Career Kickstarter Shanghai - Trading and Research

<p data-renderer-start-pos="5080" data-local-id="612c8436-f81e-4ae2-903c-d942dc30ee4c"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">This program is your exclusive pathway to join Optiver (Shanghai) as a graduate. We won’t open for separate graduate roles in Shanghai this year, so don’t miss your chance to apply!</strong></p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="5263" data-local-id="81e811af5d3d">Want to fast-track your career path from student to&nbsp;a&nbsp;full-time trader&nbsp;or researcher?  </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="5352" data-local-id="d7c490a66bd0">Join <strong data-renderer-mark="true">Career Kickstarter: Trading&nbsp;&amp; Research</strong>, our five-day immersive program designed to accelerate your journey from university to a full-time trading&nbsp;or research&nbsp;career. </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="5525" data-local-id="8763fda03c10">Experience the fast-paced world of quantitative trading and discover what it takes to excel as a trader&nbsp;or researcher, from mastering options theory to developing highly practical industry skills.   </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="5726" data-local-id="59f639d7a294">Through a blend of interactive lectures, trading simulations, and mentorship from our world-class education team, you’ll sharpen your analytical edge and learn how to think, and act, like a trader or researcher&nbsp;by the end of the week.  </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="5964" data-local-id="d51470abe991"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Plus, if&nbsp;you excel&nbsp;in the program, you could receive <span class="fabric-background-color-mark" data-renderer-mark="true" data-background-custom-color="#f8e6a0"><span class="background-color-padding-left background-color-padding-right">a 2026/2027 Quantitative Researcher/Trader offer for&nbsp;Optiver Shanghai</span></span></strong><span class="fabric-background-color-mark" data-renderer-mark="true" data-background-custom-color="#f8e6a0"><span class="background-color-padding-left background-color-padding-right">.  </span></span></p> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="cc3b79a8-f811-41a9-be06-654fb6362c7a" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6093" data-local-id="56f2ef84da0a"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Eligibility: <span class="fabric-background-color-mark" data-renderer-mark="true" data-background-custom-color="#f8e6a0"><span class="background-color-padding-left background-color-padding-right">university student graduating in 2026/2027 or earlier, with China working rights</span></span></strong></p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="3444ddea-4ddc-48d8-94a4-cb08e3449e57" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6192" data-local-id="baf848e2c67a"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Program dates</strong>: 21 – 25 September 2026</p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="27810bf1-0b2f-4b95-b2ef-3661fb6e2584" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6235" data-local-id="e25494b4da84"><strong data-renderer-mark="true"><span class="fabric-background-color-mark" data-renderer-mark="true" data-background-custom-color="#f8e6a0"><span class="background-color-padding-left background-color-padding-right">Program Location</span></span></strong>:&nbsp;Singapore&nbsp; </p> </li> </ul> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6268" data-local-id="1bd139ceaf0d"><em data-renderer-mark="true">*Note: If you reside outside of&nbsp;Singapore, Optiver will cover your travel and accommodation costs.</em>  </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6370" data-local-id="8864beee17f7"> </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6373" data-local-id="59af336ec56e"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">What you'll do</strong>&nbsp; </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6391" data-local-id="e8e8987873c8">Led by Optiver’s world-class education team, you’ll gain&nbsp;a deep understanding of market making and trading strategies, through a blend of hands-on and classroom learning. </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6564" data-local-id="431e5264a637">Learning and skill development:  </p> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="e6309b00-463e-48ec-ac08-67d703bd26a1" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6601" data-local-id="a34e571e1ba5"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Discover options theory:</strong> Learn the fundamentals that underpin options trading, through engaging, interactive lectures. </p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="717e870e-fd5a-41fb-9938-d15a6b8067ac" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6726" data-local-id="2108586f11e4"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Explore trading strategies:</strong> Discover how data, reports, and proposals drive the development of impactful new trading strategies. </p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="7d8a1487-63f1-4fbd-84ad-2621685bcdae" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6861" data-local-id="fe2ec6df3fc4"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Build and test your own trading algorithm:</strong> Gain hands-on experience designing and testing your own trading algorithm. </p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="a81b8747-b8ee-4a55-9e4f-0b3e1b97d048" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="6985" data-local-id="290a1d482702"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Engage in trading games:</strong> Participate in fast-paced games that mimic real-world trading scenarios, helping sharpen your instincts and decision-making skills under pressure. </p> </li> </ul> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7161" data-local-id="979bdfd25966"> </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7164" data-local-id="8fa51feb5729">Networking and culture:  </p> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="6d26045b-29fc-4812-a6a0-579613db46cd" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7193" data-local-id="353e9ab37601"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Gain expert mentorship:</strong> Learn directly from a dedicated team of educators, consisting of current and former traders and&nbsp;engineers. </p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="a67a4539-81a7-43b9-80e5-feaeee7ce21d" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7330" data-local-id="1e199def6a18"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Build your network: </strong>Enjoy connecting with traders, quantitative researchers, and engineers&nbsp;through curated events. </p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="bc169d3e-fb55-4d78-8011-58701a5d0b31" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7451" data-local-id="21f097065fcf"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Experience Optiver’s&nbsp;culture: </strong>Immerse in our culture and enjoy&nbsp;our incredible&nbsp;benefits, including daily breakfast, lunch, coffee, and more. </p> </li> </ul> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7595" data-local-id="11d0bc509e76">  </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7599" data-local-id="f2148f6ab223"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Who you are</strong>&nbsp; </p> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="bc9f5f3e-106b-4aa4-a77e-294e5b1e464d" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7616" data-local-id="0e7a60fb01c5"><strong data-renderer-mark="true"><span class="fabric-background-color-mark" data-renderer-mark="true" data-background-custom-color="#f8e6a0"><span class="background-color-padding-left background-color-padding-right">A university student graduating in 2026/2027 or earlier.</span></span></strong>&nbsp;All degree backgrounds are considered. </p> </li> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7715" data-local-id="28dfae9d30a1"><strong data-renderer-mark="true"><span class="fabric-background-color-mark" data-renderer-mark="true" data-background-custom-color="#f8e6a0"><span class="background-color-padding-left background-color-padding-right">A Chinese Citizen or Chinese Permanent Resident.&nbsp;HK, TW/ Macau Resident with MTP. </span></span></strong></p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="cff30cf3-0dc3-4051-8be4-60efcbb5bfbb" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7803" data-local-id="453f7c712525">Lateral thinker, with a passion for quantitative problems and working in collaborative, dynamic environments. </p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="4a5ae5cd-b558-4b55-9ef7-9842a4e85011" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7919" data-local-id="0d9b1b465b9c">Holds superior logical reasoning skills. </p> </li> </ul> <ul class="ak-ul" data-local-id="9c94153b-8dde-41b5-8891-fae295357f42" data-indent-level="1"> <li> <p data-renderer-start-pos="7966" data-local-id="526afda924c3">Experienced in programming or scripting in Python a plus. </p> </li> </ul> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8028" data-local-id="c1a61f9762f8"> </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8031" data-local-id="658d5724c6be"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Applying for the program</strong>&nbsp; </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8059" data-local-id="ecbe1044c959">The Career&nbsp;Kickstarter program offers&nbsp;two streams: <strong data-renderer-mark="true">Trading&nbsp;&amp;&nbsp;Research </strong>or <strong data-renderer-mark="true">Technology</strong>. To help you choose the stream that aligns with your interests, please find more information below. <strong data-renderer-mark="true">Please note that you can only apply for one stream.</strong> </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8297" data-local-id="18bb71788c43">Trading &amp;&nbsp;Research</p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8317" data-local-id="7bdf4c3740d9">Our <strong data-renderer-mark="true">Traders</strong> make trading decisions based on market conditions and other factors. They’re driven and have a flair for analytical problem solving.&nbsp;<a class="_ymio1r31 _ypr0glyw _zcxs1o36 _mizu1v1w _1ah3dkaa _ra3xnqa1 _128mdkaa _1cvmnqa1 _4davt94y _4bfu1r31 _1hms8stv _ajmmnqa1 _vchhusvi _kqswh2mm _ect4ttxp _syaz13af _1a3b1r31 _4fpr8stv _5goinqa1 _f8pj13af _9oik1r31 _1bnxglyw _jf4cnqa1 _30l313af _1nrm1r31 _c2waglyw _1iohnqa1 _9h8h12zz _10531ra0 _1ien1ra0 _n0fx1ra0 _1vhv17z1" href="https://optiver.com/working-at-optiver/career-hub/intern-trading-brent-sg/" data-renderer-mark="true" data-is-router-link="false" data-testid="link-with-safety">Check out Brent’s ‘Day in the life’ story to learn more</a>. </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8521" data-local-id="6d01880e0770">Our <strong data-renderer-mark="true">Researchers</strong> build models leveraging big data and machine learning to identify profitable signals that underpin our algorithmic trading strategies. <a class="_ymio1r31 _ypr0glyw _zcxs1o36 _mizu1v1w _1ah3dkaa _ra3xnqa1 _128mdkaa _1cvmnqa1 _4davt94y _4bfu1r31 _1hms8stv _ajmmnqa1 _vchhusvi _kqswh2mm _ect4ttxp _syaz13af _1a3b1r31 _4fpr8stv _5goinqa1 _f8pj13af _9oik1r31 _1bnxglyw _jf4cnqa1 _30l313af _1nrm1r31 _c2waglyw _1iohnqa1 _9h8h12zz _10531ra0 _1ien1ra0 _n0fx1ra0 _1vhv17z1" href="https://optiver.com/working-at-optiver/career-hub/research-graduate-stories/#noah" data-renderer-mark="true" data-is-router-link="false" data-testid="link-with-safety">Check out Noah’s ‘Day in the life’ story to learn more</a>.  </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8731" data-local-id="394689b8e396">&nbsp;</p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8734" data-local-id="976a3030eba8">Technology </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="8747" data-local-id="9ecf371dcc3b">Our <strong data-renderer-mark="true">Software Engineers&nbsp;</strong>play a critical role in executing successful trades. Driven by the desire to find the simplest solutions to the most complex problems, they design and build high performance systems that solve real business problems.&nbsp;<a class="_ymio1r31 _ypr0glyw _zcxs1o36 _mizu1v1w _1ah3dkaa _ra3xnqa1 _128mdkaa _1cvmnqa1 _4davt94y _4bfu1r31 _1hms8stv _ajmmnqa1 _vchhusvi _kqswh2mm _ect4ttxp _syaz13af _1a3b1r31 _4fpr8stv _5goinqa1 _f8pj13af _9oik1r31 _1bnxglyw _jf4cnqa1 _30l313af _1nrm1r31 _c2waglyw _1iohnqa1 _9h8h12zz _10531ra0 _1ien1ra0 _n0fx1ra0 _1vhv17z1" href="https://optiver.com/working-at-optiver/career-hub/engineer-sg-bharath/" data-renderer-mark="true" data-is-router-link="false" data-testid="link-with-safety">Check out Bharath’s ‘Day in the life’ story to learn more</a>.</p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9047" data-local-id="ae5a93c02c43">Interested in the Technology stream? <a href="https://www.optiver.com/join-us/jobs/technology/shanghai/career-kickstarter-shanghai-technology/"><span class="fabric-background-color-mark" data-renderer-mark="true" data-background-custom-color="#f8e6a0"><span class="background-color-padding-left background-color-padding-right">Apply here</span></span></a>. </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9098" data-local-id="55dededb468c">  </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9102" data-local-id="5635660865ef"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Ready to kickstart your career with Optiver? Apply today.</strong> </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9162" data-local-id="c037516ee1a8">  </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9166" data-local-id="b5c1def2e6ff"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Diversity statement </strong> </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9189" data-local-id="741467d4d02a">Optiver is committed to <a class="_ymio1r31 _ypr0glyw _zcxs1o36 _mizu1v1w _1ah3dkaa _ra3xnqa1 _128mdkaa _1cvmnqa1 _4davt94y _4bfu1r31 _1hms8stv _ajmmnqa1 _vchhusvi _kqswh2mm _ect4ttxp _syaz13af _1a3b1r31 _4fpr8stv _5goinqa1 _f8pj13af _9oik1r31 _1bnxglyw _jf4cnqa1 _30l313af _1nrm1r31 _c2waglyw _1iohnqa1 _9h8h12zz _10531ra0 _1ien1ra0 _n0fx1ra0 _1vhv17z1" href="https://optiver.com/diversity-statement/" data-renderer-mark="true" data-is-router-link="false" data-testid="link-with-safety">diversity and inclusion</a>. We encourage applications from candidates from all backgrounds, and welcome requests for reasonable adjustments during the process to ensure that you can best demonstrate your abilities. </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9427" data-local-id="e4b77801dab7"> </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9430" data-local-id="14fa5d1bd047"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">Questions?&nbsp;</strong> Get in touch&nbsp;at&nbsp; <a class="_ymio1r31 _ypr0glyw _zcxs1o36 _mizu1v1w _1ah3dkaa _ra3xnqa1 _128mdkaa _1cvmnqa1 _4davt94y _4bfu1r31 _1hms8stv _ajmmnqa1 _vchhusvi _kqswh2mm _ect4ttxp _syaz13af _1a3b1r31 _4fpr8stv _5goinqa1 _f8pj13af _9oik1r31 _1bnxglyw _jf4cnqa1 _30l313af _1nrm1r31 _c2waglyw _1iohnqa1 _9h8h12zz _10531ra0 _1ien1ra0 _n0fx1ra0 _1vhv17z1" href="mailto:chinacareers@optiver.com.au" data-renderer-mark="true" data-is-router-link="false" data-testid="link-with-safety">chinacareers@optiver.com.au</a>.  </p> <p data-renderer-start-pos="9495" data-local-id="8e42104f8b10"><strong data-renderer-mark="true">We accept one application per role per year. If you have previously applied to this position during this season&nbsp;at Optiver regardless of location,&nbsp;and have been unsuccessful, you can re-apply when the next recruitment season begins in 2027.</strong> </p>