About Us

What We Offer

Funds

News & Resources

About Us

What We Offer

Funds

News & Resources

Contact

Invest Now

Vacancies

Data Scientist (Prescient Investment Management)

Reporting line

Head of Data Science

Location

Steenberg, Tokai

Business Unit

Prescient Investment Management
Apply Now

As a Data Scientist, you’ll be instrumental in shaping the future of systematic investing at the firm. This is a hybrid research-engineering position that blends rigorous quantitative research with practical implementation. You’ll work on sourcing and evaluating alternative datasets, developing bespoke machine learning models for financial markets, and building scalable, production-grade pipelines that power real-time investment signals.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Design and implement data science strategies that enhance the investment decision-making process.
  • Identify, acquire, and evaluate alternative data sources that may provide predictive insights into financial markets.
  • Develop bespoke machine learning algorithms tailored to financial use cases, such as risk forecasting, sentiment analysis, and market regime detection.
  • Build, test, and deploy end-to-end data and model pipelines that operate reliably at scale.
  • Collaborate closely with portfolio managers, quantitative analysts, and software engineers to ensure alignment between data science outputs and investment goals.
  • Contribute to the development of internal libraries, tooling, and infrastructure to streamline data science workflows.
  • Stay current with academic and industry research, applying innovative techniques where relevant.

REQUIRED EXPERIENCE

  • 1–3 years of experience in a data science or quantitative research role, preferably in finance or another high-impact research domain, or a recently qualified Master’s or PhD graduate.
  • Track record of delivering production-ready data science solutions with real-world impact.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • Honours, Masters and/ or PhD level in a quantitative field (Computer Science, Statistics, Engineering, Applied Mathematics, Quantitative Finance or similar).
  • Financial certification will be advantageous but not required.

KEY COMPETENCIES

  • Strong programming experience in Python, with proficiency in software engineering best practices (modular code, testing, version control, etc.).
  • Solid understanding of machine learning, statistical modelling and time series analysis.
  • Experience with cloud environments (Azure, AWS, or GCP) and distributed computing frameworks is a plus.
  • Familiarity with data infrastructure (e.g., databases, ETL pipelines, containerization, orchestration tools) is highly desirable.
  • Use of LLM’s and working with unstructured data is a plus.
  • Experience working with unstructured or alternative data (e.g., text, news, satellite, geolocation) is a bonus.

WHY THIS ROLE?

This is a great opportunity for a Data Scientist that wants to be part of the investment management industry. The position is ideal for self-motivated individuals who thrive in dynamic environments where every day will be different and present a new exciting challenge, all while advancing their technical expertise and financial knowledge.

INTERESTED?
APPLY NOW

Vacancy Applications

PRESCIENT GLOBAL

WE ARE A MULTINATIONAL BUSINESS.

South Africa

  • South Africa
  • China
  • Ireland

Enquiries

+27 21 700 3600

Please enter to search or esc to cancel

SUGGESTED TERMS

  • Investor Application
  • Stockbroker
  • Factsheet
  • Retirement Fund Solutions

Where exceptional expertise meets meticulous financial services