Hi I have read many different posts in regards to the opportunities the CFA opens depending on experience and skill set but please take the time to read my situation…
I am 23 years old have a Bachelors in Economics from a SUNY school with an average GPA (3.2ish)… I am looking to get into finance specifically I am most interested in asset management but would be able to justify building a career in private equity or corporate finance. I am working at a position as a “recovery analyst” (nothing to do with finance) after experience in more sales/marketing type jobs. I completely understand the CFA is not my “golden ticket” into any field of finance but can it help me “get my foot in the door” along with a good interview of course? Should I take CFA Level 1 Exam this December??
I have had opportunities to work at banks and similar type of positions as positions like “credit loan admin” and “middle office” type positions but the salary is about $10,000-$15,000 less than my current position (with more hours and longer commute) and had not been able to justify the switch…
Any answer to my question or direction/advise would be greatly appreciated! Thank you
So here’s my take. When they say that the CFA program doesn’t open doors, they’re mainly just being cynical. However, what they are right about is the fact that no one really cares. There are so many proxies out there that serve as an indication of someone’s qualifications. However, it’s all about choosing your battles. For example, is someone likely to care that you’ve passed level 1 if you were going for some fixed income portfolio analyst job? No. Not at all. They’ll want to see years of experience doing something similar and then to which point passing the exams is similar to the ethics bump, where you may have two perfectly qualified candidates but ones a charterholder and you like them both, they’ll choose the charterholder. But again, no one really cares “until” you’re a charterholder… in my opinion.
however, passing level 1 will open doors - and I think most would agree with me on this - it opens ‘operational’ doors. I was a delivery driver when I passed level 1, and, as soon as I did, companies started calling me back… but again, I was aiming at the lowest of the lows. The hiring manager says, OK… if he can be trusted to calculate duration, and margin calls, etc. then, he can probably be trusted to buy 5,000 shares of some mutual fund.
Again, I was aiming very low.
Some people get further in life than others though too. The key is to not hating every dip-shit who uses family connections to join an analyst team straight out of college… it’s to befriending them and everyone around them in such a way where they’re hiring you the very second an opportunity does open up… and then destroying that trust fund kid with a relentless work ethic. I digress though.
Thank you for your helpful response. I am not expecting to get into one of the better positions in the finance industry. I’d like to just get experience with a decent to good salary to build my knowledge/resume about the industry. What jobs do you think are good entry level/operational opportunities that I can apply to for each of the three (asset management, corporate finance, private equity)?