I’ve been noticing that there are a good amount of posts for people taking the exam that are not from a financial background. Me myself am looking for an entry level position that is in accordance to the charter. I’m from Austin, TX and just having the hardest time to find any opening that is a “CFA candidate work experience”. Looking forward to the inputs, thank you so much.
First check out the CFAI’s sample job titles which would qualify for “work experience”: http://www.cfainstitute.org/cfaprog/charterholder/membership/jobtitles.html Keep in mind that internships and unpaid volunteer work don’t count (as I understand it), but some jobs in ops or IT/software development might, since you would be " producing a work product that informs or adds value to that [investment decision-making] process". The CFAI also has a “jobline” where you can post your resume and search, but for non-members you have to pay. Anyone use it before? Any good? If your willing to go overseas, try looking for local cfa societies and trying to establish contact with some of their officers, maybe they can point you in the right direction. I’m in your same situation and am curious to see if anyone else has any non-obvious places to look for potential opportunities.
The only jobs available in this market must be on another planet…
mhadinoto, What I have gathered from reading the info on this forum and otherwise is that CFA does not help you in switching streams. Why won’t you consider an MBA? Also, after having studied for L1, I am beginning to realise that work-ex in relevant industry is important and your CFA must supplement that. I don’t want to sound pessimistic, but this is no substitution. I sometimes crudely like to think of it as: CFA = T-Bonds/T-notes Work-ex in relevant sector = T-bills/T-notes MBA = Best of both worlds! ps: you might like to see if there are any accounting jobs available which might count as relevant work-ex. I have heard that short term accounting courses (like a few weeks/months) may help you in getting a job that will be counted as relevant work-ex for CFA Charter. Some CPAs on the forum might be able to guide.
I haven’t went the MBA route because I did complete a Master degree in finance. However, I’ve come to realized that these jobs are hard to come by in TX (I tried the CFA jobline so far with no success). I am actually thinking about the PhD route due to the state of our economy. Is this a good idea?
PHD is a great idea, however you need to be sure before making a plunge. Any top PHD might demand close to 4-5 years (AFA I know). Are you really willing to wait that long? Also, since you already have a Masters in Finance, then why not try and contact some of the Alumni of your institute? I also am surprised that you used the phrase “people taking the exam that are not from a financial background” because you are clearly not among those. CFA might not help in switching streams but after a Masters in Finance you are surely a *Finance person*. Bottom line: Religiously network with some alumni, wait for a while, have a little fun and catch up on whatever you have been missing (family etc.) cuz of studies and the opportunities will definitely strike soon. ps: I am not based in USA, so you might want to take my opinion with a pinch of salt.
If you’re looking to seriously get into quant, then a PhD will be beneficial. If you don’t go the quant route, then a PhD is pointless–IMHO! If you go to McCombs and get an MBA and become a part of the Investment Fund, that’ll look good! As crazy as it sounds, Craigslist has some good listings, at least in my area…
sox, when I was completing my Masters, I was part of a student run fund similiar to what they have in McCombs. Analysis, Projections and Recomendation for stocks to include in the port. It was fun and exciting =) anu, the only reason I say that is because I have an engineering bachelors and have the majority of my work experience in the engineering realm. Thank you for the kind encouragement =)
mhadinoto, where did you go to school? There are a ton of jobs in houston…
FYI - in my experience, JobLine rarely has entry-level positions.
houston_08, I went to Texas A&M. Been trying to land one in Houston for a while now.
I went to texas state and got a corp. finance gig. Did you apply to all the oil companies? I didn’t interview with any of them but I imagine they like A&M guys a lot better. I got some friends who work for Merrill downtown who went to A&M, you should apply there.
I m surprised to know that cfa does not help in switching streams. I m currently working in finance/accountancy area and am looking for a switch into investments/market research. I gathered that doing cfa is a sure shot way of getting into investments. Currently finished level 1 and pursuing level 2. what is being discussed in this forum is somewhat discouraging… has someone got any other views Cheers
sudeep.ellath Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I m surprised to know that cfa does not help in > switching streams. I m currently working in > finance/accountancy area and am looking for a > switch into investments/market research. I > gathered that doing cfa is a sure shot way of > getting into investments. Currently finished level > 1 and pursuing level 2. what is being discussed in > this forum is somewhat discouraging… > > has someone got any other views > > Cheers Welcome to a reality!!
houston, thanks for the response. I’ll go ahead and do so. =) sudeep, i am almost exactly in your shoes (no job though, got downsized)… The market definitely doesn’t help our cases.
the problem right now is that there are so many people who are very capable for many many jobs right now (due to lay offs) that someone from another position is trying to switch into a higher profile one (IM,IB, research, trading) is that why the heck would anyone hire some entry level person just because they passed a test, when they can get experienced people, and have to deal with tough decisions with their own staff? Think about it. 2009 is heading to be pretty difficult.