How Educated Are Forex Traders?

A poll from 2011 indicates that the quarter of this blog’s readers come from the IT background while the shares of finance-related and construction/engineering workers follow not far behind with 17% and 16% respectively. It implies that the Forex traders are an educated lot — top two backgrounds require at least some higher education. But is higher education a necessary prerequisite to trade Forex profitably? Or does it even help?

The lack of basic education (school level) poses a serious obstacle for the beginning Forex trader. It is in no way detrimental, of course, as nearly all the skills necessary for trading can be acquired from practice, but it will delay the learning process significantly. Graduating from high school gives the basic background to start trading Forex without a lot problems.
Getting at least some years of higher education in anything related to economic, finance, math, or computer science, will notably increase your aptitude for learning the advanced trading and analysis skills. For example, a course in macroeconomics will make your fundamental analysis much easier, getting through probability theory will enhance your perception of the chance-based outcomes in FX, etc.
My own education ended right after the university. Although my degree in computer science has little to do with currency trading directly, it offers a lot of advantages when it comes to automation of the trading or analysis processes. Additionally, such disciplines as probability theory, calculus, graph theory, economics, studied in the university help to make better decisions in the FX world.

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If you have any questions or opinions on the level of education required to succeed in Forex trading, feel free to reply using the form below.