Events and Talks 2026
Some events require registration beforehand and/or have limited capacity. If this is the case, please register using the provided link beforehand.
Jane Street: Get to Know Us + Guts++!
Tuesday, March 24th, 18:30 - 21:00
Registration required
Location: Zurich West (Kreis 5) - Off Campus
Guts was originally created as and remains a contest round of HMMT, a math competition for high schoolers organized entirely by Harvard and MIT students.
We’ve put a JS spin on it to create Guts++ – a fast-paced team game including a mix of math, puzzles, random trivia, clever game theory, and meta-level considerations. Sign up with the link above to participate, compete with your friends, and of course, grab some food and swag!
Uber vouchers to the event venue will be provided to confirmed participants!
PhD as a Career Path
Monday, March 23rd, 17:00 - 19:00
No registration required
Location: HG F3
What is it like to work as a doctoral student? Depending on the type of research you want to conduct and the university you work for the answer to this question will vary strongly. Apart from focussing on research itself, everyday tasks may include teaching, taking care of bureaucratic chores, organization of events and supervision of student projects. To help you figure out whether a PhD is a career that you could see yourself pursuing, we have invited a number of current PhD students and professors to give short talks on how they perceive working life as a PhD, what is expected by supervisors and what they find important when making the decision to conduct research. The event will also allow you to ask questions you might have about applying for PhD positions and address any further doubts about doctoral studies.
Speakers: Prof. Dr. Sarah Zerbes, Prof. Dr. Klaus Ensslin,
IMC Trading Workshop: CMI Challenge
Thursday, March 26th, 18:00
Registration required
Location: HG E7
Step into the fast-paced world of headline trading, where every decision counts. React to breaking news, anticipate market shifts, and outsmart fellow participants as you compete to maximize profits in our simulated exchange. This challenge mirrors real market conditions and puts your instincts, strategy, and quick thinking to the test. Collaborate, compete, and uncover the psychology behind successful trading – all in one high-energy experience.
Please bring your own laptops for the event!
From Weather to Risk: The Quant Challenge in Power & Gas Trading
Friday, March 27th, 18:00
Registration required
Location: HG E1.1
This talk gives an inside look at the work of a senior quant researcher in commodities, focusing on power and gas. The talk combines an overview of day-to-day research and model development with a practical deep dive into electricity markets and how forecasts of load, renewables, outages, and congestion inform trading and risk decisions. It also highlights the key challenges of time-series prediction in energy, including cross-validation, handling non-stationarity, and model robustness in production. Attendees can expect a mix of career perspective, market structure intuition, and model challenges.
The presentation will also provide a broad overview of QRT as an organization and highlight the opportunities available.
Presenters
Dr Nils Loehndorf – Quantitative Research Director,
Michal Met – Talent Acquisition Recruiter.
There is no registration necessary to attend the talks, just walk in and enjoy!
High Frequency Trading in Digital Assets - Hear first-hand career experiences from former ETH MSc’s and PhD’s
Wednesday, March 25th, 12:15-13:00
Location: HG F30 (Audimax)
Are you passionate about problem solving, research, data, trading and technology? Get to know more about Mathrix, Digital Assets and High Frequency Trading during this session. Hear personal stories from Mathrix employees who studied at ETH. How does a day look like, why do employees like to work at Mathrix and what kind of impact can you have?
Speaker: Jochem Nietsch
ETH Career Center: Job search strategies
Wednesday, March 25th, 13:15-14:00
Location: HG F30 (Audimax)
Students and graduates looking for meaningful employment often feel it is time-consuming, frustrating and that it takes a good deal of commitment. Locating a position that matches their interests, needs, abilities, and goals may not be easy, and may even be utopic in some market conditions.
During this presentation, the audience will learn to optimize their entry onto the job market and learn how to make this ritual of passage a rewarding life experience.
Topics include:
- The career management cycle
- Reactive vs. proactive search strategies
- Common job search misconceptions
- Ways to stay motivated
Speaker: Franziska Liese
Squarepoint: Hedging - Reducing Undesired Risk
Wednesday, March 25th, 14:15-15:00
Location: HG F30 (Audimax)
Speaker: Daniel Robert-Nicoud, Quantitative Researcher
SBB: Schwungfahrten und Container, Mehr Genauigkeit durch Billettverkäufe
Wednesday, March 25th, 15:15-16:00
Location: HG F30 (Audimax)
Schwungfahrten und Container
SBB Cargo richtet sich vermehrt auf den kombinierten Verkehr aus. Hierzu braucht es leistungsfähige Terminals, welche die Güter zwischen Strasse und Schiene umschlägt. Hierdurch werden die Terminalkräne an die Stellwerke angebunden, damit der Bahnbetrieb sicher funktioniert und deine Güter rechtzeitig bei dir sind. Finde heraus was es alles an interdisziplinären Fähigkeiten braucht damit wir unseren Beitrag zu noch mehr klimafreundlichen Transport leisten können.
Referent: Joé Goelff
Das Belegungsprognose-Korrekturmodell: Mehr Genauigkeit durch Billettverkäufe
Die SBB-Belegungsprognose sagt die Auslastung in Zügen anhand von Merkmalen wie Betriebstag, Reisezeit, Linie und Streckenabschnitt voraus; erste Prognosen werden bereits bis zu einem Jahr im Voraus erstellt. Im vergangenen Herbst haben wir ein Korrekturmodell entwickelt, das diese Vorhersagen mithilfe von Billettverkaufsdaten am Betriebstag verbessert. Ich werde die Herausforderungen, den Ansatz, und die Ergebnisse kurz präsentieren.
Referentin: Sanelma Heinonen
Introduction to Goldman Sachs
Wednesday, March 25th, 16:15-17:00
Location: HG F3
The presentation will provide an overview of Goldman Sachs, our culture, the opportunities available across Quantitative Strategists, and the key stages of our application process. It will also highlight the different types of Strats roles we offer and what students can expect.
Speakers: Camille Humbert and Nicolas Daviaud
Swissnuclear: Tauche ein in die Welt der Kernenergie!
Wednesday, March 25th, 16:15-17:00
Location: HG F30 (Audimax)
Seit über 50 Jahren sind in der Schweiz Kernkraftwerke in Betrieb und erzeugen aktuell einen Drittel des heimischen Stroms – zuverlässig, ressourcenschonend und emissionsarm. Die Hightech-Anlagen werden stetig modernisiert und auf dem Stand der Technik gehalten, damit sie auch in Zukunft ihren Beitrag zur Versorgungssicherheit des Landes leisten. Ihr Betrieb erfordert ein breites Spektrum an gut ausgebildeten Mitarbeitenden. Von der Anlagenoperateurin und dem Strahlenschutz-Sachverständigen bis hin zum Ressortleiter Risikomanagement und Leiter Kernbrennstoff: die Welt der Kernenergie bietet eine ungeahnte Breite an Berufs- und Entwicklungsmöglichkeiten.
Interessiert? Dann besuche den Talk mit Nathalie Schildknecht, die über die Welt der Kernenergie und die Berufswelt der Schweizer Kernkraftwerke sprechen wird.
Rednerin: Nathalie Schildknecht