Hi everyone and congratulations to everyone who recently passed Level III. I passed Level II last month myself and for some reason it still hasn’t sunk in! After reading a bunch of posts by people requesting career advice, I decided to launch a query of my own. I have seen people here being worried about back office experience and trying to switch/get the designation. I am in a similar boat I suppose. I finished my undergrad in 2009 and have been working in an investment servicing role at a major organization. Ideally, I would like to get into equity research but so far it has been slim pickings. I have a bit of a quantitative background coupled with economics and now with Level II under my belt feel that I do have a pretty decent skill set to do equity research. However, I haven’t had much luck and don’t know what to do. I feel like I’m stuck and I really don’t want to be in back office for the rest of my life! How can I make the switch? I am open to other (front office) career paths such as S&T, IB and understand that the competition for any of these role is cut throat. How do I land a good gig in Toronto for one of the fields I have listed and what resources should a just of school 24 year old use so that he is not stuck in the back office forever! Also, why are there issues in using back office experience to get the charter? I understand 50% of it has to be directly investment decision making related but if the remaining 50% “adds value to the process” even if indirectly, why are there issues? Your advice is greatly appreciated!
Good luck kid, Toronto has the most CFA’s per capita, a freaking Janitor has the designation. If you haven’t landed an IB or Research job straight out of undergrad (they recruit top students right out of school) then you mise well squash your pipedream because it isn’t happening. My advise, go back to school and take MBA at a top rated school (Rotman, Western or somewhere in the states). With the job market the way it is, plus hundreds of MBA grads out there, good luck. Move to Calgary or out West, everyone is chasing the same buck in Toronto. If not realize you’ll be a paper pusher for the rest of your life. Sad but true
Don’t listen to this prick scoobydoo, just keep at it.
I can’t comment on the specifics of your region, but the career move you propose to make will be based more on your relationships than your specific skill set. With few exceptions, several people in a “middle office role” often seek “front office roles”. You also must agree that there are a number of people in middle office roles that bolster their resumes and the possibility of achieving the stated career move by doing the very things you have done such as pursuing the CFA designation. Those that are successful at making the career transition have differentiated themself from the pack by either over-performing vs expectations in the support they provide to the front office which allows them to form strong relationships with the front office which could (not necessarily guarantee) that you develop “brand champions” in the place you would like to be. I’ve been in your position, and it was only through relationships that I was able to make it out.
hey scoobydoo…i’m originally from toronto where i wrote L1 and L2…i thought when i passed L1 it would open up and world of opportunities and it didn’t…then i thought L2 is really the one that i need to clear b/c thats the tough one, but when i did, i found the same thing (ie not many more opportunites) i also wanted to get into equity research but toronto is a tough market as someone mentioned it has the most cfa’s per capita. the thing is if you don’t have the relevant work experience its really hard. if i were you, i would think if there are other career paths you would enjoy… and if you think its equity research or bust, i would search postings and look at the criteria they require and build on that, ie teach youself how to build models etc. although its true that your first job out of school defines your career you can still make the move if you stick at it. i have a few friends who did it …just took them a while longer and they had to move out of toronto for the positions but it is possible! i just passed L3 but i now live in London where the market is bigger and hence there are more opportunities…but i’m dreading the search when i move back home! best of luck to you…keep at it…and if all else fails…b-school tends to give everyone a clean slate!
Its true Toronto has the highest cfa per capita but that does not mean you can’t break out of back office. Your honestly need luck and connections. I’m in Toronto as well and the job market is competitive so you have to have things on your resume that stands out. I would try and talk to some of the people in the front office and hear what they did to get into front office and use that as a guide. Having some experience in financial services fresh out of university is a very big accomplishment and you should be very proud of that. You just have to be patient and keep searching/networking until you get that position that you want. The way I got into this industry was by landing jobs at very small firms. I had an engineering undergrad and had no work experience. I applied to the big companies and I would never hear anything back. I started applying at small boutique companies and found it to be easier to get a position. After that its a lot easier to get some better job prospects since work experience is very important in this industry.
keep trying…i would also think about writing the gmat, if u can score >700 on the gmat u can probably look at some serious scholarship money and since u got 2 levels of cfa down the curriculum in the mba program would be jokes so u could focus on networking and looking for ur dream job. mba sucks cuz it costs so much and u won’t really learn more than cfa but its definitely good as a launchpad into a good career
Thank you everyone for the advice. I appreciated both the negative and ofcourse the positive feedback as well. It helps to keep my resolve strong! I would like to also mention here that I have taught myself how to build models as well and have also completed a project on a popular trading strategy used by hedge funds. I’m hoping it’s stuff like that which people notice on my resume coupled with the CFA enrolment as well as an undergraduate degree from a highly regarded (and in my opinion over rated) university. deep2002, your comment on how I should be proud of myself for landing a job in financial services fresh out of school really was an ego booster after reading Da-Man’s post. Could you provide me some advice regarding how you approached the smaller firms and perhaps private message (or provide me with your email) me the names of a few you feel I should get in touch with. In what capacity are you working these days? da1nonly, could you clarify your point regarding scholarships on a >700 GMAT score. I ask because I was under the impression that scholarships in Canada are based on your undergraduate grades and not related to the GMAT score (or passing 2 levels of the CFA exams) whatsoever. I personally don’t find an MBA apealing. I feel like I would be wasting money for learning stuff I already know!
Scoobydoo, on the GMAT issue, you’re absolutely right and da1nonly is wrong. I know from experience - scored 740 and didn’t get a penny of scholarship money offered. My undergrad average never exceeded a B+. So don’t make any assumptions!
scooby, I don’t know of any small companies looking. I was fortunate to get into the hedge fund with luck and timing. I simply answered a job application from my university’s career center a few years ago. I’m still at the same place doing equity research, portfolio strategy design, programming, and upgrading the in-house portfolio software. I do everything at my company and the only reason I am able to do this is because its a small company so you really have to do a lot more than at the big banks. The end result is that since you have experience in all these, you become a lot more marketable since it shows your flexible and a quick learner. I had never programmed before and learned it all on the spot at the job since I was the only person in charge of the entire system. I consider the position a stepping stone into anything else I do - definitely not planning to make it a career position. If you like equity research, I think a boutique firm is the best starting point and then you can move into bigger and better things once you get some experience on your resume. You can email me if you have anymore questions…dest31 at hotmail.com
deep2002, I saw your other post regarding the position on workopolis. Thank you for that and I will most definitely check it out. I’m quite amazed at the sort of experience you have accumulated so far. It really shows how dynamic and flexible one truly is. When you move on to your next job, you should defintely pass your current one on to me so that I can learn all you have learnt so far! I will defintely email you as well. And if you work in the Financial District, it would be really cool to meet you sometime as well! Are you a charterholder or a candidate? I’m just curious to know.
I’ll definitely look at your resume to take my current job when I go to another position 
a lunch gathering sounds good but I am at Bay and Bloor area. I’m sure we can work something out. I just passed my level 3 exam so I’m not a charter holder yet but hopefully soon.
Deep2002, may I send mine as well? I am in downtown Toronto as well and just passed Level III and hopefully will get the charter soon.
FRMer Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Deep2002, may I send mine as well? > > I am in downtown Toronto as well and just passed > Level III and hopefully will get the charter soon. Send yours as well
deep2002, I’ll send you an email soon. Maybe if not a weekday we can work out a weekend to meet up =)