I am a 28 year old architect with a high interest in finance and economics. I have been investing since I was 13 and have made myself a little fortune from basically nothing. I am now looking for a career in finance, however, no one with an open position is replying to my emails. I have thus decided to embark on a CFA journey. I haven’t taken the level 1 exam yet, however, I am very knowledgeable in many topics in the study books, and I will be taking the exam in December. By March, I will hopefully immigrate to Canada. I know firms here in Dubai will not even look at my resume, but are Canadians more open minded? Assuming of course that I have passed my level 1 exam. Emigrating is a scary step and the prospect of unemployment is even scarier. Continuing work in architecture is not an option for me. Architects are a bunch of idiots who use jargon and hyperbole to make themselves look smart. At least in finance, industry language actually indicates meaning.
It’s actually far more competitive in Canada by orders of magnitude, not recommending this.
CFA unlikely to help, you will likely be very unemployed.
Oh man, I hate to be the bearer of bad news here, but this is definitely a “the sand is always yellower” situation…
New immigrant to Canada here. I have been living in Canada for more than 6 years, and the reality for CFA in Canada is tough. Canada’s job opportunities is highly unequal, there’s good number of sound jobs in major cities, but not so much in the rural areas. However, 90% of Canada is rural area, so you will be facing high competition if you are looking for job in cities like Toronto and Montreal. Toronto has the highest CFA per capita, and there are limited jobs for CFAs. Hence, I would not recommend immigrating to Canada, jobless, with the hope of getting a job by passing CFA level I. I know it aches you when you hear this, but MAKE SURE to save as much as possible before you make the move to Canada, and be willing to accept lower-paying jobs.
T10 FT MBAs are more turnkey to switch careers. This might not be a bad time to consider going back to school to learn finance.