Do hedge funds value athlete skills?

lagidrop · New Member Offline Joined: 08 Aug 2007 Posts: 2

What are the chances of getting a job in a good hedge fund if you are a top 50 Divison 1 athlete with a double major in econ and math? Do you think hedge funds would consider being an athlete as an advantage or they would prefer someone amazing in math? Thanks.

**Posted:** Wed Aug 08, 2007 6:42 am

rrusczyk

Depends on the position. Certainly proven excellence in anything is a plus. But if you're looking for a quantitative modelling position, being a great athlete will be much less helpful in an interview than if you're looking for a trading, marketing, or sales position, where your interviewers will be more likely to be ex-athletes and more likely to see higher value in someone who has developed those skills.

**Posted:** Wed Aug 08, 2007 7:42 am

mikeymike

**Posted:** Thu Aug 09, 2007 6:39 pm

rrusczyk

I think it has more to do with there not being a huge intersection between 'top notch athletes' and 'top notch quants'. To be a top notch anything requires a lot of time. To do so in both athletics and math/CS is very hard. It's absolutely necessary to do the latter to be a top quant. You can become a very good marketer/trader/etc without having developed very strong quant skills.

**Posted:** Fri Aug 10, 2007 10:19 am

mikeymike

**Posted:** Sat Aug 11, 2007 3:12 am

Dominic Connor · P versus NP Offline Joined: 11 Feb 2008 Posts: 24

This is perhaps the most perfect example of why you need more than one version of your CV.

I counsel you to create >2 versions, each with a different emphasis, from full on sport, to barely mentioning it.

My reason is that you can't know the utility function of those who look at your CV, indeed to get a job it will often be read by more than one person. In that uncertain state, you should not rely upon one play for all jobs. In the absence of more precise into about a given employer you should choose randomly from your portfolio of CV versions.

Although you've said absolutely nothing that leads me to doubt your integrity, the advice I give has led some people to think I am advocating that "multiple versions" means adding things that aren't as true as they ought to be. That is absolutely not the case. CVs are checked, and I have any number of anecdotes about people who have gilded the rose being blown up at interview.

**Posted:** Tue Feb 12, 2008 5:44 am

myc · Riemann Hypothesis Offline Joined: 12 Feb 2006 Posts: 278

what does being an athlete have to do with trading and marketing?

**Posted:** Wed Apr 29, 2009 8:57 pm