With the global financial crisis, it has become much harder to find a job. The problems are particularly acute at entry level. What does this translate into in terms of behaviour as a job seeker?
- First, you must really know your stuff. The days hiring on the basis of potential are gone, now make sure that you have done your preparation and can cope with any reasonable question. This means learning the books, being able to reproduce them and drilling interview questions at great length. It also means spending a lot of time implementing the models in C++ so you can demonstrate your ability to contribute from day one.
- Second, you can’t assume that you’ll have a lot of chances. In the past, many candidates honed their skills by going to lots of interviews and having their gaps discovered for them. This is not an option when only a few places are hiring: they won’t reinterview you just because you have done a bit more preparation. Doing your preparation also means finding out about the company and the area.
- Third, don’t be picky regarding area. You may well want to work with exotic interest rate derivatives, but if all the jobs are in commodities then accept that and plan a shift when the market does.
- Fourth, don’t get focussed on the salary. The money is down; the important thing is to get some useful experience for when the market turns around.
- Fifth, do you really need to graduate this year? Spending a little longer at university is not a bad way to sit out the crisis. You can always spend the time broadening your knowledge andmaybe even get a financial maths research project going.
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