CFA, Princeton MFin or MIT MFin which way to go for Risks ca Investment, programs, specific, towards, friend

chetan86

I have a friend who has spent 10 years in Investment Banking on the IT side (Systems Analyst)…but is now trying to switch career. He has told me he would like to get into Risks Management but wasn’t sure what specific program would help him get there. He is now 40 and leaning towards one of these programs: CFA, Princeton MFin or Mit MFin. He has looked at the FRM but wasn’t convinced the FRM can do the trick. He found an MBA too generic. I know there are some pretty smart folks in this forum who can provide some pretty solid opinions on this type of questions.
1. Is it advisable to switch career in his 40s?
2. What program would be advisable given the stated career goal in Risks Management?
Please help!

cfalevel2011

1. No
2. An MFin from MIT is more prestigious than one from Princeton; If he’s really serious, he should also do the CFA while working on his MFin (I’m assuming he won’t be working while doing his MFin).

redskins44

I think that if he wants to switch careers in his mid-40’s, there better be a REALLY big pot of gold at the end of that rainbow.  I’m not sure that it’s worth it.
And I would take a grad degree from MIT over Princeton or the CFA Charter.
PS - don’t listen to a Level 1 candidate about doing CFA while doing a grad degree.  He has no idea what he’s in for at Levels 2 or 3.

Swanand

To switch to risk management, maybe he should go for the CFA and then start applying for positions. Not many of the students from Princeton or MIT are aspiring for risk management careers and being admitted at 40 with previous IT experience will not be easy. Both schools admit candidates with good academic credentials, good GMAT/GRE and some relevant experience.
Princeton is actually more difficult to get in and they admit way fewer candidates compared with MIT. Admission rate is 4% for Princeton and about 8% for MIT. Princeton’s program is more quantitative, and MIT’s is more general.
Writing the CFA while finishing graduate degree is very doable if you are in a MFin program. I took level II a few days after my finals at MIT MFin last June and found it really easy. The one year of rigorous finance training would give you very deep knowledge in finance, including theoretcial and analytical contents that are not in the CFA curriculum. Took level III last week and found it quite doable as well if you were still in the program. You would be surprised by how easy you find those AM essay questions, compared with essay questions on MIT’s finance finals…

busterbluth

It’s hard as ish to get into the MIT and Princeton programs. He would need to have a solid math background and to be honest those programs are usually more interested in professor recommendations than employer recommendations. Not sure how well he has kept in touch with his professors from college.

firat

Few more details about the dude:
1- He is exactly 40…not mid 40.
2- He doesn’t mind quiting his current job in mid town Manhattan to do whatever it takes to meet entrance requirements and put down the 108K (MIT MFin) and close to 100K+( MFin Princeton) or CFA (the cheapest in $$$ terms).
3. He is bored with IT and doesn’t see any growth potential in his current role. Though getting $6figures annual in his current job.
4. Knowing that he is 40, he’s planning to make a decision as quickly as end of June 2013 as he cannot afford to lose Fall 2014 semester if he has to go back to school.
5. He really wants a blunt and direct assessment of his situation from people who understand Risks management business so he doesn’t make any stupid decision.
Thanks

OmarAdnan

^ So he has not actually applied to either Princeton or MIT yet, right?  Does he have any reason to believe that either program will accept him?

DSquaredSlim

Well, I have no experience in Risk Management, and I’m not in the business, so take my advice for what it’s worth (which is probably nothing).
I think that unless you’re already working in the industry, it’s hard to break in with the CFA charter.  It might be easier with an Ivy-ish master’s, but that’s predicated on the fact that you your friend gets into school, which is honestly probably not very likely.
Since you your friend works in IB, why doesn’t he just talk to some of the people there?  Being in IT, he probably has access to the supervisors and other suits–maybe he can get some insight from them as far as what is a good way to go.  They would be a better source of info than some random people on an anonymous forum (about half of which will tell you they have no experience, and the other half will pretend like they DO have experience).
Your friend may be bored with IT, but I’m not sure that Risk Management will be a whole lot better.  (I used to work Internal Audit–probably similar to RM–and it was one of the most boring jobs in the world.)
Your friend says that he makes six figures, and doesn’t see any growth potential.  If he takes an entry-level RM job, he will probably take an entry-level job, and back on the very bottom of the totem pole.  It will take years to get back to the level he’s at now.
Your friend lives in Mid-Town Manhattan–why not consider NYU or Columbia?  That way he gets a top-notch school and doesn’t have to move.
Your friend wants to know immediately what to do, because he can’t afford to wait.  I say that he’ll be far worse off if he makes a rash, uninformed decision.  Better to do nothing than to do something stupid.

anshultongia

He strongly believes he can get in either Princeton or MIT MFin with his quant background ( Courant Institute of  Math) + programming languages (C++, Java) + tons of experiences in the industry + industry recommendations, his main effort will be on crushing the GRE or GMAT.
He has not applied yet… but has pulled most the materials to do so. Deadlines are towards the end of the year 2013.
I told him not to rush…and wait to hear from folks in this forum.

parott

Given the fact pattern, here’s what I would do:
1.  Sign up for the December CFA L1 exam.
2.  Crush GRE or GMAT.
3.  Actually apply to Princeton and MIT.
4.  Sit for CFA L1 in December.
5.  Wait for CFA results and decisions from MIT and Princeton.
6a.  Go to MIT if accepted.
6b.  If not accepted to MIT, go to Princeton if accepted.
6c.  If not accepted to MIT or Princeton, await L1 results and hopefully sign up for June L2.