Wall Street may need fewer traders and bankers and more Ph.D.s and behavioral scientists. After a tough quarter for big banks, where head count was reduced and compensation drastically cut, there are some silver linings for people looking for work in the financial services industry. The downside is that for many seasoned Wall Street veterans, big banks are looking to tech-focused roles as they build out digital businesses. "Data science is robust and active in financial institutions, momentum has been increasing over the last two years," said Michael Karp, CEO of recruitment firm Options Group. "We're seeing a lot of demand, particularly on the consumer side." Big banks aren't just looking for tech-proficient staffers to bolster trading desks any longer. They're trying to do more with rewards programs, which data and behavioral scientists can refine.

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"[H]ead count in the consumer businesses is up slightly and that's a combination of the investments we're making in technology and digital," JPMorgan Chase CFO Marianne Lake said on the bank's earnings call in April. While JPMorgan added hundreds of staffers in tech roles, it cut head count overall. But it's still bringing on digital talent, in the New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Wilmington, Delaware, offices, according to a bank spokeswoman. A posting on LinkedIn from Chase seeks a data scientist to turn its "massive data into useful insights to deeply personalize the digital experience of our millions of customers." On Deck Capital, which partnered with JPMorgan to originate more small-business loans in late 2015, is also seeking senior data scientists "to reshape the face of small-business lending by digging deep into the mountains of data that traditional banks have overlooked." Read MoreWall Street cuts its way to profitability Other banks are also looking for talent to shore up growing digital operations. "[W]e've continued to invest in the areas we can grow; $3 billion in technology-related growth initiatives, especially in areas of digital practice," Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said on its earnings call. The bank has more than a half-dozen LinkedIn advertisements seeking new hires for various data and analytics roles, all based in New York.