements, and while I've been chatting with them, I am not confident negotiations will go anywhere. The recruiter on this thread was talking about top schools. I did come out of top schools. My dilemma is that a lot of these positions they create are outside-track jobs, where even if you do spend 3-5 years working for them, you're still in role-lock-in. It's not so simple to just trade for myself, because I would need a minimum of several million just to recreate platforms and gain access to various venues. If I can negotiate a reasonable payout structure somewhere, I'd much rather take 45-50k + %age than 150k or more at an ibank. If the edge fails to pan out, I'm ok with being fired. I'm not okay with 3-5 years and a dead-end.
Sure, I come up with strategies. I don't know what you mean by "yourself", since almost every strategy I have ever worked with has been a mutation of something else. This is what happens if I pitch an edge: I talk to firm, firm is interested. I speak to firm, firm says "is it your own PnL, or is it group PnL?" If group PnL doesn't count for me because I was not MD-level on group, then I cannot claim my own adjustments to strategies myself as my own PnL. Ultimately, whatever role I get ends up back in discretionary bonus land, maybe with some title like, "quant developer."
If you look deep enough. The jobs are there. Here is a good stRt up position for a stay at home quant trader. You can thank me later: Thought you might be able to pass this along to a new grad or someone with these skills who is looking for an entry level_stay at home type quant/programing position: _ _ Connors Research is an investment markets research company affiliated with The Connors Group. We are seeking a full-time researcher for the development and testing of new trading strategies. Our primary focus is swing trading and day trading in stock, forex, options and futures markets. If you are_ confident, motivated, and passionate about the financial markets, we are interested in you. _ Your Must-have Skills Passion for research into trading and problem-solving At least one year programming experience in either C, C++, Java or C# Advanced Microsoft Excel knowledge, especially charting, pivot tables, and formulas Articulate English communication skills with the ability to clearly speak and write technical material, and answer detailed technical questions Basic statistics knowledge Recent trading experience in stocks, options, forex or futures. Bonus Skills Experience writing trading systems in a backtesting platform such as AmiBroker, TradeStation, MetaStock, WealthLab or similar Advanced statistics knowledge Basic SQL experience creating queries and tables. In this role you will work closely with a team of researchers on cutting-edge problems, new products and advanced trading methods._ Compensation is commensurate with experience._ This is a national search, the position permits work-from-home, but we will give preference to candidates that can work at our Jersey City, New Jersey offices._ Principals only, please, no recruiters._ Connors Research is proud to be an equal-opportunity employer._ To apply, please submit your resume, a cover letter and your salary history to careers@cg3.com.
If I'm experienced writing trading systems for retail platforms, why would I want to give research to these guys??
With a series-7 license and 30x BP, borrow 25k from Uncle Vladimir or Cousin Lou and put your retail strategy to work yourself. "Connor Research Group" will be less thankful than Cousin Lou, if you're any good at making money.
Yeah. You don't even need a series 7 in most cases. Go for it dude! We don't need no stinken jobs. We trade for a livn nowadays I pointed you to a good solid job for a stay at home trader quant. It's up to you to apply or not. By the way. You need to learn to read too. Last I read the add. They are looking for you to program THEIR strategies. Not the other way around.
Ah, true. I should not fault you. Thanks for the info. If I had graduated more recently, I would have jumped at that opportunity, as it does sound better than a lot of what is listed out there.