I am an extremely motivated engineer interested in a career change. After speaking with various people in the finance field, I felt the CFA would be a good way for me to begin to make the transition into finance. Due to the nature of my work, I estimate that I will be able to study approximately 30 hours a week.
I am debating taking the exam in June vs. December. I have taken zero courses in accounting but I do have a strong background in stats and I am reasonably well versed in econ. What are your thoughts and/or suggestions.
My study plan is to cover the material in the CFA books then the Kaplan material. I realize this will be a difficult exam, but I wanted to get other opinions on whether I should aim for June.
If you honestly can devote 30 hours a week. I don’t think you should have a problem. It might take you longer to fully grasp through concepts, and skimming areas you’re familiar with wont happen often except in the stats section, but you can definitely do it.
If you grasp new concepts fairly quickly and are motivated enough, taking the exam in June shouldn’t be a problem.
The response was all over the board. I had one friend even tell me it wasn’t worth listing on a resume. At the end of the day, the general message was that I would find the material useful and helpful when I made the transition and it would help me to cover the material for any sticky interview situations.
I think you should be alright. It is not really that difficult from what I heard from 3of my friends who took it. And it is a good qualification to list in your cv after you pass this level 1.