What degree did you study at university?
BSc Mathematical Sciences (Computer Sciences and Applied Mathematics) (UJ), BSc (Hons) in Applied Mathematics (UJ)
What is your role at FNB?
Quantitative Analyst Graduate Trainee
Why did you choose this career?
I have always loved mathematics, so I studied mathematical sciences in my undergrad. When I found out what a quant was, I became so interested in it because I would be using both my maths and developing skills in my day to day job, so I went for it! WORTH IT!
What does your typical day entail?
I work with different teams working on different models, so my typical day involves development work for the models and on some days, I perform analysis on data and creating rules.
What are the highlights and challenges of your role?
The highlights have to be working with different teams and learning about the different models within the organization. This opens your eyes to different aspects of the business so essentially, you learn a lot more than just the work that is done within your own team.
The challenges of the role is having to first learn about the data used for each model before even doing any work on it because when you develop or automate a model, you have to know what results you should be getting so you can fix any errors in the model before you are certain that the model is automated correctly.
How do you keep up to date with all the changes in your field of work?
I am blessed to have a hands-on team and manager. Whenever there are changes within the field, I have people to turn to for any support that I need. Online courses help me a lot with some of the skills I use daily and thankfully, my business unit provides a free Udemy license which I can use at any time. I am also busy with my master’s degree and that keeps me on my feet.
What do you enjoy doing outside of the office?
I thoroughly enjoy travelling and reading an occasion non-friction book here and there. I enjoy poetry books a lot more (the likes of Upile Chisala and Rupi Kaur).