MBA or BA (ECON)

Water Cooler Careers
#1

I recently graduated from a business program but did not major in Finance, is it best to complete CFA, go back to a better school for an Economics degree or work then MBA? (Wanting to work in Investment Banking or Equity Research)

#2

Economics degree? Wha?

#3

Study for the CFA levels and try to get in that way

If after a few years of trying and you’re still stuck, go for MBA

#4

If you want to do more hedge fund, trading, research, investing type roles, a CFA may be the better route. That is not the only thing you need but it validates your interest in finance. An MBA will likely still be the easiest way to transition into an investment banking role. Once you are in business school - the 3 career streams that might be the easiest / most structured to recruit for are:

  1. Investment banking
  2. Sales and Trading at a big investment bank
  3. Equity research

Some more info on this subject is published here: http://tapwage.com/cheatsheets/2015/05/20/the-ideal-major-for-investment-banking-and-other-career-questions

Hope it is helpful.

#5

Just to clarify, you already have an undergrad degree (in business) and the three options are:

  1. Get another economics degree

  2. Complete the CFA (does this mean you have passed a level already, or that you will pass all three before doing something else)

  3. Work and then do an MBA.

If you graduated from college the next step is work, the CFA is something you do while working (or in grad school), not instead of working. Get the best job you can first (the MBA programs that can get you into investment banking or equity research are going to require some impressive work experience). After you start working go ahead and go for the CFA, but get the job first.

#6

Job first, then cfa. MBA last, if you even need it at that point.

#7

Whatever you do, do not get a degree in economics.

#8

So help me god if OP goes back for an Econ degree!

#9

lol yea. u alreayd graduated. a finance, business, econ degree. i think accting more specialized than the 3.

#10

+1000000

#11

Just curious, why is everyone advising against an economics degree?

I quite like the subject and wish I had taken more electives from the economics course. I did engineering for my bachelors and I’m not using anything I learnt - except for maybe programming to automate some scripts, or some form of digital logic but that’s it.