hello AF guys, I have some questions about the right way for someone with no North American working experience or education degree but a CFA charterholder with more than five years investment banking related employment history to land the first financial services job in Canada.
Here is the details of my thoughts. Recently I am considering moving to Canada (actually Greater Toronto Area) with my family and we are all PR of Canada. If after reallocating there I could continue to do financial market related job that would be perfect because I really love this field as some of you guys do. But as a matter of fact, to find a job is not so easy in Canada especially for those who don’t have Canadian working experience and local degree. So I conceived two possible routes to fulfill the challenging task of landing a job.
Route 1. To apply for a one year Canadian MBA program and seize internship opportunities or in a better scenario apply for a program with co-op, I heard there are some pretty good co-op programs but rather fierce competition to get in. Previously, I already got my master of finance degree in a non-English speaking country.
Route 2. To enter the job market directly as soon as possible and in the meantime to acquire some local certificates such as Canadian securities course or something like that, though I’m not sure about the value to do this. To fix the problem of lack of local experience, i can even accept the condition to work without pay for a few months because if it is beneficial to accumulate local experience, it’s worth it I think.
How are you guys thinking about these two routes? And which one is more practical or ideal in Canada? or you have a third route to recommend? The CFA designation and the local education degree, which one the employer would weigh more in the process of recruitment assessment? I really need your help and advice, and any reply would be so much appreciated!
You should presumably try Route 2 first to see what sort of jobs you can gain traction with. If Route 2 fails or if the jobs are not satisfactory, then consider Route 1.
I would avoid the CSC and pretty much any course from the CSI though. No one I’ve ever come across gives a shit about them, especially if you have a charter. Don’t waste your time with them OP, focus on networking instead if you’re going to do route 1.
I will have to disagree with Thatswacc here. If you have the CFA charter and you write the CSC and CPH exams from the CSI institute, you can probably land a job with an advisor (portfolio manager) who manages a large discretionary book.
I disagree within this context. OP is not a native english speaker (written is fine though) so no idea what his in-person communication abilities are like. Also you know next to zip about his work experience (5years IB) doesn’t lend itself to portfolio management at all.
CSI can help with a bit but only for certain roles (entry level or client/trading) - again OP has not given us any info on what his target is.
My advice is to not move until you have a job. IB Asia =/= IB North America. It doesn’t have the same prestige and it won’t command the same premium. The job market is tough for locals (with NA IB exp) and harder for new immigrants with no work experience here. I’ve seen quite a few people try to make this transition and not really land in comparable roles. I had a guy interview to be my junior, 8 years in BB IB in NYC and couldn’t find a job in TO.
Can you find ‘a’ job? Yes probably in the back office somewhere, making 40-45k which is barely livable for a single person in Toronto. Otherwise prepare to wait minimum 6-8 months to get a role. Pave a long runway. Unless you have some really exceptional experience you haven’t told us about, this would be my advice.
What I was saying is try to apply for some jobs first. If you get nothing acceptable, then commit to MBA. I don’t know about those Canadian certifications, but if the job market is like the US, they should be of only marginal importance relative to the person’s overall background.
I guess it depends on where you’re from and what you currently do. I’m guessing with 5+ years of IB experience and the charter you’re probably not doing too badly.
[PERSONAL OPINION ALERT] I wouldn’t do it if I were you. The missed earnings and experience from having to restart from scratch isn’t really that worth it, specially in Canada where you could end up waiting a long time before landing something worthwhile. You’ll be paying super-high taxes. Depending on where you end up, the weather could be much worse than where you’re from. Finally, it’s a lot harder to move away from family and friends in your adult life than moving in your teens for college to a different country. Not a lot of people can relate to this challenge. The grass always looks greener on the other side. I mean unless you’re in Syria and your life is in danger, you should SERIOUSLY consider why you’re making this move.
WOW, it’s beyond my imagination that so many replies and advices I got. Really thank you all and wish you guys have a exceptionally great Christmas holiday.
I’ll move with my whole family so it is the decision we have made together, and I have a few friends there in Greater Toronto Area (unfortunately none of them are financial profession) so to build a larger social network is necessary and on the agenda.
Living expenses is not a serious problem for me and to adjust myself and wait for a couple of months before landing an ideal job is acceptable. Here is the new question that assuming I’m a guy with no local working experience and a CFA charterholder, is it possible to apply for some internship spots first, no matter front desk or back office or entry level role, even with no pay? Is this way practical or weird in Canada?
I’ve tried the internship route and at least the larger institutions like 3rd/4th year undergraduate students for those roles. You could approach a smaller boutique firm and see if they would take you on in that capacity, but most would probably be unwilling due to potential legal implications of “working for free”.
I would like to know your experience. I am CFA level 3 candidate, MBA finance from India, worked as equity trader for 4 years. What would you say about me as today I am in the similar dilemma as you were at one point.
I would caution that it could be an extremely long time before you land a job offer. GTA is full of qualified candidates with Canadian degrees. Its not uncommon for job hunts to lasts months and months. Makes sure to have a offer or some savings to fall back on if you move your family here. Also im pretty sure its illegal to work without pay here btw.