Hi, I’m about to graduate uni with two degrees in Econ & Math. I originally planned to go into graduate school, but I’m much more interested in portfolio management. Would taking the CFA help me get into this, even though I have no previous finance experience?
No.
Maybe - can you pick stocks? If so, you have a shot.
sign up for the CFA after you get a job.
I asked the same question in 2007 but there was nobody to guide me and I fell for the trap. I’ll save you a lot of your valuable hours - CFA will not help buddy, MBA will probably.
i agree. CFA will not help. However,the knowledge acquired will. depending where you’re from, its hard to break into PM with or without the CFA. as to the other poster, MBA is a better bet for sure. 100%. good luck.
No dude - get the best work experience you can get that will position you for a PM role or any other front office finance job, and take the CFA in your spare time. So many people invest so much energy taking the CFA exam just to get an extra bullet on the bottom of their resume that nobody cares about. I mean, we’re talking about 250 hours per exam. Imagine what you could accomplish if you spent that 250 hours networking, attending social functions for young professionals, going on informational interviews, etc… I feel bad every time I say this seeing as how this is a forum for CFA aspirants, but definitely concentrate on getting the best job you can get and worry about the CFA later.
I think it depends on what you want it for, if you want the CFA to show you have a base set of knowledge an employer might be looking for yes, if you think it’s the golden ticket no. I think a lot of people recommend an MBA on these forums because of the recruiting and the hand holding in the job search process. I see a lot of people on here shooting out resumes and applying online wondering why they haven’t been called back. I strongly believe in the old adage, it’s not what you know it’s who you know. All of my jobs have been through networking, it’s not easy or enjoyable, but it works. You can network your way into most jobs and careers, if you’re blindly sending out applications you’ll never get a call unless you have exactly what they are looking for with job experience and credentials. Good luck!
numi Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > No dude - get the best work experience you can get > that will position you for a PM role or any other > front office finance job, and take the CFA in your > spare time. So many people invest so much energy > taking the CFA exam just to get an extra bullet on > the bottom of their resume that nobody cares > about. I mean, we’re talking about 250 hours per > exam. Imagine what you could accomplish if you > spent that 250 hours networking, attending social > functions for young professionals, going on > informational interviews, etc… > > I feel bad every time I say this seeing as how > this is a forum for CFA aspirants, but definitely > concentrate on getting the best job you can get > and worry about the CFA later. This is very good advice. It seems that so many people are looking at the CFA charter as a way into a finance role (as opposed to being a complimentary bullet on one’s CV, as I believe it was intended). The CFA is a great thing and I would encourage anyone to pursue it if they are interested in increasing their knowledge base, but professional experience is of such greater importance. To the OP: focus all of your energy and time on securing a FT gig.
Do both, but prioritize the job as numi says. CFA Level 1 does not require anywhere near 250 hours if you have a solid background, which is what you seem to have.
numi Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > No dude - get the best work experience you can get > that will position you for a PM role or any other > front office finance job, and take the CFA in your > spare time. So many people invest so much energy > taking the CFA exam just to get an extra bullet on > the bottom of their resume that nobody cares > about. I mean, we’re talking about 250 hours per > exam. Imagine what you could accomplish if you > spent that 250 hours networking, attending social > functions for young professionals, going on > informational interviews, etc… > > I feel bad every time I say this seeing as how > this is a forum for CFA aspirants, but definitely > concentrate on getting the best job you can get > and worry about the CFA later. Spot on. Great advice as always Numi. I wrote Level 1 last June and passed with high hopes…WRONG. I am continuing the exams not because I am hoping it alone will get me some great FO gig, but rather just for the knowledge I am picking up while studying…it seems everyone is taking the CFA exams nowadays anyhow and it is turning more into a prerequisite I believe than anything. Just my 2 cents.
agree with numi…the CFA won’t be as big a boost as you think. Besides after you pass it, you will only have level 1 anyways, it’s not like you’ll have a CFA charter.
financedude Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > agree with numi…the CFA won’t be as big a boost > as you think. Besides after you pass it, you will > only have level 1 anyways, it’s not like you’ll > have a CFA charter. … and you cannot get the charter without 4 years of near-FO work anyway.
As others have astutely pointed out: Get the best job you can and spend your time building a solid network. If you have free time after you have accomplished the above THEN knock out the CFA. I have mixed feelings on the CFA: I spent a lot of time earning the charter (I went 3/3 but probably put in upwards of 750 hours studying) and it has yet to pay any dividends that I can attribute to it directly. That being said, I think it has been a marginal benefit. I learned quite a bit and benefitted from the required discipline that carried over to my job and MBA application process. Hopefully when I come out of bschool in 2012, having the charter will also differentiate me among all the IM hopefuls. The finance world is increasingly competitive…you need experience, a network, and credentials.
Thanks for the advice for everyone. I’ll move on to something else.
I agree with most things said above, but I did want to give a slightly different perspective. I came from a non-finance background but had good credentials. Passing a couple of levels of the CFA definitely helped me to show that I knew SOMETHING about investing, rather than just trying to persuade people I was interested in it. As people say above, the CFA is not a golden ticket but it will help you. It totally depends on your situation and what asset class you are trying to get into. Don’t worry about becoming a portfolio manager yet, though. There are a lot of steps in that ladder.
I agree…what I do each time I passed a level for CFA is printed out the results and then wiped my a$$ with it.
^haha. That’s the right place where the CFA result should go.
CFA definitely makes a difference, even passing levels. However, you do need more to seal the deal. So, every once in a while someone here writes a note saying “should I take this job; I really want to pass the CFA.” That’s a no-brainer, take the job if it’s relevant to the field and study for CFA on your own time. I don’t think Numi actually meant this, but his post made it sounds like CFA hardly helps at all. It does. I noticed an uptick in interest after passing L1 and an interview turned around 180 degrees (for the better) when I pointed out that I’d passed L2 (strange to me that the interviewer didn’t already know that, since it was right up there on my resume). Today, things are different because the industry has imploded and is recovering, and there are tons of experienced and highly qualified people competing with you. So the effect of CFA vs having done exactly the same job as your interviewer wants for their nearest competitor is lessened. None of that means that you shouldn’t make CFA a high priority if you want to break in. Just don’t forget the networking and prospecting part along with it.
^also agree…networking got me in the door, the fact that I passed all three levels got me the job hands down