Financial Quantitative Analysts

What the job really is

Develop quantitative techniques to inform securities investing, equities investing, pricing, or valuation of financial instruments. Develop mathematical or statistical models for risk management, asset optimization, pricing, or relative value analysis.

At a glance

• Sector: Business & Financial
• O*NET-SOC code: 13-2099
• O*NET job zone: 5 — extensive preparation
• Work sample tasks on file: 12
• Tools and technologies listed: 12

What you actually do

Work sample tasks recorded for this occupation:

• Apply mathematical or statistical techniques to address practical issues in finance, such as derivative valuation, securities trading, risk management, or financial market regulation.
• Research or develop analytical tools to address issues such as portfolio construction or optimization, performance measurement, attribution, profit and loss measurement, or pricing models.
• Interpret results of financial analysis procedures.
• Develop core analytical capabilities or model libraries, using advanced statistical, quantitative, or econometric techniques.
• Define or recommend model specifications or data collection methods.
• Produce written summary reports of financial research results.
• Maintain or modify all financial analytic models in use.
• Provide application or analytical support to researchers or traders on issues such as valuations or data.
• Devise or apply independent models or tools to help verify results of analytical systems.
• Collaborate in the development or testing of new analytical software to ensure compliance with user requirements, specifications, or scope.
• Confer with other financial engineers or analysts on trading strategies, market dynamics, or trading system performance to inform development of quantitative techniques.
• Consult traders or other financial industry personnel to determine the need for new or improved analytical applications.

Tools and technology

Amazon Web Services AWS software, Apache Hive, C#, C++, IBM SPSS Statistics, JavaScript, Linux, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Azure software, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Power BI

What employers expect you to already be comfortable with.

Where this job leads

Related occupations — the usual moves up and sideways:

• Data Scientists
• Financial Risk Specialists
• Financial and Investment Analysts
• Statisticians
• Operations Research Analysts
• Investment Fund Managers
• Statistical Assistants
• Business Intelligence Analysts

Getting in

O*NET assigns this occupation job zone 5 (extensive preparation). The related occupations above are the realistic routes in and out.

Find openings

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Check this against the source

O*NET OnLine: Financial Quantitative Analysts — the authoritative public-domain profile this page is derived from, including the full task list, reported skills and the wage estimates for your region.

Derived and rewritten from the public-domain O*NET database (U.S. Department of Labor / Employment and Training Administration). Figures are observations, not promises — always confirm salary, licensing and visa requirements with the employer and the relevant authority.