Yes. It all comes down to networking, applying online to firms that offer roles to undergrads and recent grads, etc.

How can someone work at a hedge fund without working in IB or ER which way is the best way to get into a hedge fund without working in ER or IB? Can you network or cold email for this to happen?

It’s possible to win a HF job out of undergrad without working in ER or IB first, and some larger firms are increasingly recruiting undergrads directly. But most people still benefit from doing something else first to gain a broader network and skill set.

Most quant funds use short-term strategies, so that firm qualifies. I’m not sure what you mean by “hedge funds have clients” – hedge funds have Limited Partners that invest capital in the fund, so in that sense they have clients, but hedge funds simply invest money on behalf of those LPs. It’s not a client-service business. Institutions also invest in hedge funds, but, again, I’m not sure I would call those institutions “clients” of the hedge funds.

Is the portfolio management firm specializes in short-term quantitative investment strategies considered quant hedge fund? or can it also be discretionary even if it is short?
Why some hedge fund have clients from institutions such as Goldman Sachs and the other portfolio management firm?

No, not really. “Target schools” for hedge funds are pretty much the same as the top schools for IB recruiting: Wharton, Harvard, etc. Not that many hedge funds recruit directly from undergrad, though that is starting to change.

Is there such a thing as target schools for Hedge Funds?

I’m in my freshman year and i’m planning to transfer to another university because i dont see any recruitment opportunity here. But i’m basing my decision on target schools for IB, because i dont find any reliable information about HF target schools.

We do not, but all the modeling courses offered here include example stock pitches, which is ~90% of interview preparation for hedge funds and asset management. It never made business sense to write a guide in this area because there’s so much overlap with IB/PE interviews (accounting, valuation, etc.), and even the models you build are quite similar.