“The competition challenged me intellectually and exposed me to over 15 of the top trading firms in the world and the smartest students from the nation’s most prestigious colleges,” DeKorte said. A finance major, DeKorte has already landed a post-graduation job as an investment banking analyst at Stout Advisory.

At the University of Chicago Polsky Exchange—surrounded by college teams from Princeton, Harvard, and other top schools—DeKorte, Ismail, and Connor tackled three simulated trading cases.

“It was an honor to compete against so many prestigious schools and I was proud to represent Lake Forest College,” Connor said of the experience.

While they were competing in the event’s largest gathering to date, the Foresters also networked with universities and colleges, sponsor firms, and employers who all shared a passion for trading and quantitative finance.

“Quantitative finance is an incredibly lucrative and high-powered field,” Ismail said. “Being able to compete speaks volumes about how well Lake Forest College prepares students for employment in these demanding fields.”

More than 100 students across the United States competed, making the 2018 contest the largest to date. The event was powered by Trading Technologies TT Platform and the sponsors included AQR, Belvedere Trading, BP, Chicago Trading Company, Citadel, and DE Shaw, among others.

“In addition to the competition, our students had opportunities to network with some of the biggest firms in the field of algorithmic trading, as well as visit their offices downtown,” Assistant Professor of Finance Muris Hadzic said. “They also paved the way for other students to pursue these and similar efforts in the future.”

— Tracy Koenn ’18