Are Engineering Majors Rushing to the Finance Industry?

Korea Investment Value Asset Management, a fund managing subsidiary of Korean Investment Management Holdings, recently recruited four fund managers. All four were engineering majors in college.

The number of engineering majors entering the financial industry has significantly increased, though the absolute majority of fund managers and investment analysts have degrees in humanities or social sciences.

Therefore, the asset management company’s recruitment of the four engineering majors has sent shockwaves throughout the financial sector. Seven of the eight applicants who made it to the final phase – the interview – were engineering majors.

“It is very rare for all of the new fund managers hired through public competition to be engineering majors,” said company vice president Lee Chae-won.

The four hires have graduated or will graduate from Seoul National University. Two majored in electric engineering, one in computer engineering, and the fourth in industrial engineering.

The four generally started preparing to become fund managers in their junior year, gaining more field experience than their competitors. They joined investment clubs or made stock investments.

The asset company said it is quite excited over hiring new young fund managers with engineering degrees and a deep understanding of technology.

This has fueled fear, however, of engineering majors rushing to enter non-engineering occupations. One company executive said, “The result makes me worry over whether Korea will have a sufficient supply of human resources to develop cutting-edge technologies we need if talented people with engineering diplomas rush to get jobs in finance.”

turtle@donga.com