Simple question. Can the CFA (1-2 years out of college) and being a CFA Level III Candidate or passing all three levels of the CFA, and eventually receiving the CFA designation, can this offset a poor undergraduate GPA? I was a division 1 student athlete at a non ivy league target school, studied finance, worked 20 hours a week on top of being a student-athlete, and also just had too much of a good time, and so I graduated with a 2.8 GPA. I made it to all the final rounds during the full time and internship recruiting process, but once they found out my GPA I got cut. I have a respectable job now but have higher aspirations.
As has been stated on this site many times, the CFA can open doors, but it won't get you a job alone. My question is if someone has forged the connections, has networked a lot, has the relevant knowledge and skill set, interviews well, and is a personable and liked person (basically all the perfect qualities that employers look for) and is a CFA Level III Candidate or passes all 3 tests, can this make the poor GPA a non factor during the application process?
I am pursuing future careers in asset/investment management, sales, and capital markets opportunities.
Interested as well.
CFA charterholder here. The general answer is, no unfortunately. But it's better than nothing.
MBA is the way to go if you want to get this off as that could prove to people that you have the credentials to prove you have the ethic (whether I agree with that is a different story, but that's the rules of the game). I'd say you can't get them to ever ignore it altogether in your first few jobs because there'll always be people who did what you did AND got a good GPA... but you're doing the right thing by networking - you may have to set for yourself a less traditional route and apply to some smaller shops where you could prove yourself rather than get screened out by some HR policy. But other than that, I'd say get an top MBA and get a good GPA... but AM is competitive, and getting a CFA doesn't set you apart as most people who stay in the industry eventually end up with one.
Think this post hits nail on the head unfortunately. Despite others having done similar things in school and getting a better GPA, it all comes off how you can sell it. I think like poster above said, the non-traditional route where you can prove it over the HR screening is a better probability of success.
In my case I went to a pretty good prestigious undergraduate school and got a finance degree with a sub 3.0 GPA, so I'm wondering about the possibility into getting into a better MBA school. I'm also skeptical about getting an MBA from a "lesser" school than my undergraduate in terms of branding yourself.
Yes and no. At this point, the big blemish is your GPA and until you have something (either experience or MBA) to offset it, the only thing you can point to is a low UG GPA. So getting an MBA from a lesser school MIGHT help offset that. It's really going to be case by case - perhaps your network opens up an opp in the next 6 months. Perhaps your work gets less enjoyable and you end up wanting an MBA, etc. I'd say spend the ~1-2k to prep for the GMAT at very least - cheap optionality. Plus I would say the odds of you getting into an MBA program might be a bit easier because you can score well on a standardized test, explain yourself in your essays, etc. Doesn't matter whether you do or not - it's a tough battle and you'll have to be patient and make opportunities for yourself.
But keep networking and put yourself in the right position... that's all the luck you can make for yourself and that's the most important.
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