I had HND with upper credit in 2006 and qualified as a chartered accountant in Nov diet,2008. At present, am working as an accountant.I really want to be a financial analyst, so I decided to start CFA exam by Dec,2011 and go for Msc in Finance in abroad by God's grace. I applied to London Business School. This is the response I got when I submitted my CV,

On the basis of your CV I assess that you meet our minimum eligibility requirements for the Masters in Finance at London Business School . However, as you are probably already aware, competition for places on the programme is very severe and the quality of the applicant pool is extremely high, therefore I cannot encourage you to apply as I feel you lack the range and depth of relevant finance experience necessary to fully benefit from, and contribute to, the programme. I also feel that your profile on completion of the programme may not be attractive to finance recruiters in the current economic climate.
My feedback is also informed by comparing your profile with candidates who have been successful in this year’s application cycle.
If however you disagree with my assessment you are welcome to submit an application, making your case in the personal statement (essay question) why you think you have the necessary experience and why the programme is a good career fit for you.
If you have any questions at any stage, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Now, I have tried to get a job in an Investment banking or any financial institution but I could not.Do u think if I passed my CFA level 1, there would an opportunity for me in the industry or do u know anybody you can link me up with? This issue is really bothering me everyday.Kindly advise me. Hope to hear from you.Thanks in advance.

You brave soul, you want to get into LBS with an HND and no extra-ordinary work experience? those guys are not smiling

To be honest, investment banking is fiercely competitive, vacancies are scarce and not widely advertised
So you get loads of finance student with even masters battling it out without success, I don't think its just because of
CFA qualifications after all there are many people in that sector without the qualification but I guess it helps but a masters and related work experience will be more useful to get a foot in the door

Try other good business schools and continue networking

good luck

In my opinion, degree and/or postgraduate = getting a job
then CFA,ACCA/ICAN,ACA = progression in the job

but i guess in this environment and particularly with the current situation everything combined will be need just to get a desired job- God help us

Dis Guy, I am grateful for your response.I will do as u ve said.Thanks

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DisGuy has said it all, LBS is a very competitive school and HND with scanty experience is just far from being enough, given the number of people that compete for few spot(like 10,000 applicants thruout the world competing for a space of about 100). So the admission office, having done a preliminary review of your chance based on what you're coming with, just doesn't want you to waste your resource and time going further in the application process.

With due respect to HND holders, honestly, a lot of advantages come from University degree. Imagine in my company somebody with just BSc (no additional qualifications) earns 4 times more than another colleague with HND+ACA+ACTI and almost rounding up ACCA. The HND guy is on contract while the Bsc guy is on permanent employment, and tehy do same job. That is what academic qualification can do.

Every other advice given by Dis Guy is spot on.

In addition to what every other person has said,i would advise you apply for an MBA-Finance program or try university of Nottingham if you have the resources.With your work experience and other qualifications i think you will be accepted.

Sincerely its not easy getting into the ib industry,I am currently working my ass off to ensure i get in when am done with my studies.Also,i do not fancy all these elite school of a thing,why not try other accredited universities since at the masters degree level the emphasis is more on independent study and self development and less on class room work. For me,i do not look at ranking i only checkout uni that offer the program which i am interested in.

Having a good maths skill(at least to pass apt test) and a good communication skill(to dribble ur interviewers) can land you to any job.

I thank u all for your responses. In fact, I am really proud of u guys. U are great.

I'm also in a related situation. i have a degree in forestry and wildlife management but it has been so tough getting a job in the financial services sector. i write ACCA at the moment. I'm planning an MBA from Lagos business school. I'm about 30yrs of age now. i need advice from house members please.

I don't think getting the CFA will give you any edge in this climate.  An Ivy-league MBA on the other hand will open doors faster than you can blink your eyes.

From the information you've provided, it seems to me that you have close to 5 years of work experience already; given this fact, i will suspect that the only reason your CV was turned down was because you haven't sold yourself highly.

I'd advise that you re-word your CV to highlight some rare tangible achievements ---> like when you led a chess club to international competition and you came out first place; or like when you solved the endemic problem of draught in suburban regions and you negotiated the best deals for local farmers---.

You should also consider taking some programming classes, you will never go wrong with VBA and C++, as this demonstrates an aptitude for quantitative structural thinking, . . .a trait well valued by many recruiters!

If you are applying to top schools, you should be working hard on your GMAT as well. . .a high GMAT score on your CV will easily give you the impression of smartness!

I don't think many people are bothered with your HND or the type of degree you get, people are more concerned about where you've been, what you've achieved with your life and what you are capable of achieving in the future.

If you can't get into an MBA program in a red brick (peharps because your experience is not sufficient enough) , consider taking an MSc degree, still from a top school. . .the funny side to it is that it doesn't matter what your MSc degree is specialized in, a philosophy graduate from Oxford or Cambridge is more likely to get into IB than the financial engineering graduate from Exeter. . .employers value names, as that's what they sell to their clients.

^^ the OP is in Nigeria;

violent:


I don't think many people are bothered with your HND or the type of degree you get, people are more concerned about where you've been, what you've achieved with your life and what you are capable of achieving in the future.

If you can't get into an MBA program in a red brick (peharps because your experience is not sufficient enough) , consider taking an MSc degree, still from a top school. . .the funny side to it is that it doesn't matter what your MSc degree is specialized in, a philosophy graduate from Oxford or Cambridge is more likely to get into IB than the financial engineering graduate from Exeter. . .employers value names, as that's what they sell to their clients.

lol HND. You are never going to enter LBS, try the other one in lagos. 

Advice!!!!!!!! MBA or Masters in investment analysis. A 30yr old planning to enter the investment banking job.