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Business & Finance

Financial Quantitative Analysts

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.

Median salary (BLS)

$81,100

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$48k – $151k

Job outlook

+3% (about average)

AI exposure

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports one wage for this occupational group, which covers 2 related roles — so read the median as an approximate group figure, and the range as the truer picture for this specific title. BLS source.

Early-career check: graduates of the matching programs below typically earn $112,000 ten years after starting college — an early-career figure, vs. the all-experience BLS median above. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard.

Plan a path to Financial Quantitative Analysts

Qualification costsStack incomeBest cities/statesSchool ROIJob-posting fitTailored resume

Education

Typical entry: Master's degree

Plan my path to this →

Typical progression

  1. Financial Quantitative Analysts Intern

    Internship

    $36,000

    ~4 mos to advance

  2. Junior Financial Quantitative Analysts

    Entry / Junior

    $48,460

    ~2 yrs to advance

  3. Financial Quantitative Analysts

    Established

    $81,100

    ~3 yrs to advance

  4. Senior Financial Quantitative Analysts

    Senior

    $116,295

Internships are a common on-ramp here — they speed up landing that first role and improve your odds, which is why the Safe and High-ceiling plans build one in.

Key skills

A typical day

  • •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.

Fields of study

Any field

Top colleges for Business & Finance

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Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.