All-rounder

In this increasingly competitive society, a myriad set of skills is essential, in fact a pre-requisite for a quant. And this doesn't guarantee success. Success is a combination of motivation, desire, diligence, entrepreneurship, innate talent and an element of luck.

Just to get to the starting point of the race, one needs to have an advanced degree. A working knowledge of stochastic calculus, probability theory, measure theory, statistical theory, programming and simulation, ODE, PDE, numerical analysis, real analysis, complex analysis, functional analysis, metric spaces, optimization theory.

Is it all about math? Scientific curiousity, good business acumen, excellent presentation skills, ability to intepret results, client-oriented and being a team player - all come into the equation.

You have to understand the dynamics of financial markets, the behaviour of assets, how to replicate them and structure new products, transcation costs and liquidity constraints, impact of uncertainty as well as legal, accounting, tax and regulatory implications among other issues.

Seems daunting isn't it? But I wouldn't know until I have had a taste of it.

On a separate note, I'll be making a trip to Cambridge after my exams to visit an old friend who has just completed his PhD and will be working as a quant in a top-tier IB. He might be able to provide more insights from his past internship experiences. I'm looking forward to that. And I'm starting work next month too, I'm so excited.