Getting into financial industry from physics

[acpsiddhartha]

hey
I hard that many financial companies hire physics students for quantitative jobs. how much is that true. and I also hard that they hire students from top 10 univs only. how much true is this? If I get some background in finance and develop skilll in c/c++ is there any chance to get into financial sector after Physics PhD from somewhere in 50 ranking university? I am an international student, so that is also to be considered.

Thanks

 

[JimmyJockstrap]

finance is easy. Id assume so. I think a physics student would on average be smarter than a finance student just the finance student might be more up to date in their knowledge. Maybe you could study part time in finance and look for work or do an overload of units in finance.

Im not an employer though that is just my opinion of people who study physics.

 

[JasonRox]

No one cares if you're an international student. Just make sure you have a visa or something to work.

To make it anywhere in the finance sector, I'd recommend getting a professional designation, and let the requirements of those designations dictate what you should take. I'm not from the US, but I don't think there are designations for just quantitative work. Even if there isn't, for competitive reasons, it would probably be good to get one if it's not too much work. Some places will hire you if you're in the process of getting one, so you don't have to wait until you're done.

 

[JasonRox]

finance is easy. Id assume so. I think a physics student would on average be smarter than a finance student just the finance student might be more up to date in their knowledge. Maybe you could study part time in finance and look for work or do an overload of units in finance.

Im not an employer though that is just my opinion of people who study physics.

PS. Finance is not easy.

 

[JimmyJockstrap]

relative to physics imo

 

[morphism]

relative to physics imo

Depends on the level of finance. It can get very mathematical and complex.

 

[leon1127]

relative to physics imo

Look at the book "schochastic calculus of variation for mathematical finance" bu P. Malliavin. The mathematics in that book shall surely make you cry the first time.

 

[acpsiddhartha]

I saw few pages of a finance book. it is full of sooooooo much complecated math, it seemed very difficult. I don't want to compare with physics. real understanding of physics is also not easy... anyway finance is never easy, that's for sure.

 

[tronter]

The whole field of computational/quantitative finance may be mathematically elegant (i.e. put call parity, and Black-Scholes). But it really doesn't have any applications in the real world (all of the theories). They work only under special conditions.

 

[pivoxa15]

Finance isn't as intuitive as physics so in that way it may be harder. It also depends on the person's motivation. A higher motivation to do something can make something look easy.

 

[Edgardo]

Here's a website about "Finance for Physicists":
http://guava.physics.uiuc.edu/~nigel/finance.html

 

[Sojourner01]

Someone in my classes has just been accepted by Barclays as a trainee securities analyst for £38k with little effort, so yes it can be done, they just want very bright people who work hard and catch on to concepts quickly.

 

[Locrian]

Consider http://www.poplarware.com/personal/lptodo.html as an example. On the linked page she writes:

Finance/Wall Street: Derivatives pricing, strategies for trading, trading, analysis, research, programming. I have it on good authority (from a recruiter: Jennifer Levin, whose email address is "jlevin" at her company's domain "optionsgroup.com") (I leave it as an exercise for the reader to put the email address together -- she invites you to contact her if you are hunting for this type of job) that Wall Street firms are still hiring masters and PhD graduates in physics, math, engineering, and other fields. You will need to have a good programming background, but not necessarily a background in finance. The job market on Wall Street fluctuates with the stock, bond, and commodities markets, however, so at any given time it is hard to say how easy it will be to find a position. I worked on Wall Street for two years, and for me, the stress and long hours were too much to be made up for by the excellent financial compensation. Others are willing to make the tradeoff, and I even know one person (a mathematician) who actually enjoys working there.

She has more detail elsewhere if you are willing to dig for it.

 

[daveb]

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Employers usually do not require a specific field of study for personal financial advisors, but a bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, economics, business, mathematics, or law provides good preparation for the occupation. Courses in investments, taxes, estate planning, and risk management also are helpful. Programs in financial planning are becoming more widely available in colleges and universities. Working for a broker-dealer is a good way to gain experience that can help individuals pass the security license exams needed to practice financial planning...Mathematical, computer, analytical, and problem-solving skills are essential qualifications for financial analysts and personal financial advisors. Good communication skills also are necessary, because these workers must present complex financial concepts and strategies in easy-to-understand language to clients and other professionals. Self-confidence, maturity, and the ability to work independently are important as well. Financial analysts must be detail oriented, motivated to seek out obscure information, and familiar with the workings of the economy, tax laws, and money markets. Strong interpersonal skills and sales ability are crucial to the success of both financial analysts and personal financial advisors.

Although not required for financial analysts or personal financial advisors to practice, certification can enhance one’s professional standing and is strongly recommended by many employers. Financial analysts may receive the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, sponsored by the CFA Institute . To qualify for this designation, applicants need a bachelor’s degree and 3 years of work experience in a related field and must pass a series of three examinations...Personal financial advisors may obtain the Certified Financial Planner credential, often referred to as CFP (R), demonstrating extensive training and competency in financial planning. This certification, issued by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, requires relevant experience, the completion of education requirements, passing a comprehensive examination, and adherence to an enforceable code of ethics.

 

[Locrian]

Daveb,

That appears to be the information for a personal financial planner. This is not what most physicists who end up in the financial sector do - most of them work on mathematical models to improve yields in trading various commodities.

 

[daveb]

Yes, well finance is a rather large and all encompassing field, so i just went with what the BLS had listed for financial analysts. If you're talking about mathematical modeling, they really like mathematicians (I was actively being recruited with only a BS in math/physics from UCLA for such positions, but that's not what I wanted to do).

 

[TMFKAN64]

The whole field of computational/quantitative finance may be mathematically elegant (i.e. put call parity, and Black-Scholes). But it really doesn't have any applications in the real world (all of the theories). They work only under special conditions.

If Black-Scholes no longer has any applications in the real world, it is only because the state of the art has moved on from there. But when I did my brief stint on Wall Street around 1990, everyone and his uncle was busily working on refinements and applications of Black-Scholes pricing models.