CFA Complete Waste of Time; Here's Why...

cfageist wrote:
Bleach, are you a CFA chartholder ?? I think you just met the wrong persons, do not generalize the entire finance industry based on 5 encounters with arrogant poeple. There are dumb poeple everywhere.
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I am the farthest thing from a CFA charterholder. I am a Level 1 candidate.
This year I had three interviews:
  • two in asset management
  • one with an investment dealer
Guys, I am not sure why you resort to calling me angry, bitter or jaded.
While I may come across as such, I challenege you to find me CGA/CMA/CA listings. Then find CFA listings as well.
I sincerely hope I can keep this thread going forever so many younger people can view it.
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This whole misconception younger people have of glamour and high salary is HOGWASH.
I challenge you to find me a CGA/CMA/CA entry-level guy making below $55K. Most CGA/CMA/CA guys at the middle/intermediate level are over $65K.
Experienced CA’s have an UNLIMITED salary potential.
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How much is your entry-level CFA monkey making? About $50-65K. Experienced CFA about $70-80K.
“But, but, but, but my boss with a CFA makes $200K. Really? How many similar jobs are there out there? Similar to your boss’ job? You can probably count top-level CFA jobs on one hand.
Top-level CA/CMA jobs are unlimited.
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Younger people, feel free to msg me for any further questions you have…
 
andynyc wrote:
LOL. Sour grapes from someone who did not pass.
Also someone who doesn’t have a Bloomberg where every job posting mentions CFA as a prerequisite.
Go drink some bleach.
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Guys, these types of immature responses are really weak.
What on earth does this mean:
“Also someone who doesn’t have a Bloomberg where every job posting mentions CFA as a prerequisite.”
I really don’t get that statement.
Secondly, me passing or failing the CFA exams has nothing to do with the fact that there are NO realistic CFA opportunities out there. Do you see what I mean?
This fellow also has “nyc” in his username. I am going to go ahead and assume he either lives in that toilet of a city or loves it. Typical attitude of a New Yorker - i.e. psychopathic, lonely and pretentious finance dork.
 
Bleach: you lost credibility when you said you were a Level 1 candidate. I need not say anymore.
You were much more enthusiastic in 2011 (was that before you learned of your score?). So save us the faux diatribes and anti-CFA hysterics.
Your words:

bleach wrote:
There is no certificate…only two bankers from Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan will arrive at your door with job offers.
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bleach wrote:Hi, just wondering if studying for the June 2012 CFA Level 1 exam is alright using current material? Essentially I am about to order Elan videos and notes for the time being. There are only going to be minor variances, correct? The major differences - from what I understand - will be in the questions. I plan on starting questions around December 2011/January 2012 time frame anyway and by then the updated questions should reflect the June 2012 exam? Any advice? Thoughts? (keep wise ass and unhelpful remarks to yourself) Thank you
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andynyc wrote:
Bleach: you lost credibility when you said you were a Level 1 candidate. I need not say anymore.
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You lost credibility when you failed to notice that I’ve already had three interviews this year. Read couple of posts above.
Most importantly, the first interview was during last semester of university. The other two were a couple of months after graduation.
With that in mind it is reasonable to conclude that even without CFA on my resume if I can get so much attention from reputable Bay Street asset managers, then my chances with CFA on the resume would be much higher.
Keep that in mind and tell me if I need to be bitter or prove my credibility to you????
I am a very capable guy and I know how to track down names within firms. I know how to get in touch with them and get an interview as well.
You’d be surprised how much of a dumbass IAM NOT.
Lastly, with my knowledge and experience of finance culture so far I am trying to guide the younger undergrads away from this route.
Stope fantasizing guys, it’s fucking ridiculous out there. THEY WANT NOTHING TO DO WITH YOUR EDUCATION OR YOUR CFA. THEY LOOK AT YOUR STATUS, CLASS, RACE ETC.
I highly encourage younger undergrad guys to msg me for further details as to why they should AVOID THE CFA like a disease.
 
andynyc wrote:
Bleach: you lost credibility when you said you were a Level 1 candidate. I need not say anymore.
You were much more enthusiastic in 2011 (was that before you learned of your score?). So save us the faux diatribes and anti-CFA hysterics.
Your words:

bleach wrote:
There is no certificate…only two bankers from Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan will arrive at your door with job offers.
Click to expand...
bleach wrote:Hi, just wondering if studying for the June 2012 CFA Level 1 exam is alright using current material? Essentially I am about to order Elan videos and notes for the time being. There are only going to be minor variances, correct? The major differences - from what I understand - will be in the questions. I plan on starting questions around December 2011/January 2012 time frame anyway and by then the updated questions should reflect the June 2012 exam? Any advice? Thoughts? (keep wise ass and unhelpful remarks to yourself) Thank you
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You should also note that in none of my own posts did I mention I am not pursuing the CFA.
I am still going the CFA route, but not on Bay Street in particular.
I’d rather be in Business Development, or on the corporate side…WHERE EVER PEOPLE ARE F*CKING NORMAL and not asking me my age, race, social standing during the bloody interview.
Ridiculous.
 
All I can add to this is CMA is a Certified and/or Chartered Management Accountant, yet another designation, this one Canadian, though I think other Commonwealth countries have the equivalent or is it Japan that has CMAs too. Anyway I would say I see accounting designations requested a lot more than the CFA, but Toronto is the financial capital of Canada. If you want a safe job, accounting is probably the way to go, even after Enron went tits up they still need forensic accountants. ;-)
Big 4 accountant types have told me the CA is the one to do, but I know this one younger dude who is an acronym collector, he was concurrently doing CA and CFA, now he’s doing some business evaluater certification. He agrees CFA is the hardest.
I think networking and attitude play a role, as does health. In Vancouver and Toronto, two of the most multi-cultural cities in the world, this seems strange. In Vancouver it is advantageous to be a Chinese speaker.
 
It’s one thing to say that CFA won’t help you break into a finance job. Or that it’s not all that important in investment banking. Or all that important in private equity. Or even overkill in some forms of wealth management, where many employers would prefer something like a CFP. Or a heavily quantitative job, where the CFA just isn’t mathematical enough. All of those are reasonable points of view.
It’s another thing to say “It’s a complete waste of time,” which implies that there is no value at all in learning anything in the curriculum. For any job. Under any condition. Ever. This is what your subject line says and what the drivel in your first post communicates to anyone with the patience to go through it.
Your subject line where you lost credibility with me, and with most of the posters on the forum.
Perhaps the CFA was completely useless to you, although you haven’t even gotten through Level 1 yet if I understood your post, so I’m not sure what you were expecting it to do, exactly. And what you are pursuing may not be the sort of thing that the CFA is useful for. In any case, it was never intended to be an entry-level credential, which seems to be what you are claiming it isn’t (welcome to the club of people who agree with you on that point).
The CFA is designed to help people who want to manage investment portfolios for individuals and institutions, and work with the techniques of valuation, portfolio construction, attribution, and some risk managment, along with a set of ethical and professional standards. If those things aren’t in your targeted job description now or at some point in the future, then don’t do it. (Though some of the principles are useful for personal portfolios, too).
But your complete ignorance about what are the sorts of things the CFA can help with, and your assumption that young people need to make sure they aren’t interested in it no matter who they are or what they want to do is just uninformed and batty.
And if you are having trouble in interviews, I would suggest trying to do some work on your personality. Do some anger management. Even here on this anonymous forum, pretty much everyone here can tell that you have a chip on your shoulder the size of Greenland + Spitzbergen. If anyone in an interview also perceived that, they would want to run from you as fast as they can, no matter how qualified you are or which letters you have after your name. People just ask you a question and you’re already assuming that they have the worst of intentions with the answer.
You need to chill out a bit, dude. The job market is tough for everyone these days, and no one needs more anger in their life, or their coworkers.
 
This is the worst post ever.
I thought you are a very lucky guy to get 4 to 5 interviews in 1 year without even passing CFA level 1. Whether they recruit you or not, it has nothing to do with CFA.
Well, if your post title states “CFA complete waste of time”, then why the fuck are you still doing it?
If I were you, I would stop moaning and get the ass moving into why you failed your interviews?
 
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