Hey guys- Been looking through these forums a bunch as I prepared for Level II this past June but don’t really post. Felt it would be motivational to post how the CFA has helped me land the job I’ve been tring to attain. I graduated college back in 2013 and landed a job at a hedge fund working in operations. I knew operations wasn’t the career choice for me but figured it would help me get my foot in the door. I realized it was difficult to make a move out of operations so I decided to go take the CFA in December to try to give me a leg up. All the while I was talking with different traders every day and trying to build my network.
I went on to pass level 1 in December and then did the quick turn around and passed level 2 this past June. I am currently signed up for level 3 and will probably start studying in January.
However, after I passed level 2 I decided I would try to look for a new job if my current firm couldn’t help me. I chated with one of the partners here to discuss my future. He told me a trading desk had seen that I had passed level 2 not to long ago and had recently asked about me. The timing couldn’t have been better in this regard. Turned out the MBS trading desk here was looking to add another member and I sat down with a few of them on a couple of different occasions. I ended up landing the job and will be starting as a trading assisant in a couple of weeks. The CFA truely was the reason I was given a thought. Luck and networking played a large role as well. Figured this may help motivate some people to grind through these rigurous exams. Good luck to all!
I would note 3 things for other folks here (1) you are super young, so the weight of passing CFA exams is higher for you, and you were not saddled with non-finance or irrelevant experience, (2) your job is trading assistant, so they wanted someone inexperienced and (3) you networked, which plays a big part
I’ve been a long time reader of analyst forum, but decided to post now.
I started my CFA journey in December 2012 and am now a CFA charterholder.
I’ve known I wanted to work in funds management for a long time, but when I graduated university could not land any investment analyst roles. Instead I spent the next two and a half years at a mid tier management consulting firm while also studying for my CFA.
Over that time I must have applied to almost 100 investment analyst roles at various funds, some ignored me outright and others I got through a few interviews, but the answer was always the same - I didn’t have the experience or understanding of the investment process.
However I refused to give up and the real breakthrough was passing level 3 - managers seemed to really respect and appreciate the title.
3 months after passing level 3 I’ve been offered a position as an Investment Associate at a leading Australian Hedge Fund (and also had another offer for at a vanilla Australian Equities fund that I turned down)
So I guess what I’m trying to say is that finishing the CFA is definitely worth the work and the effort, once you’re a Charterholder the opportunities are out there - you just need to grab it and not give up!
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