?Move for a Quant Trading role or apply again?
Hi guys,
I'm in a bit of a difficult situation and I hope someone here can give some word of advice.
I graduated from a good uni last summer and am from London and hold an offer for a Quant Trader job in Amsterdam. The place is ok, good enough to learn and start a career, but not my dream company. Currently, my biggest problem is that I have to move to Amsterdam in a month, I don't really want to live there and leave London. Moreover, in a couple of years I will be getting a British passport and moving will mean I will lose that chance (and my passport is very weak, so it is significant). Anyway, the problem is that if I reject this job, I have to search for Grad jobs again but the cycle is obviously almost over now, so I will most likely have to apply in September. However, if I wait till the new cycle I will no longer qualify for some of the Grad roles as I graduated over a year ago.
So the decision is:
-
Take the job and try to get a different one within a year to move back to London
-
Search for a new job and risk not finding any since obviously, the industry is competitive
-
Do something like a PhD and qualify as a grad again + build skills and learn which is always good
TLDR; is it worth forcing yourself to move for a good job (Quant Trading) when you are young or stay and take the risk of a worse-off job?
Any help would be appreciated, I am really stuck and the worst thing is that I only have a few weeks to decide.
Based on the most helpful WSO content, this is quite the conundrum you're facing, but let's break it down:
Taking the Job in Amsterdam:
Searching for a New Job:
Pursuing a PhD:
Here is a question that you might be interested in and I can help you with: What are the key factors to consider when deciding between starting a career in Quant Trading immediately versus pursuing further education like a PhD?
Sources: Ask Eddie: Should I Bail On My Trading Job?, How do you become a Quant Trader?, Q&A - Quant with 2 yrs exp in Europe both buy/sell side, Q&A: Quantitative Derivatives Trader, 1 year in, Is it worth pursuing a career in trading in 2017?
bump. Not really qualified to give you advice, but wondering how difficult would it be to get the UK passport in the future once you have a lot of money and have retired? Based on my experience, the right choice might be to stay in the UK, because as difficult as finding a job is, obtaining citizenship + staying where all your friends and connections are seems more irreplaceable to me than finding a job. There are workarounds to the job problem, ie PhD, lateraling, a ton of extra legwork, etc., but there are no workarounds to the citizenship problem. Depends on how valuable that is to you and your future kids.
It's a very tough decision either way
I think it depends on the shop, but I would take the job unless you are in a great financial situation + very smart to get another offer + have something productive to do in the meantime.
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