Is the CFA charter still useful?

Water Cooler Careers
#1

I got my CFA charter last month and now that I finally have it, my thoughts have turned towards the future.
Algos and AI are set to take over the functions of an analyst and everyone advices you to learn programming languages and acquire skills in other fields. It makes me wonder if all the time and effort invested in earning the CFA charter were worth it. If we have to start switching roles to data science, then perhaps that is what we should have put the fabled 300 hours into in the first place.

Does anyone else feel this way?

#2

It’s still useful to an extent, but it’s not the end game.

50 years ago all you needed to get a solid job was a bachelor’s degree.

35 years ago it became a master’s degree or an additional certification.

20-ish years ago it became a master’s and a post grad certification.

Now you’re looking at needing a master’s and potentially multiple post graduate certifications. Such is the hazard of specialization. As the job description gets more specific, so do the requirements just to get in the door.

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#3

It gives you a leg up in the beginning of your career imo. After that its value diminishes pretty fast.

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#4

I agree with Cod here. It will probably get you an interview and help you get a job but after 3-6 years in the industry, it’s more the experience that counts. But it definitely doesn’t hurt. And it also allows you to network which can be very useful.

#5

Maybe once you’ve been in the industry for awhile, it’s less useful…but only to a point. For instance, if firms are looking for senior leaders or CIOs, it’s rare that, given two candidates that are all else equal, the firm would dismiss the candidate with the CFA charter because it is deemed “less relevant.” If the senior leader comes from within, that might work, but if there is an outside candidate search, I would argue that the charter matters quite a bit.

I don’t speculate about this; I’ve been directly or indirectly involved in hiring more than a handful of people over the last decade, and the lack of charter was a major cause to dismiss otherwise decent candidates in several situations. And it’s not because we wouldn’t hire a charterless professional…it’s just that I can get the same talent, but also having a charter. Of course we’ll take the one with the charter.

Now, I say this but fully understand that there are some domains in finance where this is not the same. So I can only speak for my area.

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