A new grad competing with PhDs for quant research seats
- On their own34 applications in 3 months
- First interview3 weeks after the rewrite
- With Magmira180 applications sent, 15 interviews, 2 final rounds
- OfferQuantitative Researcher, $185K plus bonus
Aman finished a master's in financial mathematics at a top US program, after a BTech in computer science. He had research internships at a quant fund and a trading firm, prior work as a quant research analyst, and his own systematic trading.
His OPT clock started in December. Quant hiring moves on a tight cycle, and he was up against PhD candidates for the same seats. In three months he sent 34 applications.
What we saw on the resume
His resume listed each internship like a course: what he developed, what he explored. There was no thread connecting them, and his own trading looked like something to fill a gap. A recruiter had to piece the story together, and most did not.
What we changed
- Rewrote every line around results: Sharpe ratio, drawdown reduction, backtest performance.
- Presented his independent trading as an active track record.
- Took coursework and academic wording out of the top third.
His first interview came three weeks later.
“Every other resume in the stack had the same internships. Mine finally said what I actually built.”
Where it ended
Quantitative Researcher, $185K plus bonus
15 interviews, 2 final rounds from 180 applications, with a prop trading firm and a quant hedge fund.
Name shortened and employers generalized for privacy.
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