Am I Too Old For Finance?
Hi all,
I'm 34 years old. I'm going back to school for finance. I'll be graduating from the Terry College of Business in Athens at 38.
If I managed to graduate with a 4.0 GPA, what are my possibilities?
At this age...
Is it even possible for me to get hired at a good job in Atlanta?
I'd like to move to Atlanta and work a good job for few years and then apply to Emory for an MBA.
I'd be 42 by then... is this a possibility as well?
Am i too old to go this route?
Please advise. A healthy dose of reality is what I need. I want to remain hopeful that it's not too late for me. I'm male, single, capable, smart, and driven. But I'm getting a late start.
Thanks!
Why don't you find school in Atlanta then (Georgia Tech)? Why Atlanta? Why can't you find a job right now? You don't necessarily have to have finance degree to break into finance.
I want to end up in Atlanta if possible. Lived there much of my life.
I thought a finance degree would make me more competitive. I've spent most of my time doing either computer programming or grinding it out as a starving artist (dreams that didn't pan out). So now I'd like to get a firm foundation in finance.
I chose Terry Jones because it's the flagship school for finance in Georgia. I know people who've gone on from there to take big jobs in Atlanta.
I guess my real question is my age. Will I be too old at 38 to get a solid job in Finance with no experience? And will 42 be too old to get an MBA if I do land a job? I'm trying to chart a course as best I can. But I want to know if it's truly navigable.
Thanks for any and all feedback
It's your life, man. Do whatever is going to make you happy. Being older and wiser can only help you. Granted you've done more than sit on your couch for 20 years, you're way ahead of any young bucks in terms of understanding other people and understanding yourself. Good luck with whatever you do.
Since you are computer programmer, have you thought about quant role?
What were you doing up to age 34?
What was some of the programming you did up to now in more detail?
What finance role are you looking to do? because for certain types of jobs, I would say you have almost no chance at all, unless you have connections that can get you in.
Your highest chance of success is a back office, or maybe an IT role (if programming is strong).
Realistically, you have almost no shot for: Asset Management / equity research / investment banking / private equity /
Yes. Not sure how to break into it with a degree though. I know excel and VBA very well and several program languages but I'm self-taught.
My thinking is that I'm going to have to get a degree. I made the young mistake of opting out of college for artistic pursuits (music, literature) and tech work which required ability only, no degree.
I could get a software engineering degree. But I thought perhaps finance might be the more direct route.
I've been looking at other people's career paths in Atlanta. One example I found was: Undergrad 4 years Trading Controls Analyst 3 years Market Risk Quantative Analyst 1 year + Then begin night classes for MBA at Emory if possible
The age question is still biting me. I really appreciate the guidance.
with a degree or without degree? If you already have a degree, consider MFE some where in NY.
Sorry I mistyped: without a degree. I have no degree
Does everyone agree with grapefury? Is finance a dead end for me at my age?
I'm looking for a career with longevity and the possibility of upward mobility.
I really like finance and have a desire to go that direction. But perhaps I should go another route?
Thanks for the help thus far. It's very much appreciated.
it's really a young man's game. it is not impossible for you, but as a hiring manager, one of the big questions on my mind is: can he handle the stress and hours, and is he too expensive for us?
I answered a similar question here recently:
//www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/need-advice-getting-into-finance-at-32
Good luck.
You are going to be too old to break into investment banking, but if you just want something in finance, I'm sure you will have options. Part of the problem will be that better finance jobs usually require a ton of time commitment so you will face some headwinds there as most people assume that a ~40 year old won't want to work as hard as a 22 year old.
Why do you feel that you need a MBA after getting an undergrad finance degree? Let's say that you have 30 good earning years left. I don't see why you'd want to spend 20% of that time in school. If you don't have a degree, I can understand wanting to get one, but the MBA probably isn't worthwhile, particularly if you've already received a business degree.
Nothing could be further from the truth. My buddy who was in the military came back to finish his undergrad and became an investment banking analyst at 36. Another friend got his first internship as an investment banker at 40. Of course, he didn’t look 40. He looked like he was in his early 30s. Nonetheless, both killed it and now are working full time. Don’t let all this bullshit bias from all these “now it all” folks discourage you. If you want it, it can be done. The only thing is that i would focus on big firms since the HR department is huge and have clear policies about not disclosing your age. If you go to a crappy boutique (100 people or less), it’s way easier for the HR folks to gossip about your age and so on in a small team.
By the way, both people I mentioned broke into BB banks.
What about options for someone who is mid to late 30s looking to get into PB/PWM with a MS in an analytical but non-finance field? I am in a similar situation but have a Master's degree in an analytical field looking to get into PB/PWM but unsure if I should do the MBA or not. Is the MBA as much of a necessity in this section of business and does the age matter as much?
SirTradesaLot
The link you posted might be either temporarily broken. Keep getting a page not found error.
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