Hey I was just wondering if anyone had an idea of what type of salary one could realistically expect after passing all three levels. I passed Lvl I in Dec but I am debating continuing with the program. I work in the Fed Govt currently so the CFA designation will get me respect here from those who know what it is (actually passing Lvl I has done that too) but that’s about the only purpose it will serve. I guess my thinking right now is that if I’m going to continue with the CFA course it is much easier while I am young. I assume that living off of Red Bull and Monster energy drinks gets tougher as you age. Any advice would be helpful.
1 Miiiiillion dollars. Ba-ha-ha-ha!!!
If you live in the UK, thats £1.35/hour after taxes and fuel bills
Depends where you are. Average 5 yr charter holder earns roughly 200k. I would say NYC area, more- much more I watched something about baseball and ritalin (sp?) last night. Maybe I could get diagnosed with ADD because I failed Level II and studied 400+hrs. I am 35. Maybe you could switch over to ritalin at some point?
31 years, over 500 hours spent last year, and retaking L2. I suspect an average aptitude coupled with too much reliance on mastering FSA and equities did me in last year. Pen to pad old school approach this year. Discounting nothing!
I believe CFAI has a yearly compensation survey that is available (for free? to candidates / chargerholders?). It breaks out reported compensation for a number of different positions. Don’t remember where I saw it though. Might be available on the CFAI website?
google cfa compensation survey for the latest 2007 one. I don’t know about the “what you can expect” question, there’s no “CFA salary”. Depends on the country, metro area, company, division’s performance, job, blah blah blah
You have to remember though that passing the three exams does not a CFA charterholder make. You need to have 4 years of relevant investment experience, which is probably difficult to get in most government jobs (I work for the Navy right now and mine doesn’t count). You only become a charterholder after you have those 4 years of experience, recommendations form existing charterholders, passed all 3 tests, and gotten approval from the CFA Institute. Most of those compensation surveys treat this as “year 1,” though I’m sure the 4 years investment experience prior to being a charterholder has a great deal of influence on compensation. Saying an “average 5 yr charter holder earns roughly 200k” actually means you may have 10+ years of experience in finance.
Been discussed before … see http://www.analystforum.com/phorums/read.php?13,606224,606286#msg-606286
Thanks for the direction. I found what I was looking for. Level 2 Relief: I switched govt jobs about a year ago when I got into the program and actually found a real estate finance govt job…so I’m dealing with a lot of financial metrics (ROE, FFO, NOI, etc)…I think by the time I finish the CFA program the years experience will be sufficient. Hope so anyways.