anyone have a CFA ?

[chanimal]

hey just wondering if any of you have a CFA or have thought of getting one, I'm writing my level I in June and was wondering what others think of this designation, thanks

 

[Concordia]

Originally Posted by chanimal

hey just wondering if any of you have a CFA or have thought of getting one, I'm writing my level I in June and was wondering what others think of this designation, thanks

I have one. These days, I never give it a thought. At some firms, it's a box they make you check. Ours supports it, and it was a nice signal to send when I was interviewing out of business school. That's about it. Worth having, but it will be more productive to get a good MBA-- albeit at a greater cost in time and money.

 

[aleksandr]

Originally Posted by Concordia

I have one. These days, I never give it a thought. At some firms, it's a box they make you check. Ours supports it, and it was a nice signal to send when I was interviewing out of business school. That's about it. Worth having, but it will be more productive to get a good MBA-- albeit at a greater cost in time and money.

So you would say that its generally a better idea, finance-related-career-wise, to take a year out and do an MBA than to spend all available weeknights and weekends for the next two-three years doing a CFA?

 

[Concordia]

A lot of it depends on how much of a career change you're making. If you're going to an area with no real experience or credentials, an MBA might help better, especially if you work the internship angle well.

A CFA proves that you can sit for exams. It's a necessary skill, but not sufficient to attract attention that you weren't already getting.

If what you really want is a slight boost in your own company, or to send a powerful signal to someone you already sort of know that you're interested in investments, it could be a decent move.

 

[Financier]

The best course of action, of course, depends on where you are in your career and where you want to be. I have both an MBA and the CFA designation. Both serve their purposes depending on what you want to do. Although the CFA isn't really noticed in what I do now, it served a part in getting here. I found both the CFA and MBA to be rewarding experiences.

 

[JoelF]

I started to study and frankly found the material incredibly deadly, rote and boring. I mean, come on, manually (or via calculator) moving cashflows backwards and forwards ad nauseum. For all the respect it seems to have, the CFA seems as much a commercial scam as a professional designation.

 

[GQgeek]

Originally Posted by JoelF

I started to study and frankly found the material incredibly deadly, rote and boring. I mean, come on, manually (or via calculator) moving cashflows backwards and forwards ad nauseum. For all the respect it seems to have, the CFA seems as much a commercial scam as a professional designation.

I quickly looked at the outline... Doesn't level 1 basically test the same things you'd learn over the course of a finance undergrad? If so, i could see how a finance major might not like repeating what he's learned, but apparently the test still has a high failure rate so maybe it gets harder...

 

[Concordia]

The real problem with passing is that you have to learn things the Institute's way. A lot of practicing professionals go in without doing the reading, and they get toasted.

I would imagine, though, that it would be pretty easy to cram for after year 1 of an MBA. Basic finance, accounting, stats, and you're more than halfway home. The macroeconomics and ethics are fairly specific to the CFA test. The fixed income analysis can take a while to learn, also, if you've not done it.

 

[itsstillmatt]

My point of view is that skills are easy to learn while thinking is not. That said, if it can help you get to a place where you can learn to think, it is worth doing.

 

[Omega Man]

The designation is getting popular each day and it is becoming a requirement if you want to get serious in money management. I was talking with a buddy of mine a little while ago and he sees a niche for these types of designation. He proposed a new one called Certified Restructuring Analyst or CRA in short. Anyway, kidding aside, it is a useful designation to show potential employers that you are serious about your career.

 

[texas_jack]

Originally Posted by iammatt

My point of view is that skills are easy to learn while thinking is not. That said, if it can help you get to a place where you can learn to think, it is worth doing.

deep

 

[Gatsby]

i'm sitting level 2 in june; did level 1 in dec...

dunno if its really worth comparing to an MBA as the scope of a CFA is much narrower (specifically finance), whereas conceptually b-school should give you a broader base. the point is simply that they are not mutually exclusive.. depending on how my current role works out I may be applying to b-schools in the fall as well.

that said, CFA is a pain to study for, especially if you have been out of university for the last few years..

best of luck!

 

[whallyden]

I completed the program last year. I would say it was very worthwhile. It led to a step change in comp, and unlike an unsubsidized MBA, the monetary costs of completing the program were immaterial.