4 ms·

Those are low numbers compared to the smaller prop shops that routinely pay 1MM+. Gotta have a PhD in pure math though. That shit is bananas.

nequo 4y ago
Do you have a source on the $1mn+ figure? I would be curious to read more about this.
- selectodude 4y ago
  I mean, not really. This is personal knowledge. You can't really look up salaries because the base is like $175k but even in mediocre years they're getting high six-figures in bonus. Take a peek at what Wolverine, Radix, or Jump are paying new grads though. It's generally like $500k+. Even Jane Street, which is a larger place that hires people who aren't published mathematicians (see: Sam Bankman-Fried) pays $750k
  - caddemon 4y ago
    Yeah the numbers he posted were also base from JS and Citadel websites, so they're not reflective of how much one could (or even guaranteed will with the early career bonus floors) actually make at those places. This is for traders and researchers though. You can get pretty similar early career salary + bonus as a SWE at JS or Citadel, which is probably what more people on HN would be considering. Do you know what kind of pay the smaller shops offer for pure SWE?
    - selectodude 4y ago
      I’m afraid that’s out of my purview. Only familiar with quant traders and researchers. I’m sure it’s as good or better than big tech. But you don’t get to live in San Francisco and the work is a lot more boring.
      - slymon99 4y ago
        > You don't get to live in San Francisco You get to live in New York City which is unparalleled in the US in terms of urban amenities. The weather can be brutal though. Or you live in Chicago which is like, still a solid city, but the weather is even worse. I would disagree that trading firms are more boring than big tech. They are typically much smaller and leaner (even HRT and JS are like sub 2k?), and generally employees have massively more impact and ownership as opposed to being a cog in a 20k developer machine.
smabie 4y ago
You don't need a PhD in pure math to get into these prop shops. However they do sometimes pay !MM+

nequo 4y ago

Do you have a source on the $1mn+ figure? I would be curious to read more about this.

selectodude 4y ago
I mean, not really. This is personal knowledge. You can't really look up salaries because the base is like $175k but even in mediocre years they're getting high six-figures in bonus. Take a peek at what Wolverine, Radix, or Jump are paying new grads though. It's generally like $500k+. Even Jane Street, which is a larger place that hires people who aren't published mathematicians (see: Sam Bankman-Fried) pays $750k
- caddemon 4y ago
  Yeah the numbers he posted were also base from JS and Citadel websites, so they're not reflective of how much one could (or even guaranteed will with the early career bonus floors) actually make at those places. This is for traders and researchers though. You can get pretty similar early career salary + bonus as a SWE at JS or Citadel, which is probably what more people on HN would be considering. Do you know what kind of pay the smaller shops offer for pure SWE?
  - selectodude 4y ago
    I’m afraid that’s out of my purview. Only familiar with quant traders and researchers. I’m sure it’s as good or better than big tech. But you don’t get to live in San Francisco and the work is a lot more boring.
    - slymon99 4y ago
      > You don't get to live in San Francisco You get to live in New York City which is unparalleled in the US in terms of urban amenities. The weather can be brutal though. Or you live in Chicago which is like, still a solid city, but the weather is even worse. I would disagree that trading firms are more boring than big tech. They are typically much smaller and leaner (even HRT and JS are like sub 2k?), and generally employees have massively more impact and ownership as opposed to being a cog in a 20k developer machine.

smabie 4y ago

You don't need a PhD in pure math to get into these prop shops. However they do sometimes pay !MM+