violet

you seem to be knowledgeable in this IB thingy. What would be your advise to someone with not too prestigious MBA who wants to get into the IB field; either in 9ja or somewhere else? LBS no be beans oh.

I am becoming very complacent about this CFA thing. It takes longer period and the pass rate is abysmally low. Also, everybody seems to be doing it now. I am considering a University of Durham Msc Econs and Finance in its stead.

In my experience, and like i mentioned earlier, if you are the average Joe in all respect, you'd need more than a bit of luck to get into IB, at least in UK, Europe or the Americas.

The average Joe is the dude with a 2:1 in a finance/economics related course from a University of "where the hell is that", with no other skill to offer.  Things become worse if the individual is not very aesthetically pleasing to the eyes, has an annoying accent, is not arrogant/confident and cannot even convince a kid that santa claus is real.


People tend to stand out from average Joes' by snapping up qualifications like CFAs, CIAI, FRMs and maybe even MBA, but this designations tend to lose their appeals quickly once "everyone" owns one, or in bad markets where employers are doing the laying off instead of hiring.

My advise for anyone trying to get into IB is to build a "cache" of skills that are salable rather than a bagful of designations.

Those skills may include programming in VBA, C#, mathematica, C++ or python.  others may include very strong financial modelling skills or even sharp knowledge of econometrics. I'm aware that only very few boutiques or banks have people with skills in risk attribution and even fewer banks have people with skills of Fixed Income attribution (most boutiques are still struggling with this) . . . .Having a combination of these skills sets will likely put you way ahead of people with CFA designations or average MBAs and will also keep you in a Job when the tides rise and fall.  As a matter of fact, the company i work with recently turned down a few people who have completed all three CFA exams and offered the position to a guy who has spent only a few months seriously analyzing and freely blogging about the basic materials industry in the UK.

You shouldn't however get me wrong, passing the CFA exams is still seen as an impressive effort, however,  I'm convinced that this will likely help you more when you are already within the industry, than when you are just attempting to get in.  Additionally, the CFA is more suitable for Asset Management than Investment Banking, if you are planning to get in the latter, an MBA will do you a lot of good than the CFA. . . you may also look into short seminars offered at INSEAD on a regular basis.  These aren't very expensive, but will probably put your CV in a better perspective.  There was a short 3 day seminar on M&A sometime around June last year. . . an MSc Econs and Finance is practically useless if you already have the knowledge.  It probably wouldn't increase your chances of getting into IB.

I'm not very sure how things work out in 9ija.

.

Thanks violent.

You nailed it. I wish people will get to know all these and plan their entry strategy well, not packing loads of certifications. We in 9ja like certificates alot you know

@ Violet.

Thanks for the contribution and insight.

Personally, i would have gone for an LBS MiF but for finance; with LBS, you can never go wrong especially with the MBA.

omaojo1:

If you really want a qualification that gives the 'i can do all things" spirit in finance , a designation that sets you apart, and one that make people seek your opinion before taking a decision, then go for CFA. My boss respects me because of CFA and what I always bring to the table. And come to think of it, you can never remain the same with CFA in terms of the knowledge or value you add to yourself.

Well said.

I can guarantee you, by the time you are through with CFA L1 alone, most of these questions about what to do next will have found automatic answers. Even at your place of work, your company will be amazed how much you have learnt just in less than 6 months, preparing for L1. Quantitative Mechanics, Portfolio Management, Corporate Finance (Capital Budgeting), Financial Reporting and Analysis etc.

Just by using knowledge gained from Financial Reporting and Analysis, financial modelling became very easy because I understood all the variables and how to manipulate them with basic knowledge of excel.

Truly, having ANY certification doesnt guarantee you a job, but your level of reasoning and contribution never stays the same. You are better equipped to make more accurate decision and have a better picture of things and what career path to take.

pls clarify is LBS London Business School or Lagos Business School?

I know people who finished from Lagos Business School and yet dont have a job yet.

MBA itself doesnt guarantee a job. ONLY God.

All these are just ways to better position oneself for greater opportunities,

LBS--London Business School that's the one that was referred to here.

bump

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This site http://www.cfaplanet.com fuel my motivation and intention to really pursue my remaining cfa level ii and level iii that have been dragging to complete. Wow i love those salary scales.

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