Have you often thought about what research looks like outside of academia? Want to come up with cutting-edge ideas and develop innovations that could change the world as soon as you implement them?

Discover how you can make your mark in industry in Optiver’s PhD Quant Lab, a two-day insights program for PhD students in STEM.

No background in finance or financial knowledge needed! 

• Eligible for PhD students in Mathematics, Statistics, Physics, Electrical / Mechatronic / Software Engineering, Computer Science, Applied/Quantitative Finance or Econometrics or any other quantitative field. 
• Program dates: 11 – 12 July 2024
• Where: Optiver Sydney office
• Application close: 31 May 2024 (5pm) 

Who We Are

Optiver is a global market maker founded in Amsterdam, with offices in London, Chicago, Austin, New York, Sydney, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taipei and Mumbai. Established in 1986, today we are a leading liquidity provider, with close to 2,000 employees in offices around the world, united in our commitment to improve the market through competitive pricing, execution and risk management. By providing liquidity on multiple exchanges across the world in various financial instruments, we participate in the safeguarding of healthy and efficient markets. We provide liquidity to financial markets using our own capital, at our own risk, trading a wide range of products: listed derivatives, cash equities, ETFs, bonds and foreign currencies.

Optiver’s Sydney office is one of the primary players within Asian markets, trading a range of products. As an active participant on the Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, and Japan exchanges, we act as Optiver’s APAC head office.

What You'll Do

As part of our two-day PhD Quant Lab, you’ll have the opportunity to:

• Hear directly from PhD graduates at Optiver on their day-to-day projects, and their successful transition to industry.
• Take part in our trading workshop, where you’ll gain a fundamental understanding of market making, as well as challenge your technical skills, to truly understand what makes Optiver successful.
• Meet people across the business, and understand the different potential career pathways.
• Build your job-ready skills. We’ll guide you through the recruitment process and give you tips on how you can best prepare yourself.
• Immerse in Optiver’s high performing culture, and have access to our incredible benefits.

By the end of the program, you’ll have a great understanding of the incredible opportunities that we offer at Optiver, as well as how you can apply your research skills to the problems that we work on.

Who You Are

You are a PhD student, of any year, with a drive to make things happen. You’re an inquisitive, critical thinker who enjoys innovating new and creative solutions.

In addition, you’re:

• Constantly keen to understand the “why” and a strong believer in the power of collaborative problem solving.
• Enjoy working on an array of problems, with a strong focus on results.
• Pragmatic and focused on outcomes.
• Can communicate technical concepts exceptionally well.
• Enjoy utilising technology, programming or maths in your daily life to solve problems.
• Excited to test yourself in one of the most high performing areas of the financial markets.

What You'll Get

• Two days in the Optiver Sydney office, including flights and accommodation (for interstate attendees).
• The chance to learn from PhD graduates that have transitioned into successful industry careers.
• The opportunity to work on real-life projects that immediately enhance your employability.
• A network of like-minded PhD students.
• Breakfast, lunch and an in-house barista.

Eligibility

• You will need to be currently reading for a PhD in Mathematics, Statistics, Physics, Electrical / Mechatronic / Software Engineering, Computer Science, Applied/Quantitative Finance or Econometrics.
• An Australian or New Zealand Citizen, Australian Permanent Resident or able to secure full working rights after graduating.

As an intentionally flat organisation, we believe that great ideas and impact can come from everyone. We are passionate about empowering individuals and creating diverse teams that thrive. Every person at Optiver should feel included, valued and respected, because we believe our best work is done together.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is hardwired through every stage of our hiring process. We encourage applications from candidates from any and all backgrounds, and we welcome requests for reasonable adjustments during the process to ensure that you can best demonstrate your abilities.

Does this sound like the future you’re looking for? Take up the challenge and apply to the Optiver PhD Quant Lab today!

If you have any questions regarding this opportunity, please contact us at [email protected].