Execution Research Fellow

Founded in 1999, Viking Global Investors (“Viking”) is a global investment firm with a long-term, fundamental, research-intensive approach to investing. Viking manages more than $56 billion of capital across public and private investments. Viking has offices in Stamford, New York, Hong Kong, London, and San Francisco, and is registered as an investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. For more information, please visit vikingglobal.com . FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITY Viking is seeking an Execution Research Fellow to join our trading and technology teams for a project-based fellowship of 10 to 12 weeks. This is an opportunity to conduct applied research on high-impact problems at the intersection of market microstructure, data infrastructure, and execution optimization. The Fellow will work directly under the direction of Viking’s Head of Execution Research, contributing to defined project workstreams and benefiting from close mentorship throughout. We are open to different start dates and schedule arrangements for the ideal candidate. This is a fixed-term fellowship with no expectation of or pathway to full-time employment. RESPONSIBILITIES The Fellow will support applied research across three core project areas: Market Data: Assist in evaluating, cleaning, and analyzing high-frequency and tick-level market data across asset classes and venues. Support work on data quality assessment, normalization, and storage efficiency. Market Infrastructure: Support the assessment and documentation of Viking’s trading infrastructure, including connectivity to exchanges and execution venues. Research and summarize emerging technologies and best practices in low-latency and high-throughput execution systems. Optimal Routing Decisions: Support quantitative analysis of order routing across venues, including work on transaction cost analysis (TCA) data. Research algorithmic routing strategies and smart order routing (SOR) design. In addition to these core workstreams, the Fellow will contribute to Viking’s broader research effort by sharing findings and insights across the trading and investment teams. QUALIFICATIONS Across Viking, we attract motivated, intellectually curious, and analytically rigorous people who are passionate about learning and creating impact. The ideal candidate will possess the following traits: A strong performer currently enrolled in a Master’s degree or PhD program in Computer Science, Statistics, Financial Engineering, Physics, Mathematics, or a related quantitative field Prior hands-on experience working with tick data or other high-frequency market data (academic or professional) Proficiency in Python, including experience with data-intensive libraries (e.g., pandas, numpy, polars, or similar); familiarity with SQL and data engineering tools a plus Exposure to market microstructure, execution algorithms, or trading systems — through coursework, research, or prior experience Ability to execute well-defined research tasks under direction, with strong attention to detail and follow-through Strong communication skills, with the ability to present quantitative findings clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences Proactive, self-motivated, and committed to excellence APPLICATION Please submit your resume / application through the Viking career site: https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/vikingglobalinvestors/jobs/6005845004 Please remember to indicate your school name on the application page. Note: Please merge your resume and brief research supplement into a single PDF file (resume first, supplement second) before submitting. Applications missing either component will not be reviewed. The research supplement should describe a relevant research project you recently completed. Please include: The research question you were trying to answer The data you used (including any tick or market data) Your approach, including statistical or algorithmic methodologies Your findings The computational environment…