Types of Trading And Internship advice

u12m|_|m · Post by **u12m|_|m** » Thu Dec 27, 2007 12:38 am

Hey, I'm a second year in the UK doing social studies and I've been reading a bit lately about trading. (read reminiscences of a stock operator, Vault career guide on S&T)

I've got a few days before the internship deadlines for firms like ML, DB.. got my CV which is tailored for trading but I'm still unsure in which department I want to go in but I'd like to actually get specific. Which department would you expect is recruiting most considering the recent credit crunch? Best future prospects? (equities, commodities, exotics, FX?)

How common are Market Making traders? Do investment firms have a lot of people working specifically in that area? Or do most traders do prop trading too? It seems I would lean toward MM in equities or currencies if I could.

Cheers

Babs · Post by **Babs** » Thu Dec 27, 2007 4:16 pm

Commodities departments, specifically energy, have been the big hirers in my business in the past couple of years. I have also done a lot of equity traders over the years, but that seems to have slowed down in the past 12 months, partly because my clients have built out their teams. I only deal in senior level positions, so I can't give any real advice on entry level positions, but there are a lot of shops staffing up in the UK, so I would imagine there are opportunities available.

There are plenty of market makers out there and plents who do prop trading and those who do both. Big bucks come from prop trading, but you can do just fine as an equity trader handling large institutional accounts.

u12m|_|m · Post by **u12m|_|m** » Fri Dec 28, 2007 10:38 pm

Thanks Babs, would you think it would be an advantage if I apply for summer internships requesting specific trading positions? I have no experience so perhaps I shouldn't mention it as it would increase my likeliness of getting trading experience and filling in certain vacancies?

ClopeMan · Post by **ClopeMan** » Fri Dec 28, 2007 11:29 pm

Babs, what you wrote is very interesting for me (i assume your comment would hold for quant positions too). I have a question on a related topic that some NPers could probably answer: How much harder does it get to be hired in London (junior permanent positions) for a non European given that the applicant has no HSMP? This is of course not an entirely abstract setting, so thx in advance!

DrTarr · Post by **DrTarr** » Sat Dec 29, 2007 7:06 am

Babs,

You say you are seeing a lot of hiring in the energy space, is that specifically trading?