What Makes a Good Quant? -- Quantitative analysts are in high demand on Wall Street, and universities are adapting their programs specifically to meet the financial markets' needs.

t's been said that trading isn't rocket science. But in today's world of electronic trading and volatile market conditions, you might just want a rocket scientist on your trading team.

As Wall Street clamors to attract the best and brightest students with a knack for math and a mind for analytical modeling, many graduate students who typically would continue in academia and work toward their Ph.D.s now are opting for a different route to the Street. Master in financial engineering programs, or M.F.E.s (or any other acronym that represents a master's degree with a focus on finance-geared mathematics), are becoming hotbeds for firms looking to recruit quantitative analysts.

M.F.E. students typically have entered programs immediately after earning their undergraduate degrees or after a short stint in the professional ranks. They generally come from a heavy math or physics background but have decided to forgo the traditional academic track to seek a career on Wall Street.

Quantifying a Qualified Quant

While it's difficult to define exactly what makes a good quant, the consensus seems to be that the best candidates are people with multidisciplinary backgrounds. This means an education combining mathematics, finance, computer science and statistics, according to Emanuel Derman, director of the master's program in financial engineering at Columbia University, head of risk management at hedge fund Prisma Capital Partners and author of "My Life as a Quant: Reflections on Physics and Finance."

Derman says he looks to hire quants who have learned the basics in areas such as modeling but who also understand why the model behaves the way it does and which factors are driving it in the market. "I don't just want people who can solve equations," he says. "As in physics or in any natural science, it's important to understand what the math is telling you - not just the equation or solution."

Ultimately, Derman says, M.F.E. and similar programs are designed to prepare students for a career in financial engineering on Wall Street. The students graduate and go on to jobs across the spectrum at buy- and sell-side firms, as well as other financial services firms. "You can't learn everything in school - a lot of the schoolwork is theoretical," Derman acknowledges. "So students go through the program and then...