MBA versus MSF

If everyone could please respond with either choice 1 or choice 2 I would very much appreciate. Trying to gather a democratic response. Studying for Level I currenlty. If I don’t pass, I’m going all out and completing my masters and then going back in for the kill. The CFA charterholder’s I work with had their master’s when they started the whole CFA adventure. So, in my opinion, I think having a master’s will certainly help. Option 1: Pursue my MBA at Grand Valley State University (about a mile away from where I work and live). My only turnoff about the MBA is the marketing, management, etc. required courses one has to take. Pointless to me. Option 2: Pursue my MSF (Master’s of Science in Finance) at University of Michigan-Dearborn entirely through on-line courses and maybe some on-campus classes, but will make for a heck of a commute. Dearborn is 2 hours away from where I live. So, an online degree is no different than if one were to earn it by attending classes. The MSF paralles much of the CFA body of knowledge. This may be more beneficial in preparing for the CFA. http://www.som.umd.umich.edu/2784/ - These are the classes in the MSF

Sell on both. Keep up with CFA.

I don’t know your academic background and job nature. I finished my Msc Finance before taking CFA program. I would say Msc Finance can help my fundation to pass Level I in CFA program. I would not think about either, and work harder to pass Lv I, if I were you. None of them can be comparable to CFA designation.

IMO, MBA & CFA is definitely a better combination than MSF & CFA. If you have the CFA, you probably don’t need to have a MSF anymore.

As a GVSU grad (BBA) myself, I say neither. Go for the CFA, especially if you already have an undergrad business degree. The stuff you will learn in MBA classes will not help a whole lot in your studies,as like you said there are many MKT and MGT classes thrown in, and by the time you finish and take the CFA, the fin/acc stuff wont be that fresh in your mind anyway.

In fact, if you want to do an MBA, maybe look into the weekend MBA at MSU…Much better name than GVSU on the resume.

I have to agree with bigtooth on this one. There is no reason to get CFA and MSF as they are essentially the same thing with the difference that CFA is more recognized and more in depth. If you are planning on seeing CFA through and getting the charter don’t waste your time with MSF; for a MBA. I am not sure about the school you are talking about but what I would do is get my MBA from a top 20 school, if you can get into one. It might be expensive but pays itself off. I am planning on getting my MBA at one of three schools after finishing my CFA: Queens, Insead, or LSE. MBA is for getting up the ladder in corp. world, while CFA is for getting in the door. If you are planning on being an analyst for life then CFA is good enough but if you are planning on moving up to senior management roles then you definitely need a MBA.

CFA and MBA are a great combo uless you want to do a quant based role i.e MSF/PHD would be better. I will pursue an MBA at LBS a few years after the CFA. I will then have the required work experience to justufy the MBA and work will probably cover the costs. I don’t see the point of doing an MBA before you are 28 anyway…

^^ Pretty arrogant thinking you’ll definitely get into LBS considering the company you’re in. I like that in a pilot. The implied premise behind the original poster’s question is silly…“The CFA charterholder’s I work with had their master’s when they started the whole CFA adventure. So, in my opinion, I think having a master’s will certainly help.” Are you serious? They’re charterholders, they have masters. You infer that you need a masters? I passed Level I and Level II, no probs. I was breast-fed and have an 8" coc*.

Etienne Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > ^^ Pretty arrogant thinking you’ll definitely get > into LBS considering the company you’re in. I > like that in a pilot. > > The implied premise behind the original poster’s > question is silly…“The CFA charterholder’s I > work with had their master’s when they started the > whole CFA adventure. So, in my opinion, I think > having a master’s will certainly help.” > > Are you serious? They’re charterholders, they > have masters. You infer that you need a masters? > > I passed Level I and Level II, no probs. I was > breast-fed and have an 8" coc*. arrogance/confidence - it’s a fine line but I can’t disclose much on a forum so think what you want. if you are going to brag though - 8" is hardly an impressive statement considering you are expanding the truth - at least aim for 10" weener boy

You’re better off posting this questions in the general area, you’ll probably get better answers (I haven’t check if you did though)… Anyways, I think you’re talking about three very different things here and as people have said over and over, you’re comparing apples and oranges. First, you need to have an idea what your plan is. The only thing I know of that will exponentially increase your chances of getting a great job is getting an MBA from a top 10 school. Regardless of what you studied before (eg. history, English, etc.), that is the only thing that will change it all. Everything else you need to know what you want before you invest 2-3 years of your life and your money. An MBA is always great if it’s from a top school. However, if you have a “normal” job and you want to be manager where you know you have a shot at building your career, assuming you have ok experience, then a “normal” MBA is not a bad idea. If you’re looking for high profile jobs, you need to look at high profile experience or education… As for between the CFA or MSF, you need to keep in mind that the CFA certification is by definition a investment analyst/management certification. You can do just fine having just the CFA cert. and excellent work experience in the investment analysis/valuation field. There are many portofolio managers without MBA’s or MSF’s, but that’s because it’s based on work experience and performance. An MSF, on the other hand, would give you a much broader range in your career (this is why I said you need to know what you want). Having an MSF you will have the option of applying your knowledge to many different areas (eg. Quantitative Analyst, CFO, Director of Finance) without having the work experience required (in investment related jobs) like the CFA designation. my 2 cents.

Seb25 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Etienne Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > ^^ Pretty arrogant thinking you’ll definitely > get > > into LBS considering the company you’re in. I > > like that in a pilot. > > > > The implied premise behind the original > poster’s > > question is silly…“The CFA charterholder’s I > > work with had their master’s when they started > the > > whole CFA adventure. So, in my opinion, I think > > having a master’s will certainly help.” > > > > Are you serious? They’re charterholders, they > > have masters. You infer that you need a > masters? > > > > I passed Level I and Level II, no probs. I was > > breast-fed and have an 8" coc*. > > > arrogance/confidence - it’s a fine line but I > can’t disclose much on a forum so think what you > want. > > if you are going to brag though - 8" is hardly an > impressive statement considering you are expanding > the truth - at least aim for 10" weener boy (Really, I doubt anyone can be 100% sure of getting into LBS… although the alums I’ve met on-the-job have been fairly mediocre, so I could be wrong). On the other thing, you’ right… errr… I meant 8" soft.