Competition is fierce across the financial industry. Institutional investment firms, such as investment banks, hedge funds, and advisory firms, all aim to ever-growing market share and profits. Likewise, job candidates compete for the most desirable jobs in the industry. This makes it incredibly difficult for one to stand out; however, it is not impossible. One of the most effective ways to be unique in this competitive market is to become a CFA Charterholder.
So, the answer to the question: “Is CFA worth it?” seems to be a yes. For which reasons?
From the experience of all the CFA Charterholders we’ve been speaking to so far, we can list the following:
- Recognition. A candidate who successfully completes the CFA program and meets other professional requirements is awarded the “CFA charter” and becomes a “CFA Charterholder”. The CFA Charter is the international most widely recognized credential in the financial services industry. According to research from the CFA Institute, more than 135,000 individuals are current CFA Charterholders, with most of them employed in the financial services industry. Within the industry it has worldwide recognition, you can ask for a job in Hong Kong, London, Rio de Janeiro or New York and they will know what the program is about.
- Education. Candidates are required to be proficient in a wide range of subjects of the financial/investment industry in order to attain the CFA designation. Generally speaking, the CFA Curriculum covers the topics of Accounting, Corporate Finance, Fixed Income, Equities, FX, and Ethics in greater detail than the Finance undergraduate degrees. This knowledge is invaluable in the workplace and there is no other program or degree that match it. It has become an increasingly common expectation for employees to work in positions involving a multitude of complex financial situations. Furthermore, the exam’s rigour and well-understood and highly-respected within the buy-side finance and equity research industries. Everybody knows what the program is, how difficult is to get it, so it’s valuable and considered a benchmark. The fact is that most jobs in which you would utilize a CFA Charter are extremely demanding and thus, the exam preparation process serves as a gauntlet of sorts, preparing you for a career in finance.
- Networking. Career opportunities often arise because of personal connections. Upon attaining the CFA Charter, one has the opportunity to network with a large group of professionals through events such as CFA clubs and conferences.
- It’s not that expensive compared to a graduate degree and the self-paced study is great if you work full time and have a family.
- It shows a professional knowledge of the English language. For non-English native speakers having taken the exams is a way to show you know English, you’ve at least a minimum knowledge to understand a technical article of finance in English, which is important, because almost all important news, papers and books are in English.
Are there any cons?
It’s practically impossible to find any. We can only think that:
- There are three levels of exams that candidates need to pass to become a Charterholder that typically take between 2 to 5 years to complete (find more info on the CFA Charter page)
- All your bets are on one day only. If you fail the exam, you have to wait one year to take it again (except Level I which has two dates a year).
We do think that even taking the level I only is worth it. But be warned, you may like it and try to finish the CFA program!
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