Hey guys, looking for some career advice. My background: BA from state school, Charterholder, 5 years exp, 1 year corp bond analyst for an insurance firm, 4 years doing manager selection/asset allocation for an RIA. I had to quit my previous job due to surgery/recovery. I started looking for work 3 months ago and haven’t had a single interview. The problem I’m having is that there are very few manager selection jobs in my area, and I also have zero interest in continuing on this career path. Every other type of investment job I see always demands previous experience in an area I don’t have.
The one thing I do see a lot of are equity research jobs for non bulge Ibanks (never tried applying for these jobs). I realise these jobs will not be easy to get, but I’m wondering if I’d even want one? The reputation they have is work 100 hours a week and sell your soul for money. I’m in my early 30s, not even interested in sell side at all, but I’m getting desperate and maybe having the CFA would give me a shot? I dunno, I guess this post is as directionless as my job search, but I know there are wise hacksaw and non hacksaw types on here that can give good advice.
sell side ER lifestyle heavily depends on your boss, some seniors are chill and established, you’ll put in maybe 55-60 hours a week. some seniors are new and have something to prove, 80 is possible, but stretching. 100 hrs is very unlikely. You are def. not seling your soul, and the job is pretty good despite some criticisms because you get to learn a ton and be paid to do it.
ER jobs at a decent shop (this bar can be very low) is fine. you can get your 4 licenses, and do learn modeling/sector experience, that can be very valuable, and probaly leapfrog into a better ER role. As you say, ER job postings tend to want prior experience in ER.
you got 4 years at a FOF, and that typically means you have no fundamental equity research experience like company specific modeling and/or in-depth sector knowledge. your best chance is to stay within the FOF world, since it’s been 4 years already, and not that easy to move out.
CFA may help a tad but unlikely. the issue is you are kinda mid-way into the FOF path, so you’re not cheap anymore for someone looking to bring in a new ER associate, and there are tons of eager grads who would be very willing to “sell their soul” for a shot, at a cheaper rate, has no tiedowns, and willing to slave it out.
Agree with CFAvsMBA, I think itera hit the nail on the head. I know everyone wants a great buy-side job but frequently, and especially in your case, the sell-side is where you want to cut your teeth, get training and pedigree at an established firm, make a few mistakes, learn some stuff, and then when you feel like you’re ready to jump (and more importantly, when potential buy-side employers feel you’re ready), you’ll almost certainly be in a better spot to make that transition.
Hey guys, thanks for the responses. I know staying with FoF is the most logical, but I can’t find any jobs in this area, it’s a super boring niche to work in, and I also have never seen evidence of anyone consistently picking value adding managers (see Buffet hedge fund bet) so I don’t want to continue working in what I consider a fraudulent field.
So I guess the problem becomes what to transition to? As mentioned, I don’t want to compete against a bunch of new grads for 50k a year. I’ve been applying to some private wealth jobs, since I have portfolio management experience, but I don’t have direct client experience, nor do I know much about insurance/tax strategies.