Getting into trading

[rawrschach]

Sorry if there is already a thread like this, I'd just like to present it in a manner relevant to myself in particular.

So far I have been applying only to the big names for a position on their Grad training schemes for trading, and have been rejected by half of them and haven't heard back from the other half. This is probably because my 2nd year grades were badly affected by illness and so brought down my overall grade, of course despite what they say, everyong ignores my app because of this even though my grades in the 2 years since have averaged First class, and am currently doing a Master's in uni ranked 1 in the country for its field.

I came across this site after seeing 'tibra trading' advertise on my careers site, googled it, and ended up here. I was curious as to what kind of work this is, I notice in other threads that these small companies ask you for money and/or don't pay salary.

I would appreciate it very much if you could point me in the direction of good market maker trading firms/hedge funds or smaller investment/boutique banks that will look more kindly on my cv, with a longer term aim of making it into one of the major banks.

Many thanks!

 

[crazybrab]

Chocolate13,

Clarify where you want to go. Prop trading, market making, IBs and hedge funds are all very different and they will not get you into your dream "trading" job through the back doors.

Decide what you want to do as a trader, what you want to trade, learn a much as possible and then apply for jobs. Being too *generic* wont get you very far. Personally, I want to be a *trader*, but don't fancy doing something that doesnt 'rock my boat' such as flow trading pork bellies. Define who you are, and then apply for selected jobs..

As for your academics, I failed 2/6 of my modules in my second year, did poorly in the rest, graduated with a 2:1, yet still had an internship with an IB, and reached I would not blame it on your grades...

My advice: Apply to those IBs you have not applied to so far and hope. If you don't get into a major IB now, it'll be pretty hard to make the shift from some smaller firm unless you are a stellar performer.

There are many other exciting careers in the city, in both small firms and prop trading. Having experienced an IB, I'm targeting trading arcades as I believe these offer a greater chance to prove one's worth.

Thanks,

Crazybrab

 

[rawrschach]

In terms of IB speak, I specifiaclly want to be an equities trader.

What exactly are 'arcades' and do they offer training etc?

Honestly, this is a career path I am look for for at max the next ten years, it is the only 'job' that vaguely interests me and all I want to do is make a load of money and then bugger off and do my own thing. I'm looking specifically at trading 'cuz it's relatively exciting and I can see myself doing it independently in the future once I have built a sufficient financial base.

 

[viktajatt]

Chocolate, I'm in exactly the same position as you at the moment and am also interested in a career as a trader for similar reasons to you. Seems like you have to start at the bottom and take any related work experience you can get and also be lucky also if you want to make it in trading but don't get an offer or even an interview from a major ib.

I've applied to most major IBs and haven't got an interview yet - still waiting for a reply from about 5 or so and have been rejected from a few etc. However this may be due to the fact that my early academic grades were poor and so I have a low number of UCAS points and very poor GCSEs. Therefore the university I graduated from is quite low in the 'pecking order' I guess and but I did graduate with a good classification. Therefore the majority of IB applicants probably went to a 'better' uni than I did and got more UCAS points etc. Because of this factor I kinda expected it to be difficult for me to get interviews. In addition I do not have any previous IB work experience and this makes it nearly impossible to get work experience at an ib via temp agency work as agencies cant place you if you don't have any previous IB experience.

Also, my knowledge on the industry as a whole as well as trading is currently not the best and I still have a lot to learn so it seems like an uphill struggle. On top of this I feel that we are drawing closer to a significant dip in trading activity and possible a bear market which means people who are already working in the industry will be getting fired and so hiring in general within the industry will decrease.

All this said however, where there is a will, there is a way and something should crop up if we stick at it.

Keep us posted with your progress.