Jarus:

I did my pre-NYSC in Vetiva. These companies take corps members, subject to being posted to Lagos and passing their test. So go drop your CV, but they don't take more than 2 corpers.

I was wondering what vetiva tests were like anyone??. I have a degree in Economics (2.2) and a Masters in Strategy(2.1) from a top 10 university in UK. I have been asked to come and take the test for Vetiva, I am not sure if they are harder , easier or on the same level as tests abrod because I have done tests at large investments banks here which I have passed sometimes and failed sometimes,not sure what to expect. Any tips? Is it just basic charts and grpahs or rebasing index and currencies and stuff like that?

If what I wrote in 2006 is still what they are still using, then I'll say it's simple, one of the easiest I have ever taken, personally speaking(scored 71%).

55 questions, verbal and quantitative mixed, 90 minutes, then you will be asked to write an essay, not more than 100 words,  on what you will do in 100 days if elected president of Nigeria(don't waste much time on that one, it will not be part of assessment).  Passmark is 60%. Good luck

Jarus:

If what I wrote in 2006 is still what they are still using, then I'll say it's simple, one of the easiest I have ever taken, personally speaking(scored 71%).

55 questions, verbal and quantitative mixed, 90 minutes, then you will be asked to write an essay, not more than 100 words,  on what you will do in 100 days if elected president of Nigeria(don't waste much time on that one, it will not be part of assessment).  Passmark is 60%. Good luck

Wow, 55 questions in 90 minutes. Sounds very do-able. The tests i've been taking here were 18 minutes for 30 qstns for the verbal and 18 minutes for 20 questions for the numerical. Judging from the time constraint I guess you are right, it probably is easier. Thanks a lot for the info and swift response as well.

That's why I said it was doable, very doable. In fact in my case, I had to call them to come and collect their paper far before time was up.

Is it possible to get a job pre-NYSC in the likes of Vetiva, BGL, IBTC, e.t.c. If so, how would one go about it? Send a CV to the email addresses displayed on their websites? Or something more personal?

Yes, possible. But I'm not sure sending CV thru those online email addresses will work, except if they advertise and ask you to do so. You may have to go extra mile. Get somebody that works there, send soft copy to him, he passes it on their HR, do one or two talking to, and you may be called for test if you have a good CV.

Jarus do u know anyone in these places. i'll like to forward my cv

See my PM.

Hello Jarus; tkb417 & Sagamite,
don't know if this is the right thread to do this.
a grad (agric - econs 2.2); acib (associate, CIBN) and working in the financial services (credit) for some time now. really really want to do the cfa but don't know where to go for lectures here in lag. secondly after finishing my cibn; there has been a deluge of different ideas- mostly ppl saying cfa is hard; expensive and irrelevant to a credit person. so i kinda need ur help - do you think cfa is relevant to credit. i don't want to do the credit admin of nigeria thing; think its lame. i am yet to get any other credit prof body of repute. i am analytical; fairly good with numbers too. i just want to give my career a boost really. so what do u advise pls??

peaceland:

Hello Jarus; tkb417 & Sagamite,
don't know if this is the right thread to do this.
a grad (agric - econs 2.2); acib (associate, CIBN) and working in the financial services (credit) for some time now. really really want to do the cfa but don't know where to go for lectures here in lag. secondly after finishing my cibn; there has been a deluge of different ideas- mostly ppl saying cfa is hard; expensive and irrelevant to a credit person. so i kinda need your help - do you think cfa is relevant to credit. i don't want to do the credit admin of nigeria thing; think its lame. i am yet to get any other credit prof body of repute. i am analytical; fairly good with numbers too. i just want to give my career a boost really. so what do u advise pls??

CFA + Nigeria-based + Finance career = Jarus or tkb417.

I am UK-based, never worked in Nigeria and not really interested in, and never even researched, doing the CFA. _{And, no, I am not scared of maths. I am very, very hot in maths, CFA just does not add anything to my careerline.}

But my advice is, if these guys tell you that the CFA has no relevance to a credit career line, then do the credit admin thing just to complete your profile in what you can fall back on, even if you still plan to do the CFA. If CFA has relevance, then you don't have to do it.

thank you sagamite.
I'll wait for jarus (who i know would be extra extra busy today) & tkb417.
thanks once again
enjoy ur day

Dear Jarus

I'm in my final year of mech.eng at a nigerian university.will probably be coming out with a 2.2.
I strongly desire a career in the IB industry so i've been reading a lot on financially related subjects like accounting and economics.I heard of the importance of spreadsheets and so i've started work on my excel skills also.My plan pre-NYSC and during NYSC is to get an internship in the IB industry or other financial related institutions.i'll probably go for an MBA after that.Been following the thread for a long time now and i've seen CIS and CFA come up.I'll like to know exactly how they can fit in with my short term plans.I've heard of the long hours and everything but if it were possible i would probably work for free.I guess that's the depth of my desire.I've always had a fascination about money markets( for me its not a hollywood or glamour thing).I really need a guiding hand right now so please feel free to point out any flaws in my plans.I'll really appreciate the advice.

MBA after NYSC blaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah don't universities in Nigeria have career departments?

or

are nigerian students barred from asking their lecturers about certain things outside their books?

Dis Guy:

MBA after NYSC blaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah don't universities in Nigeria have career departments?

or

are nigerian students barred from asking their lecturers about certain things outside their books?

Maybe the private universities do.
The public universities hardly have permanent lecturers, who just manage to get through each semester, barely teaching the students, talk less of mentoring them. Besides, most of the younger lecturers couldn't get anything better than the teaching gig, so they have mostly contempt for students they teach. Many are even on the streets hustling for any gig that fetches extra money. I remember in my undergrad days, we had a course adviser that spent his afterschool hours driving a cab.  It's a really bad situation.

If is really unfortunate the hardship and inadequacies the average Nigerian youth has to study under because of some crooks.

They end up misguided that packing as much certificate is the way forward.

Thank God for the internet, they now have a new sphere to learn from and I hope they are.

An MBA immediately after undergrad without work experience is not only a bad idea, it is more worthless than having a Masters that is even cheaper. It is not an advantage, it is a severe disadvantage (even if just based on cost).

I get the idea.MBA straight out of undergrad is a bad idea and all that.what then do you suggest i do.CIS,CFA?

A professional qualification or masters relevant to the type of work you want to do is more apt.

If you have the finances, it might be better the professional qualification/masters is obtained from a foreign body.

sir george:

I get the idea.MBA straight out of undergrad is a bad idea and all that.what then do you suggest i do.CIS,CFA?

Personally, I think IB is poorly developed in Nigeria right now. No thanks to the cult/fencing approach of Nigerian business - a few individuals and entities always try to corner everything and rip everyone else off. It's like that in most sectors - supposed GDP growth, but very little impact on the real economy, as most of the gains disappear offshore or into private pockets. You can see how the stock market collapse and the global meltdown has affected IB in Nigeria. Banks are not giving credit or any form of financing, but are all back to LPO financing at high interest, and general round-tripping of funds.

I hear some of the new funds floated by the likes of BGL are not doing well at all. Apart from the pension fund which seems to be growing at a healthy pace, there doesn't seem to be anything going on by way of investment. AMCON is here, let's see what's going to happen.

I think the interest most people are showing in IB now is a little bit of greed even. Everybody's heard the fairy tales of how investment bankers are stupendously paid, with mind boggling bonuses. That one does not happen in Nigeria oh. If you're interested in the finance sector, better work towards building a finance career. Do ICAN, ACCA, CIMA, or even a masters in Finance. Then you might get a job in any sector as a finance person, maybe corporate finance, treasury ops, fixed assets, budget/planning, etc. That'll help build up your finance skills. CFA is a long shot, and I think is not really relevant in Nigeria for now. Sorry oh, I don't mean to burst your bubble though, or anyone else on this thread.

AjanleKoko:

Personally, I think IB is poorly developed in Nigeria right now. No thanks to the cult/fencing approach of Nigerian business - a few individuals and entities always try to corner everything and rip everyone else off. It's like that in most sectors - supposed GDP growth, but very little impact on the real economy, as most of the gains disappear offshore or into private pockets. You can see how the stock market collapse and the global meltdown has affected IB in Nigeria. Banks are not giving credit or any form of financing, but are all back to LPO financing at high interest, and general round-tripping of funds.

What policy can government use to address this and are they doing anything?

AjanleKoko:

I think the interest most people are showing in IB now is a little bit of greed even. Everybody's heard the fairy tales of how investment bankers are stupendously paid, with mind boggling bonuses.

No, doubt. I feel you. 

If I count the amount of times I have seen people (mostly third world ones in the UK and abroad) talk about wanting to be investment bankers without any aptitude for quantitative work, without any ability for strategic thinking or ratiocination, without being current affairs/news addict, without high grades and without having strong C-level engaging presence, we would spend hours counting.

I have met people that did not have the foggiest idea of the UK's current interest rate (when I asked them) talking about wanting to work in high finance.

A lot of them hear money and think it is for them.

Note: sir george, I am talking generally, not about you o. I don't know you so as far as I am concerned you might be the real deal.

Sagamite:

What policy can government use to address this and are they doing anything?

I don't know o. Unless they find a way to strengthen the regulatory side of things. They've made some reasonably okay appointments in the finance sector.
Take the new SEC woman, Arumah Oteh. Met her twice and she cuts across as honest and focused. I think she can pull in some sanity and force the players to deal fairly.

Tax is one area that they've done well also. Ifueko Omoigui-Okaru is very professional.

Minister of Finance? Aganga seems to be a PDP fanboy, and isn't pulling his weight at all. He's not a thinker, just a company man who has apparently made good.

CBN . . . Sanusi is bloody smart, but too much of a political animal for me. The new AMCON guy sounds like a lightweight, but let's see.

In Nigeria, only the emergence of the right people when it comes to integrity and focus have made the difference. This is a chop I chop nation, and that is what is killing every sector of the economy. Everything is just wrong.

I don't like to sound negative but . . . you look at the way people carry on, and you just shake your head. Imagine, I saw a recent valuation of all the real estate on Banana Island in Ikoyi . . . over 1 billion US for less than a square mile. That can build maybe five or six major housing projects in some other countries. God help us.

peaceland:

Hello Jarus; tkb417 & Sagamite,
don't know if this is the right thread to do this.
a grad (agric - econs 2.2); acib (associate, CIBN) and working in the financial services (credit) for some time now. really really want to do the cfa but don't know where to go for lectures here in lag. secondly after finishing my cibn; there has been a deluge of different ideas- mostly ppl saying cfa is hard; expensive and irrelevant to a credit person. so i kinda need your help - do you think cfa is relevant to credit. i don't want to do the credit admin of nigeria thing; think its lame. i am yet to get any other credit prof body of repute. i am analytical; fairly good with numbers too. i just want to give my career a boost really. so what do u advise pls??

I have quit IB for O&G industry since 2008, so I'm not sure I have full insider info in the industry again, as someone like TKB will do. So bear this in mind in my response. I may be missing some things.
For any aspect of Finance, CFA is not only useful but golden. I, for one, don't believe an exam cannot be passed, although I admit some exams are very tough and very demanding. CFA is one of such. Is it tough? Yes. Should that discourage you? No and No. Can you pass? I believe you can, but with great deal of efforts.

CIBN is not an A-list professional exam, but no qualification is totally useless. Go for CFA, apart from the certificate, it sharpens your knowledge and makes you hot.


However, as an extra, let me advise you that apart from professional certifications and all that, one very important key to succeeding in one's career is smartness, versatility and mentorship. Broaden your skills, be aware in many things beyond your 'credit' thing, ensure you know everything about your 'credit' function not some monotonous, mechanical daily processes. This is a personal observation from my study of successful people(and some are close to me), especially those that rise to top without any support.

sir george:

Dear Jarus

I'm in my final year of mech.eng at a nigerian university.will probably be coming out with a 2.2.
I strongly desire a career in the IB industry so i've been reading a lot on financially related subjects like accounting and economics.I heard of the importance of spreadsheets and so i've started work on my excel skills also.My plan pre-NYSC and during NYSC is to get an internship in the IB industry or other financial related institutions.i'll probably go for an MBA after that.Been following the thread for a long time now and i've seen CIS and CFA come up.I'll like to know exactly how they can fit in with my short term plans.I've heard of the long hours and everything but if it were possible i would probably work for free.I guess that's the depth of my desire.I've always had a fascination about money markets( for me its not a hollywood or glamour thing).I really need a guiding hand right now so please feel free to point out any flaws in my plans.I'll really appreciate the advice.

I believe AJK and Sagamite have done justice to this.

Spreadsheet knowledge is key, but at entry level stage, you need no more than basic, maybe plus few extra things. No matter how great you are in spreadsheet, just coming fresh from Uni, I don't think any comapny will give you more than entry level position. Knowledge of spreadsheet, without knowledge of industry/practical factors, is almost useless. How will you generate your assumptions? etc I have a school mate(he was in accounting, I, Economics). Whe we entered labour market, he got offer with GTB. He was rated one of the Top 5 most knowledgeable guys in Spreadsheet in the whole of GTB in Nigeria, but he got no more than entry level. A couple of years later, he had an offer from my company, but they couldn't agree on pay. My company was not ready to pay his price because with 2 years experience, even if he was teh best spreadsheet person in Nigeria, the value he will add cannot be more than that of someone that has better knowledge of industry/business.

As for doing your pre-NYSC and NYSC in an IB firm, that's fully ok. That will prepare you very well for the practical knowledge of teh industry, and when you finish your service and join the industry fully, you will hit the ground running, hot. This is in fact the case with one of my brothers, who joined IBTC as a pre-NYSC staff in 1998, served there 1998/1999, became full staff 1999 after service, and 5 years later, in 2004, had risen to become the CEO of one their subsidiaries at 27, one of the fastest career rise anywhere. So it's a good idea you want to do pre-NYSC and NYSC there. If your interest is actually IB, pls join as early as possible and define your career goal.

As for teh MBA immediately after service, i will not advise you do that, as AJK and Saga said. Still on our case study, this brother of mine only did his MBA 2005/2006. Get enough experience before you do MBA pls.

What's spreadsheet knowledge?
Advanced Excel perhaps?

^
Yeap.

Breezed through the posts by Jarus, Ajanlekoko et al, and you guys hit the bull's eye.

The craze about storming the UK, right after your undergrad, to complete "one MBA" at a school (usually a 3rd-tier one) is not helpful
if you want work in high-level finance. Except you know people well- the "Big G", most importantly.

I think it would make more sense to do a MFin, or something related. You can leverage on that to "get your foot in the door", and do a "proper MBA" in 4-6 years time.

I'm currently in North America, and would like to hear more about how the top IBs in Nigeria are doing. Vetiva, BGL, Rennaissance, ChapelhillDenham et al.

Anyone heard of CardinalStone? I heard they recently raised some debt for Sterling Bank.

Omo, with those pensions accruing billions on a monthly basis, things should be really looking up for finance professionals oh!
Those pensions have to put all that money to work now. Abi?

well, i do not really know if what obtains in the uk and US is applicable to the Nigerian environment.Do Nigerian employers actually look at these global university MBA rankings?I have seen guys without work experience,local MBA or MSc hitting it well in the Nigerian finance sector.The Nigerian employers,to my little knowledge, still have this craze for paper qualifications, especially foreign. In most cases, they even consider the MBA and Msc as same( just postgrad degree). If one does not intend to work in the UK and US, what is the purpose of spending such a huge amount of money to obtain ''a piece of paper'' from an ivy league college only to return to Nigeria and be paid peanuts. My best option is, spend a little amount to acquire an MBA (no matter where) and then enroll for the CFA program if you want a career in Finance. By doing this,you spend little and still achieve global relevance. I will only attend an ivy league uni just for the ego,nothing more.
Sometimes i take out time to go through the profile of most of the big guys in the Nigerian finance sector.Most did their MBAs in Lasu,lag or a less prestigious uni in the UK or US.

@ Chamber2, true point about most of the current top shots being locally schooled. Although that's arguable- Subomi Balogun, Fola Adeola, Tayo Aderinokun, Atedo, Segun Aganga - all schooled abroad at some point. Specifically, I think >60% of the top shots in "finance"- IB, PE et al, schooled abroad at some point.

It would appear that times are changing: an MBA from Unilag/LASU might not just cut it in 5-10 years time.
Ten years ago, ICAN would/might have been the ultimate for any finance professional,

That being said, your education can only take you so far. I'm sure most of you would agree that its your combo
of talents, skills, ambition - and luck, perhaps- that would make the difference.

chamber2:

well, i do not really know if what obtains in the uk and US is applicable to the Nigerian environment.Do Nigerian employers actually look at these global university MBA rankings?I have seen guys without work experience,local MBA or MSc hitting it well in the Nigerian finance sector.The Nigerian employers,to my little knowledge, still have this craze for paper qualifications, especially foreign. In most cases, they even consider the MBA and Msc as same( just postgrad degree). If one does not intend to work in the UK and US, what is the purpose of spending such a huge amount of money to obtain ''a piece of paper'' from an ivy league college only to return to Nigeria and be paid peanuts. My best option is, spend a little amount to acquire an MBA (no matter where) and then enroll for the CFA program if you want a career in Finance. By doing this,you spend little and still achieve global relevance. I will only attend an ivy league uni just for the ego,nothing more.
Sometimes i take out time to go through the profile of most of the big guys in the Nigerian finance sector.Most did their MBAs in Lasu,lag or a less prestigious uni in the UK or US.

Mate, don't make that mistake in thinking.

No 1, any employer that has little knowledge about institutional qualities and is just crazy about paper qualification is unlikely to be one that you want to work for or you want to work for for long. You are better off going to as top a school as you can afford/enter and working in firms that take such seriously. You develop better working and discussing with sharp minds and your intellectual peers and superiors. I am not saying it is a must someone goes to Harvard, LBS, INSEAD, Wharton etc, but ensure you aim for reasonably decent ones like Manchester, Cranfield, City, Bradford or even Bath if you can afford it.

No 2, you did not bother to check the relevance of your supporting arguments by saying the big guys in Finance in Nigeria finance sector did not go to top schools. Mate, that does not carry weight now. You should have reasoned that they studied in periods when the world was less globalised, information was harder to get as internet did not exist, international transport was not as easy and surely there was no league tables of top schools in their own era of education. Remember a time when any player in the 2nd division of Belgium could stroll into the Super Eagles national team and were the big boys? Well that was the era similar to the finance guys you alluded to! Most players that play in the Belgium top league now, not even 2nd, cannot even dream of national team call-ups because the periods and fundamentals have changed. We have players now in the Harvards, Whartons, LBS of football. That does not mean a Maccabi Haifa player cannot get in, but it is just harder for them when compared. Have you wondered why some of these top finance shots you refer to all head to Harvard and likes for some lousy course and quickly want to claim on their profiles that they are alumnis? Utter frauds in my opinion, but you get the fundamental point?

That said, I am one that does not believe in the expense of the top MBA schools. At least for myself.

That being said, your education can only take you so far. I'm sure most of you would agree that its your combo
of talents, skills, ambition - and luck, perhaps- that would make the difference.

I totally agree with you there. I am not against schooling abroad, my concern is whether it matters in the Nigerian context where one gets one's MBA or degree.

@Sagamite

Good points you made there.The cost of these unis is really very scary i must say.But do you think anyone who attends (because of cost) any of the 120 or so unis in the UK for an MBA or Msc is not doing good for himself if he wants to start a career in Nigeria?

See this Chambers guy oh

His signature says "Good things are not cheap,cheap things are not good.", and he complains about high cost of an MBA?

His signature says "Good things are not cheap,cheap things are not good.", and he complains about high cost of an MBA?

Lol, i can't stop laughing.I am complaining because the money isn't there, especially when one is sponsoring oneself.