Late last year a group of staff and students went to the OR career fair, in Birmingham, organized by the OR society. The students had the chance to speak to a wide variety of companies, which offer jobs in operational research.
Below are some comments, Dr Ana Paula Palacios
• Companies are not looking for particular degrees, they hire students from a wide range of programs, including psychology, chemistry, OR, economics, etc. They do seem to prefer mathematicians, expecting to see such students with demonstrable problem-solving capabilities and the ability to think and analyse.
• They look for people with good communication skills, for example, to talk with clients. A job experience, of any kind, it is very good in this respect.
• Software and technical skills are often a secondary requirement. Most companies train their employees.
• It is good to have experience in any software, meaning that you know the logic of how software work and you can learn a new one.