I passed my CFA Level 1, I have a civil engineering background with experince in civil engineering project management, cost estimating and ofcourse structural designs.I am interested in Asset Management, started preparing for CFA and passed my level 1 in my first attempt. I am planning to give CFA Level 2 June 2013.
Can anyone guide me how to enter into finance industry. I am really interested in finance.I will be grateful for any help or guidance given.
Network, use LinkedIn.
Also, from a technical aspect, employers are looking for programming skills (e.g., VBA, SQL, C++). Get familiar with the systems (Bloomberg, Factset, Capital IQ). Start following stocks from different industries and be prepared to pitch one during an interview. Learn the ratios and jargon. I read sell side reports and am pretty shocked at how poorly written they are, maybe brush up on your writing skills.
sure, nice, thank you so much. I spoke to a guy and he told me that without MBA degree from Ivy League its impossible to get into finance, and in his opinion any one can do CFA, so its not useful to get into Finance. So i was kinda down…
but yahh…will follow ur suggestions…
It’s not “impossible”, but it is harder.
But he is correct about the CFA not being a useful tool for directly breaking into finance.
For finance in general, which school you went to is more important than what you studied. There are certainly some jobs that require technical knowledge, but again, your pedigree is quite important.
The engineering background could ultimately help you quite a bit. I know during the recruiting season at my university (recruiting from MBA’s though), they loved the guys that had engineering undergrads for the technical proficiency. At this point, quantitative skills are your selling point.
I dunno much about curriculum of MBA. But CFA’s curriculum looks pretty extensive. If finance industry need just MBA tag from ivy league, then I am suprised. I mean the whole concept of getting into huge debt and completing MBA doesnt entice me much.
If Knowledge can be aquired more efficently and with lower cost, why not opt for it. This whole concept of get into debt and have MBA is just a bouncer for me.
I dont agree that anyone can pass CFA, splly when ur a fulltimer. I dont think u can study (byheart) without understanding and pass the exam. I njoyed studing CFA Level 1, I mean even If I failed, I would have considred its worth every second and dime.
I know that me not agreeing to system, doesnt mean anything. But I am sure there will be market for CFAs with knowledge and without MBA.
I have come across CFAs who are civil engineers and are in good positions in finance, but prob is I am not able to contact them.
But anyways, I am not planning to stop at level 1, I will finish it off and if I still donot get into Finance industry coz I dont have MBA, I will just cherish my hardwork.
The misconception here is that careers are based just on knowledge. In reality most higher education, more than anything else, is a way of sorting people into tiers. Going to Harvard Business School is not (primarily) valuable for the academic program. It’s valuable because it shows you got into Harvard Business School.
Even the CFA program has similar elements. During the course of a job, you will learn all the stuff that you know to function from day to day. The value of the CFA program is that it shows that you have the ability to learn CFA-level material. It is a data point that people can use to help determine your overall level of competence. The knowledge itself is trivial if you have no job in which to apply it.
Abstract, obscure knowledge is not intrinsically valuable. Nor is participating in a program like the CFA without understanding how it can help you.
//The misconception here is that careers are based just on knowledge.//
I assume u mean career growth is not solely based on knowledge, yes agreed, no dout, u need have application skill. No doubt abt that.
So yahh that is what I am trying to get, I mean how can I apply it without getting into the industry.
Well, my opologies if my previous post sounded rude, i didnot mean to hurt any one.
Umm…what exactly are you trying to break into exactly? I’ve spoken to a few sell side analysts last night at a networking event. It seems like the possibilty of getting laid off is almost inevitable, so take that into account. You can apply equity research right now by building your own models in Excel and publishing your own research on a blog. It may not be the most robust research out there, but employers are looking to see if you can communicate an investment theme.
Was not trying to sound confrontational, but basically, your previous post gave me the impression that you were saying “I will work hard to gain knowledge, and eventually someone will recognize me”. The point that I was trying to make is that knowledge does not necessarily come with recognition. You need a way to categorize yourself as a desirable candidate. Otherwise, stuff like CFA is not going to help.
I am interested in investment management. At present I follow Industries in Commodity Sector . I havent published anything yet.
//Was not trying to sound confrontational, but basically, your previous post gave me the impression that you were saying “I will work hard to gain knowledge, and eventually someone will recognize me”.//
haha u r right, i went back and looked at it, it sounded the same way even for me…my bad…May be thats the reason AF provided “Preview” buttopn. Should have used it.
//The point that I was trying to make is that knowledge does not necessarily come with recognition. You need a way to categorize yourself as a desirable candidate. Otherwise, stuff like CFA is not going to help.//
point taken…
That could be quite interesting for project / infrastructure finance. Not AM, but interesting field nevertheless.
Well, my friend, we’re on the same boat! I had studied mechanical engineering at university and worked at the motor company as an engineer. While working at the company, I passed CFA level 1 and studied economics at night time school. Job market has been ugly in here too, so it was tough to get a job in finance. (Even Ivy leaguers with degree of business or finance came back to country for job seeking.) After I had spent 6 months with full of bitterness, I started working at investment company as a research assistant, and now I’m looking for a job opening of auto industry analyst. I don’t know much about job market in the state, but I’m pretty sure it would be way easier to get a job for research first than directly to asset management.
I have a degree in Econ but spent two years in the electrical engineering program in school. Spent some time as a retail banker after college because I didn’t know what I wanted to do. Pure sales job and it sucked. I then interviewed for an entry level fixed income analyst position at my company. I ended up beating out candidates with their MBAs. My coworkers say that I got the job because the manager almost wet herself when I was able to hold up a conversation about differential equations with her. I also know how to code in C++ and Java which likely helped. I don’t know about the rest of finance but I know that people with engineering backgrounds are highly regarded in fixed income.
Yes, fixed income tends to have more certain (i.e. contractually arranged) cash flows, so it is more amenable to mathematics
If you take a sample size of guys who end up doing CFA after an undergraduate degree in Engineering, its more likely to be an Asian. I maybe wrong, I dont know!
I hold an Engineering degree in Mechanical and cleared L1 this June. I am contemplating on doing a course in quant fin in one of the better schools in US, but again that would be a big pinch on my pocket.(Read ridiculous size of debt).