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!
Want to fast-track your career path from student to a full-time engineer?
Join Career Kickstarter: Technology, our five-day immersive program designed to accelerate your journey from university to a full-time tech career.
Explore how technology drives our success in the global financial markets and gain hands-on experience designing the high-performance systems that keep us at the forefront of trading, where every nanosecond counts.
Through a blend of interactive lectures, practical projects, and mentorship from our world-class education team, you’ll sharpen your problem-solving skills and learn how to think, and build, like an engineer at Optiver.
Plus, if you excel in the program, you could receive a 2026/2027 Graduate Software Developer offer for Optiver Shanghai.
Eligibility: university student graduating in 2026/2027 or earlier, with China working rights
Program dates: 21 – 25 September 2026
Program Location: Singapore
*Note: If you reside outside of Singapore, Optiver will cover your travel and accommodation costs.
What you'll do
Led by Optiver’s world-class education team, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of the quantitative industry and explore how technology powers our trading success.
Learning and skill development:
Discover options theory: Learn the fundamentals that underpin options trading, through engaging, interactive lectures.
Enhance your coding capability: Put advanced software engineering concepts into practise through a series of tech workshops.
Learn about low latency: Gain experience around how low latency designs are critical to trading success at Optiver.
Build and test your own trading algorithm: Gain hands-on experience designing and testing your own trading algorithm.
Networking and culture:
Gain expert mentorship: Learn directly from a dedicated team of educators, consisting of current and former traders and engineers.
Build your network: Enjoy connecting with traders, quantitative researchers, and engineers through curated events.
Experience Optiver’s culture: Immerse in our culture and enjoy our incredible benefits, including daily breakfast, lunch, coffee, and more.
Who you are
A university student graduating in 2026/2027 or earlier.
A Chinese Citizen or Chinese Permanent Resident. HK, TW/ Macau Resident with MTP.
Studying (or studied) a Computer Science, Software / Electrical / Mechatronic Engineering or a similarly technical degree.
Problem solver who will enjoy building high-performing, low latency designs that critically impact trading success.
Curious to learn and comfortable exploring complex technical ideas.
Have a range of out-of-classroom projects or extra-curricular activities that demonstrates your passion in technology, particularly software development.
Excited to work alongside the best developers and traders in the industry, with the humility to continually upskill and improve yourself.
Knowledgeable about object-orientated design and development concepts (experience with C++, Java or Python is required for our technical assessment).
Applying for the program
The Career Kickstarter program offers two streams: Technology or Trading & Research. To help you choose the stream that aligns with your interests, please find more information below. Please note that you can only apply for one stream.
Technology
Our Software Engineers 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. Check out Bharath’s ‘Day in the life’ story to learn more.
Trading & Research
Our Traders make trading decisions based on market conditions and other factors. They’re driven and have a flair for analytical problem solving. Check out Brent’s ‘Day in the life’ story to learn more.
Our Researchers build models leveraging big data and machine learning to identify profitable signals that underpin our algorithmic trading strategies. Check out Noah’s ‘Day in the life’ story to learn more.
Interested in the Trading & Research stream? Apply here.
Ready to kickstart your career with Optiver? Apply today.
Diversity statement
Optiver is committed to diversity and inclusion. 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.
Questions? Get in touch at [email protected].
We accept one application per role per year. If you have previously applied to this position during this season at Optiver regardless of location and have been unsuccessful, you can re-apply when the next recruitment season begins in 2027.
Skills Required
- University student graduating in 2026/2027 or earlier
- China working rights (Chinese citizen or Chinese permanent resident; HK/TW/Macau residents with MTP)
- Studying or studied Computer Science, Software/Electrical/Mechatronic Engineering or similar technical degree
- Experience with C++, Java or Python (required for technical assessment)
- Knowledgeable about object-orientated design and development concepts
- Demonstrated passion for technology via out-of-classroom projects or extracurricular activities
Optiver Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Optiver and has not been reviewed or approved by Optiver.
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Career-Linked Recognition & Rewards — Pay is considered highly competitive in trading, quantitative, and engineering paths, with performance-linked bonuses materially elevating total earnings for strong contributors. High performers are described as seeing outsized upside when firm and team results are strong.
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage is depicted as comprehensive, including medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance, alongside HSA/FSA options and mental-health support. Some locations note unlimited therapy access through a partner platform.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — U.S. roles are often described as offering 25 days of paid vacation plus market holidays, alongside generous parental leave. This breadth of time off is highlighted as helping to offset a high-intensity environment.
Optiver Insights
What We Do
Optiver’s story began over 30 years ago, when we started business as a single trader on the floor of Amsterdam’s options exchange. Today, we are at the forefront of trading and technology as a leading global electronic market maker, focused on pricing, execution and risk management.
Why Work With Us
People at Optiver love challenges, welcome collaboration, and strive to be better tomorrow than they are today. Improving the market is an extraordinary challenge that requires a carefully crafted approach. Optiver provides a collaborative working environment to tackle these challenges. In fact, it is this way of working that sets us apart.
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