Careers,Job & Education - CFA/QFA/Masters etc Questions Go Here

mono627

dunkamania wrote: »

CFA for investments/trading

Not particularly necessary for trading. Certainly won't work against you but by no means a pre-requisite.

SBWife

dunkamania wrote: »

CFA for investments/trading

Given you can't get a CFA without 4 years of work experience in investments the first thing you need to do is buckle down and improve your grades in the time you have remaining - in order to make your self more attractive to prospective employers. If you were a better student I'd encourage you to register with the CFA Institute and take advantage of the fact that you can take level 1 in your final year as an undergraduate, but given your lackluster GPA I think this would be a distraction.

Accountancy is a very different career path and it might make sense to to the postgrad in accountancy which would give you the maximum number of exceptions for whichever body you choose. A decent academic performance at this point could make you competitive for a top 10 training spot.

dunkamania

mono627 wrote: »

Not particularly necessary for trading. Certainly won't work against you but by no means a pre-requisite.

By no means a pre-requisite, but its hard to get your foot in the door without a fairly high academic record

mono627

dunkamania wrote: »

By no means a pre-requisite, but its hard to get your foot in the door without a fairly high academic record

Again, don't think I'd particularly agree. Academics aren't necessarily as important in trading. I think a passion for the markets and some method of showing discipline/hard work could be valued more than academics for applying for some trading jobs.

That's not to say that some places don't put emphasis on academics, completely depends on where you're applying to.

ixus

Mono and dunk are right on this.

The thing is though, trading, investing and accountancy are miles apart. You need to figure out which one you want to get into sonner rather than later. When you know which one, you then have to go after it.

To be honest, I don't hold the Big 4 in high esteem at all. Churn and burn staff. Fleece companies and really don't know sh!t about what they audit. As for their knowledge in finance.... You'd be better of doing CIMA. You'd fly through the CFA with that.

Oh, and this should be in the careers sticky. Moved.

SBWife

IXUS the CFA and CIMA are miles apart in terms of what they cover (there's potentially more overlap between ACCA and CFA) and I'd wager no one flies through the CFA.

ixus

SBWife wrote: »

IXUS the CFA and CIMA are miles apart in terms of what they cover (there's potentially more overlap between ACCA and CFA) and I'd wager no one flies through the CFA.

Apologies, I meant better of doing CIMA than other accountancy qualifications. I value it more personally. You're right, no one flies through CFA. I retract that.

pog it

By any chance does anyone know of any up-to-date booklet/career book with information on careers in the financial sector and with details of different positions available? And also about courses available in Ireland and UK?

Thanks!

Jannise

I have just finished ACCA (still waiting for final results) and joined CFA, to sit Level 1 in December 2011. Material is not very difficult, lots of overlaps, but is still every time consuming.
Currently working in investment company, but in finance department, so After Level 1 will try to move to more relevant position.

mono627

pog it wrote: »

By any chance does anyone know of any up-to-date booklet/career book with information on careers in the financial sector and with details of different positions available? And also about courses available in Ireland and UK?

Thanks!

The grad Ireland website is worth a look. Any college career/guidance counselor would have all the up-to-date booklets.

The Times (English) released a book recently with grad positions in the UK across all industries. Normally costs £16-£17 but you can get a free copy through college if you request it.

David900

Not sure this is in the right forum. I'm currently doing a Masters in Finance. I'm not sure what kind of result I will get at this stage but I think it might just be a pass. I already have a 2.1 in my degree. Will this greatly hinder me when I go for a job?

mono627

David900 wrote: »

Not sure this is in the right forum. I'm currently doing a Masters in Finance. I'm not sure what kind of result I will get at this stage but I think it might just be a pass. I already have a 2.1 in my degree. Will this greatly hinder me when I go for a job?

What kind of job are you trying to get?

David900

Something in the banking sector maybe - I'm willing to move away.
I'd take any job as long as the prospects are good.
Don't really want to get stuck in fund accounting from what I've heard though.

mono627

David900 wrote: »

Something in the banking sector maybe - I'm willing to move away.
I'd take any job as long as the prospects are good.
Don't really want to get stuck in fund accounting from what I've heard though.

AFAIK, most banking jobs will require a minimum of a 2.1. So in truth, yes, a pass may affect your chances of getting a position in one of the more competitive jobs. More competitive positions will obviously be given to people with better qualifications (provided they're not a tool).

Saying you want a job in the banking sector is a pretty broad statement, it might help if you narrow it down a bit.

London is probably your best bet for finance jobs.

Appleby123

Hey,

Not sure if im in the right forum/thread as im a new user!! So if not wud appreciate if anyone could redirect me.

I.m currently in my final year of a B.Comm degree and am hoping for a 1.1 (as this is what I've got over the last three years). Im going to be doing a Masters in Finance nexy year (starting Sep 2011) and am currently debating over which one to do: 1) Msc in Financial Economics (UCC), 2) Corporate Finance (UCC), 3/4) Msc in Finance (Trinity or UCD), 5)Msc in International Finance, (NUIG)

Smurfit and Trinity are by far more expensive to do and was wondering do ppl think it is worth the much larger investment to do a masters in one of these universities?? In other words are the job prospects that much better with these universities??

I'm also planning to do the CFA's at some stage after completing my Masters so was thinking that a Masters in somewhere like UCC as well as the CFA's would be as good on a CV as a Masters in Smurfit or TCD without the CFA.

Would really appreciate some feedback on this as have to be applying for the Masters fairly soon!!

Thanks in advance!!

ofjames

All those degree's would overlap hugely with the CFA. Doing both would not be a very worthwhile use of your time and money in my opinion. You would basically be paying for and studying the same thing twice.

The industry views the CFA as basically equivalent to a Masters in Finance or an MBA.

The problem with Masters programmes is that there are literally thousands of similar degrees worldwide. Similar, but not the same. In terms of employment, the strength of a particular degree and the perception of the graduates that come from it is largely dependent on the standing and reputation of the relevant University. Accordingly, if you have a Masters of finance from a top international school like London Business School, Harvard, Oxford, Cambridge etc... then you would be in high demand with the best employers in places like London and New York. If the degree is from a school they don't recognise however, they wont value it nearly as highly.

The attractiveness of the CFA for employers is its global footprint. No matter where you sit the exam in the world the curriculum and the test are the same. Also employers know it is of sufficient difficulty and rigour to have confidence that anyone who negotiates the 3 exams successfully has reached the level of competency they expect. In short, you could view the CFA as a really good Masters of Finance.

If you look at the Financial Times rankings of business schools and masters programmes you will see that the UCD Smurfit School is the only Irish university whose courses are regularly included in the top 100 (and they tend to be near the bottom). Trinity's courses have also made it inside the top 100 periodically. In general, the better the reputation of a university the more they charge for their programmes. In effect, you pay for what you get.

Therefore, my advice would be as follows. If you are determined to pursue the CFA then dont bother doing a general Masters in Finance. If you really want to do a Masters in the finance area than maybe do one that will focus on a niche area that does not significantly overlap with the CFA syllabus. A friend of mine did the Masters in Quantitative Finance in UCD and it is a very good course. If you have a good mathematical brain maybe looking into a course like that could be an idea.

Otherwise, with a 1st you would have a good chance of getting admitted into a top school abroad for a Masters of Finance. It will cost significantly more but it is likely you will see a return on the investment in yourself.

Appleby123

Cheers for that advice!!

Im really set on doing a Masters alright though as I prefer this type of learning environment and also don't have a job and researching a bit it sounds like a lot of ppl who do the CFA are working professionals and also it can only be fully completed if u have 4 yrs relevant work experience in the sector under your belt.

It's just I'm really wondering if the much larger investment in doing a Masters in UCD/Trinity (where the courses are CFA accredited) compared to one in UCC (Msc in Financial Economics/Msc in Corporate - which are not accredited with the CFA) is really worth it down the line when it comes to getting a good job in inv banking, venture capital, trading ect....

I am also looking at a Masters in the Erasmus Uni of Rotterdam. Their Msc in Finance & Inv is also CFA accredited and only cost a fraction of the other courses (less than 2000euro for EU students) even though the living costs would naturally be higher.

Are you sure that the industry sees a Masters in Finance as an equivalent of doing the CFA as the uni's that are accredited with this qualification seem to say that their Masters is a steeping stone in becoming a CFA and some even offer scholarships to the best students to complete it after the Masters??

Thanks again for your good advice!!

ixus

I did an MSc in Financial Services in UL. It's a decent course but, I'd highly recommend the Computational Finance course in UL if you have the maths.

I don't think you should pay over the odds for a college name from Ireland. It's just not worth it IMHO.

If I was doing it over again, I'd go abroad. Many European countries have grants for EU nationals as you mentioned. Check out the Toulouse School of economics. Go abroad, and don't look back.

You're set on the Masters, so do it. I really don't know what the accreditation offers. Can you pass/get exemptions from exams with it? If not, it means nothing. Really, it doesn't.

SBWife

There are no exemptions to any CFA exams.

It's probably considered more than a Masters (Internationally at least - it's still relatively new to Ireland so perhaps doesn't has as high a reputation here) because it's normally achieved while working full time so it demonstrates an ability to time manage and handle pressure in excess of that needed to complete a full time Masters.

mono627

Appleby123 wrote: »

Hey,

Not sure if im in the right forum/thread as im a new user!! So if not wud appreciate if anyone could redirect me.

I.m currently in my final year of a B.Comm degree and am hoping for a 1.1 (as this is what I've got over the last three years). Im going to be doing a Masters in Finance nexy year (starting Sep 2011) and am currently debating over which one to do: 1) Msc in Financial Economics (UCC), 2) Corporate Finance (UCC), 3/4) Msc in Finance (Trinity or UCD), 5)Msc in International Finance, (NUIG)

Smurfit and Trinity are by far more expensive to do and was wondering do ppl think it is worth the much larger investment to do a masters in one of these universities?? In other words are the job prospects that much better with these universities??

I'm also planning to do the CFA's at some stage after completing my Masters so was thinking that a Masters in somewhere like UCC as well as the CFA's would be as good on a CV as a Masters in Smurfit or TCD without the CFA.

Would really appreciate some feedback on this as have to be applying for the Masters fairly soon!!

Thanks in advance!!

If you're looking at applying to IB's the best thing you can do is apply for their Summer internship programmes. Having an IB on your CV is worth more than any Master's course IMHO.

Doing the Trinity MSc at the moment, so if you have any specific questions fire ahead.

mac123

ofjames wrote: »

All those degree's would overlap hugely with the CFA. Doing both would not be a very worthwhile use of your time and money in my opinion. You would basically be paying for and studying the same thing twice.

The industry views the CFA as basically equivalent to a Masters in Finance or an MBA.

The problem with Masters programmes is that there are literally thousands of similar degrees worldwide. Similar, but not the same. In terms of employment, the strength of a particular degree and the perception of the graduates that come from it is largely dependent on the standing and reputation of the relevant University. Accordingly, if you have a Masters of finance from a top international school like London Business School, Harvard, Oxford, Cambridge etc... then you would be in high demand with the best employers in places like London and New York. If the degree is from a school they don't recognise however, they wont value it nearly as highly.

The attractiveness of the CFA for employers is its global footprint. No matter where you sit the exam in the world the curriculum and the test are the same. Also employers know it is of sufficient difficulty and rigour to have confidence that anyone who negotiates the 3 exams successfully has reached the level of competency they expect. In short, you could view the CFA as a really good Masters of Finance.

If you look at the Financial Times rankings of business schools and masters programmes you will see that the UCD Smurfit School is the only Irish university whose courses are regularly included in the top 100 (and they tend to be near the bottom). Trinity's courses have also made it inside the top 100 periodically. In general, the better the reputation of a university the more they charge for their programmes. In effect, you pay for what you get.

Therefore, my advice would be as follows. If you are determined to pursue the CFA then dont bother doing a general Masters in Finance. If you really want to do a Masters in the finance area than maybe do one that will focus on a niche area that does not significantly overlap with the CFA syllabus. A friend of mine did the Masters in Quantitative Finance in UCD and it is a very good course. If you have a good mathematical brain maybe looking into a course like that could be an idea.

Otherwise, with a 1st you would have a good chance of getting admitted into a top school abroad for a Masters of Finance. It will cost significantly more but it is likely you will see a return on the investment in yourself.

+1 on that.

I moved to Canada last year and having talked to a few people in the industry here, the most notable being the managing director of the trading floor for RBC Dominion I was told that the CFA is the only way to go. He told me not to bother with a masters and just go for the CFA so thats what im doing.

I sat level one in Dec and im now studying for the level two in June.

Its probably not as big a deal back home but if you wanted to work in N. America its more or less needed.

Appleby123

Hey, thanks all for the good advice, its much appreciated.

Ya a Masters abroad really appeals to me alright cause I like the sound of a bit of travelling aswell. In the last few days after a bit of thought and more research I think ill go for a more broad masters such as International Business or the likes (even Msc in International Business and Finance). International Business will be a massive area in Irelands recovery and think a Masters in this area would be extremely relevant and interesting.And also not knowing where jobs in Ireland are going to come from in the next few years I think doing a Masters that will keep doors open for me rather than closing them would be very beneficial.

I wouldnt be exactly a maths whiz even though the material Ive faced so far in Commerce i was able to handle fairly well (and got good grades in them). So Msc in Quant Fin or Msc in Comp Fin probably would be a bith too mathsy for me!!

Because the CFA seems to be such an essential thing to have in the FS Industry i think i will pursue it but not straight away as I really want to pursue a masters (but not just for the sake of it) and take your advice that doing a Masters in Finance and the CFA would be a waste of resources . Some lecturers are saying these days that a postgrad is what an undergrad was 15yrs ago and is becoming more and more essental for high end career/jobs!!

With regard to getting experience with an IB, it wont be possible this year but I have 6mths work experience in the FS Audit department of one of the Big 4 (but now know acc is not for me), so that might stand to me in some way!!

So thats my situation at the moment but would really appreciate any other advice/information you could give me.

whysomoody

mono627 wrote: »

If you're looking at applying to IB's the best thing you can do is apply for their Summer internship programmes. Having an IB on your CV is worth more than any Master's course IMHO.

Doing the Trinity MSc at the moment, so if you have any specific questions fire ahead.

Appleby123 wrote: »

Hey, thanks all for the good advice, its much appreciated.

Ya a Masters abroad really appeals to me alright cause I like the sound of a bit of travelling aswell. In the last few days after a bit of thought and more research I think ill go for a more broad masters such as International Business or the likes (even Msc in International Business and Finance). International Business will be a massive area in Irelands recovery and think a Masters in this area would be extremely relevant and interesting.And also not knowing where jobs in Ireland are going to come from in the next few years I think doing a Masters that will keep doors open for me rather than closing them would be very beneficial.

I wouldnt be exactly a maths whiz even though the material Ive faced so far in Commerce i was able to handle fairly well (and got good grades in them). So Msc in Quant Fin or Msc in Comp Fin probably would be a bith too mathsy for me!!

Because the CFA seems to be such an essential thing to have in the FS Industry i think i will pursue it but not straight away as I really want to pursue a masters (but not just for the sake of it) and take your advice that doing a Masters in Finance and the CFA would be a waste of resources . Some lecturers are saying these days that a postgrad is what an undergrad was 15yrs ago and is becoming more and more essental for high end career/jobs!!

With regard to getting experience with an IB, it wont be possible this year but I have 6mths work experience in the FS Audit department of one of the Big 4 (but now know acc is not for me), so that might stand to me in some way!!

So thats my situation at the moment but would really appreciate any other advice/information you could give me.

Agree with the first guy, Id say an internship with the CFA is the best combination. I am not sure how rated Masters degrees are rated in Ireland at least. The CFA is, as had been mentioned, a global passport which given the uncertainty here is a huge help.

CheckRaiseIRL

I will be doing CFA I in December and CFA II the following June.

I am not workng with an investment firm and will be doing completely self directed learning.


What are the resources available to me and do you recommend using them all simultaneously?

www.stalla.com
http://www.schweser.com/
http://analystnotes.com/

whysomoody

CheckRaiseIRL wrote: »

I will be doing CFA I in December and CFA II the following June.

I am not workng with an investment firm and will be doing completely self directed learning.


What are the resources available to me and do you recommend using them all simultaneously?

www.stalla.com
http://www.schweser.com/
http://analystnotes.com/

FYI - you need to be working 4 years in the investment profession to become a qualified CFA. Also I like your confidence at passing in December, best of luck!

soddy1979

CheckRaiseIRL wrote: »

I will be doing CFA I in December and CFA II the following June.

I am not workng with an investment firm and will be doing completely self directed learning.


What are the resources available to me and do you recommend using them all simultaneously?

www.stalla.com
http://www.schweser.com/
http://analystnotes.com/

I used the CFA Curriculum & Schweser for level 1 & level 2 (also using it now for level 3). I also used Finquiz for the last few weeks of level 2. It's all good, but once you get to level 2 it's highly advisable to use the main curriculum as much as you can.

SBWife

When you register the CFA Institute sends you the official curriculum. It's a combination of chapters reprinted from various text books and professional articles.* You should base your study on this material, and treat any professionally produced notes, as just that- notes to help understand or review the material. People do pass just using the notes BUT it's a riskier strategy and you'll have the full set of materials anyway.

*The reason they now do this is to ensure all candidates have the full set of materials, their intention is to increase the pass percentage by reducing the number of people who rely on notes in order to save money.

soddy1979

I also highly recommend getting a question bank for level 1. Stalla have a product called passmaster, Schweser have a product called SchweserPro.

Jannise

A have both, official curriculum (6 books for Level 1) and 5 books from Shwesser. I can't say they are very different, but i find Shwesser a bit easier to understand and remember, than the official books. Try to read them both, as have a lot's of time till December.

CheckRaiseIRL

Is this the full set of Schweser study notes for CFA I? Amazon