First a little background, I went to a semi-target (probably more-so on the lower end of the 'semi-target' spectrum to be honest) for Finance and I currently work in Risk Management for a BB in NY and I've been there for about 6 months. I have always been interested in following the markets and equities but never knew what I wanted to do while I was in school. I did a FLDP internship for a Fortune 500 after my junior year and hated it. Afterwords I knew I wanted to go in a different direction. I started looking into any sort of job that I thought might involve following the markets. I ended up landing an offer in risk. So far the job is decent, the work fluctuates between interesting periods of work and excruciatingly boring periods, but I've had my eye set on taking a shot at landing a job in Equity Research.
Knowing my background isn't the most relevant I've come up with a plan to get myself where I want to go but I would love some feedback from the WSO community.
Here is my plan:
1. Work towards the CFA, I am currently sitting for level 1 in June 2017 (really kicking myself for not doing this in school or even last December)
- Side note, I currently read my firms proprietary research and listen in to their daily morning meetings when I can
- After passing level 1 (6 months from now) begin networking externally. I plan to reach out and establish contacts, learn about the industry, and receive advice on what to do to further prepare myself for eventual interviews.
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At this point I am not trying to land interviews, I am obligated to stay with my firm for 2 years or else I forfeit my relocation bonus. Just simply want to establish connections.
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Take some sort of modeling class and study interview prep from WSO or somewhere that offers similar packages.
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4. After 6 more months (18 months being with the firm), I begin searching my firms internal job board. This is the earliest I am allowed to seek an internal transfer. I see Equity Research job postings and would love to stay with my firm if possible.
- During this time I also plan on externally networking with the hopes of landing a job right around the time I hit my 2 year mark.
So what do you guys think is this a solid plan/timeframe? Is there anything else I can do to better prepare for the leap or any timeframe adjustments you'd recommend?
Appreciate it guys
Edit: On a related note, which WSO interview guide do you think would be more applicable for preparing for ER? Hedge fund or IB
Howsit Deter6895,
I am also considering writing my CFA level I in June and kicking myself for not doing it immediately after my undergrad.
You seem to have a solid plan in place. I am sure networking externally will happen over the course of the next two years and will overlap with even your CFA studying depending on how work is.
I'd recommend the WallStreetPrep package for modelling and interview prep. They have some resources that could be of value to you.
Quick question: Do you know of a site where I can get recent extra CFA level I resources from 2016? The site I know of is in Chineses and has been quite the headache having to translate the page after every click and most downloadable resources don't work
CFA level 1 resource that I find to be the most effective just to digest the dense material here in the early months of studying that has been working for me is Mark Meldrum on youtube. Not sure if you have been using him as a resource, but going through the text and watching his videos, and doing practice problems seems to be effective. He is a professor from Canada, check him out.
I am only using the official materials for this exam, but for the next level I think I'll splurge on the schweser materials
Two years is the approximate time frame for successful moves like this. If I were you I'd aim for completing level 1 in June, and be ready to apply in November / December for a lateral in January as that is a popular time to lateral after people lease post bonus season.
I'd Make sure you build your network and have that as a primary initiative. As much as you'd hope it would be easy to lateral, it is not as easy as it could be. Define bottom tier "semi-target"? Network is the most important part.
But the CFA overall will be a big help to your initiative as well as your resume.
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