Just Passed L3 (advice) business, something, education, quality

edgeon

Hi guys,

For those of you who are pondering whether to do CFA or not, here's my advice for what its worth.

If you can afford to spend money to get a top MBA, that might be a better alternative.

CFA is quality education. Each level I studied taught something new and valuable. It's a tough exam and you will spend a lot of hours. While cost is lower compared to an MBA from top business school, count that you will spend atleast 3 years studying and possibly 4. I finsihed in 3 years, but it could have easily been 4 if I failed even 1 level. Or 5. So, how much is that extra 1,2 or 3 years to you? To me its definitely not worth 80k on an MBA.

You should pursue CFA program only if you want to pursue the research analyst track. Equity research, fixed income research, quantitative research, emerging markets research, whatever. Those jobs require a certain level of personality, communication skills, writing skills, etc. Meaning, an english/pshycology major has equal or better chance of finding a break

I also know a lot of IT professionals pursuing CFA. Do it only if you are seriously considering getting out of IT. It's a tough decision. IT market where I am is very very hot, and has been for years.

My bottom line is, MBA from top business school is a ticket to career change, CFA program is probably not.

Having said all that, I have utmost respect for the CFA program and its curriculum. Its quality stuff. I just think, a Masters in Finance or MBA from top school could be equally good or better considering the scarcity value.

If you are young and not in advanced stages of your career, than the above advice does not apply. In that case, no harm taking the CFA. But if you are successful in a career and are eking to do the right thing i.e studying to got further ahead, than think carefully before making any moves.

Even if stocks and investments is your passion but you don't want to get into a research analyst position, than think twice. Can you find another masters or PhD program that can get you a better job? I think you can & you should.

You can seek direct advice from me if you want

rstar
2020
AT
gmail.com

Good Luck!

DSquaredSlim

^ Being young has huge advantages for the CFA program.

-Better at test taking (college wasn't far away)
-Less family commitments
-More opportunities for growth
-Decreasing exam pass rates for CFA exams

you sacrifice a few years of your prime though.

dirk01

if one is young, say mid 20s to early 30s l think its worth starting with CFA considering the cost i.e assuming a pass at every first time attempt one would spend approx less than US5000.00 to fininsh the prog. maybe after that one can then persue a part time MBA. all said l think passion counts. if one is passoinate about investments l think CFA will give the exposure nad experiance throughout the prog. i also think its easier to switch from say marketing to investments than from IT.

himanshumh

Ok, i get you. You are just stating the obvious. The name of the charter is self-explanatory, so do it only if you want to use it. You did not explain that in the op. But I don't know why anyone would want to do the CFA unless they are actually interested in being an analyst and/or moving upwards if they already hold an investment decision-making job. Do people really do it just to get any job?

Palantir

Yes the Wharton UG program is different/separate from the Econ major at the arts and sciences school.

Palantir Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> WarrenB1 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Harvard/Wharton/Stanford/Chicago....
> >
> > I completed a undergrad degree at
> Wharton...very
> > tough to get in at the Masters level especially
> if
> > you don't work at Goldman/BCG/McKinsey...
> >
> > W
>
>
> Out of curiosity, how big is the Wharton UG
> program? Also is it different from the "normal"
> undergraduate Econ major at Penn? I went to a more
> of a liberal arts oriented school where you could
> only take classes at the b-school without getting
> a degree there, so didn't realize that there were
> UG business programs as well....

fishmarket

WarrenB1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Harvard/Wharton/Stanford/Chicago....
>
> I completed a undergrad degree at Wharton...very
> tough to get in at the Masters level especially if
> you don't work at Goldman/BCG/McKinsey...
>
> W


Out of curiosity, how big is the Wharton UG program? Also is it different from the "normal" undergraduate Econ major at Penn? I went to a more of a liberal arts oriented school where you could only take classes at the b-school without getting a degree there, so didn't realize that there were UG business programs as well....



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at Monday, August 29, 2011 at 12:29PM by Palantir.

b_sea93

in my opinion 100k with 8% interest plus lost wages over 2 year period is a small price to pay if you are going to get into a job with unlimited potential.

having said that, yes, its very obvious that one size does not fit all. but probably applies to a lot of people who are making <200k per year. My advice is to avoid doing a CFA unless you are a) young or b) really want to be an analyst.

CFA is not going to get a general purpose job. A lot of jobs out there prefer to hire an MBA.

One example :
Haliburton's WHEM President came on Mad Money show and said, his company is hiring 11k people in NA this year (2011) and that pool includes everyone from engineers to MBAs. I am sure they might require a few analysts too, but MBA is very general purpose and has lot more application in the real world. CFA is very specific, and I think its worth repeating, unless you are interested in a career that specifically values CFA, no point spending your limited time pursuing it. And I think those careers are investment or portfolio analysts, or maybe risk analysts & financial planners. Again with financial planners, the job is very iffy and has a low success rate and relies heavily on commissions.

morebeans

You did not factor in the opportunity cost of doing a full time MBA. The CFA candidate will most likely work full time while pursuing the charter. Neither did you factor in the approx 8% interest rate on the $100K tuition and fees for MBA program. And the fact that CFA curriculum is a mile deep into finance while most top MBA-Finance programs are not as deep. The fact is everyone's situation is different, so there is no one size fits all.

bodhisattva

Harvard/Wharton/Stanford/Chicago....

I completed a undergrad degree at Wharton...very tough to get in at the Masters level especially if you don't work at Goldman/BCG/McKinsey...

W



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at Tuesday, August 23, 2011 at 11:38PM by WarrenB1.

bdavi77962

Riyaz,

Did you use any of the prep courses (Stalla, Elan, etc.) during your three years? If you did, can you please share your experience?

Thanks.