Hello everyone,
I have been a small contributor to the site, but never really introduced myself. I am 9 year veteran (27 yr old) seeking to get into corporate finance. I do have other interest in M&A's and IB, however corporate finance is the goal. Currently, I am going to a non-target school and have a GPA of 3.4 with 6 classes left.
I am majoring Finance through an online college (University of Phoenix). I started the college as I was on active duty and got out a month ago from active duty. I have 9 years of experience in Human Resources. Unfortunately, I am currently unemployed and looking for work. However I am looking for some opinions, thoughts, and advice from this community as I have a list of questions. Here they are:
1. Does having an online degree as a undergrad look bad, considering that it is from University of Phoenix?
2. Having a HR background, I am looking for a career change into Finance. Having the HR background would companies look at that as a positive?
3. For those who have used the resume review on here, how hard would it be for developing a resume for those who are transitioning?
4. Is there any classes or activities that I can take to show my strong interest in Finance or corporate finance, outside of school?
5. Lastly, I REALLY want to break into corporate finance, however I am curious though, would it be wise to take an HR job just to get income coming and in build my network through LinkedIn and such, then when I get my degree apply for entry-level finance jobs (Financial Analyst, etc.)?
Or considering that I am in college apply for fall internships (considering that it is online college) to gain the experience?
Or take a job at a bank as part of the ACH, while I am attending college?
Any opinions, thoughts, and advice is appreciated.
It sounds harsh but yes, you will be at a large disadvantage in comparison to your peers if you graduate from an online university.
If I were you, I would focus on your leadership experience in the service when trying to find a job.
I will most definitely be focusing on leadership, no problem there. Thanks for pointing it out.
As for the HR position, it is for purposes of working while going through college and in the mean time apply for internships while working. None-the-less I am very focused on trying to get those.
I recently finished a government internship and I would like to point out that the government has a very strong preference to veterans. In fact, anyone who wasn't in a diversity internship program at my place was a veteran, and they comprised a significant amount of interns in the workplace. In the SEC, OCC, Fed, FDIC, etc., they use a different pay scale from your standard GS scale in order to bridge the significant gap between public and private sector pay. Internships easily translate to full time offers through the Pathways program. PM me for more information.
Banana, shoot me a PM and I'll guide you through this. Best to keep these convos private though, to be frank, step 1 is understanding the members of this board have very different backgrounds from yours. There is an unbelievable wealth of knowledge here but tapping into it requires you to be prepared for some harsh discussions which will be driven simply by mentioning online college and finance in the same sentence. Thank you for your service, what branch by the way?
@datphukinnewb and @marine13910 are spot on.
Unfortunately, for the finance that is typical of this site, you are at a severe disadvantage with the university of phoenix, but that doesn't mean you can be counted out. Use your background to your advantage and stick to what you know. Apply to government jobs (usajobs.gov) and look at the respected and sought after firms in the defense industry (Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop, Raytheon, BAE Systems, etc). These firms will give you additional consideration (most of the time preference depending on the job).
To give you further insight, I have worked with guys (brilliant guys) that either came from a background that was solely military (no college education) or had online educations similar to your own (university of maryland university college). These guys were no different than anyone graduating from HBS and managed to snag very high salaries with very high bonus potential (200K+ base with 100K+ annual bonuses).
It is possible, you just have to use your strengths to your advantage.
Man, I hate how the military encourages these programs. Use the veteran network. You may also want to consider doing a full time MBA program or maybe even MSF if corporate finance is your goal. Some MBAs will let you apply straight out of undergrad since you have prior military experience. Transferring probably isn't the answer at this point since you're only 6 classes from graduation.
To be clear, I don't mind how harsh it is on here. I came here to learn and gather as much as I can. From what I have gathered I understand that I am at a huge disadvantage, but I'm not worried as I am very determined to make it there. Although, I wish that I had know that earlier, LOL. Also I want to thank you for the advice, thoughts, and opinions. Again, I have no problem on how harsh they are.
I do plan on going through an MBA school, however not online. Also the school that I have my sights has a very strong veteran commitment.
Start a club, offer to work for free to get a foot in the door, ALSO: cast a wide net. Many times people get hung up on one job/industry and pass up excellent opportunities in other areas. I've seen people get so fixated on finance that they turn down jobs in marketing, operations, etc and then end up unemployed.
Be a total opportunist. You have the blessing of everyone....you did your time, now get yours dude.
http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2013/08/for_profit_educ…
I think the veteran's comment in that article is pretty relevant here.
Edit: Since most will be too lazy to click the link, here is what he said:
You will be fine. Before you finish up, get at least one solid internship. Finish the degree and reach out to vet networks. If you are geographically mobile, you could land a corp finance role easily. On the HR job- I went from working security during school to landing a spot on a F500 corp finance leadership program. It’s all about the network.
What industry and/or location do you want to work in?
Have a good reason why you decided on an online undergrad program rather than a traditional undergrad. Yes, people will look down on this, but use it to your advantage. Spin it as a dedication to higher learning and bettering your skills after you served in the military. You are able to combine your academic learning to your previous leadership battlefield experience. This will actually give you a leg up compared to other non-target undergrads. I was never in the military, but always give preference to those that were. It is very impressive for those that had served in wars and be able to carry a normal life and apply what the experiences had taught them to over come stress, tough situation, never give up and never ever feel entitled.
Your HR background should be spinned as corporate 'merica experience instead of HR. The reason I say that are because HR is not related to finance, but having worked in a corporate environment tells the hiring manager that you know how the work place is like and not a total noob coming out of the military on your first civilian job.
I never used that before, but a lot of people had and praise it. Might be worth it and maybe Patrick can hook you up with a military discount.
CFA, get on it. There are CFA clubs and charters everywhere, get in touch with those folks. Start networking. Ask for help in getting experiences through your contacts and network. People like to help. Don't expect any compensation in return, but do ask for recommendations and introductions after you completed an internship or whatever they want to call it.
It would not be wise to get back into HR unless you are desperate for cash. If you do, it shows a lack of serious commitment and determination. Soldier on with your desire to be in corporate finance. When people see that you are truly determined and take up serious sacrifices it will open doors.
Are you currently using the Post 9/11 GI bill to fund your studies at UoP?
Is that HR background from your military time or post-mil? What was your career field while you were in?
Reason I ask is that if you're using the P9/11GIB for UoP you're probably leaving some of that benefit on the table. Depending on how many months you have left, you may be better served to transfer whatever credits possible to a brick and mortar school to finish your degree.
I am a vet myself, went to a non target, and made it to ibanking. There are a few people here that can confirm my situation.
I am all about helping vets any time I can. Shoot me a pm and if you want will talk to you. I learned a lot in trying to make it and did, wasn't easy but if you truly are dedicated it can work out.
UFOinsider - I will definitely networking and cold emailing as well, especially through veteran networks. As for gaining corporate finance experience, I have been trying to find some real-world exercises. Additionally, I have been volunteering my time with helping local events and getting myself out there.
duffmt6 - I did read the whole article, I did find it interesting and quite true. Although, I think the responses were from others were not accurate. None-the-less I found it to be a good article to read considering that it was a study. Thanks for posting it.
NiceCubicleBro - That is my goal, to get an internship. And I have been utilizing the veteran services at workforce centers and also going through ACP (American Corporate Partnership), which actually has JP Morgan & Chase and also Goldman Sachs for career advice.
td12 - I want to get into the Financial Industry for corporate finance, though I am open to any other industry as I have an interest in quite a few such as manufacturing, technology to name a few. Although the goal is in the financial industry. Location is not really a problem.
ST Monkey - Thank you pointing that out and advising me on the first and second question I had. Considering that joining a CFA club would be good, what about taking the course in Financial and Valuation Modeling Boot Camp classes? Again thank you for the advice.
Square - I am not using my GI 9/11 Bill, I am using my TA that is being offered to me. I figured I would save that for my MBA. Although I only have a year left because, I was originally using my REAP because TA and the 9/11 was not being offered to me at the time. As for my HR background it is from the Military.
bottera - I will definitely shoot a PM to you soon. Will take any advice also I know I will probably post some topics about CorpFin. I will be sure to go over the CorpFin section on here first before posting. Just want to ensure that I am grasping the topics correctly.
Again, thanks for the advice, opinions, and thoughts.
BananaB -- I should have also asked if you were 100% eligible for the Post 9/11, which also gives you access to the BAH benefit and potentially yellow ribbon.
What I'm getting at is this: my suspicion is that the UoP degree is going to create a few headwinds for you going forward. Nothing that can't be overcome as others in this thread have noted, but headwinds nonetheless.
If I were in your shoes I'd look into whether your credits from UoP would transfer to a brick and mortar that's either convenient to where you're now living, or a traditional school that's offering undergraduate coursework online. Lots of big state university systems are offering degrees online that'd probably be even cheaper than what UoP is charging, with the added benefit of having that institution's name on your diploma. It also potentially opens the door to that school's career services offices, and potentially greater networking opportunities.
The downside to this is that you may not get all your credits transferred, and you're looking at staying in school still longer. I realize that this is probably not attractive, you'd have to see what actually the impact will be in your specific situation.
You're planning for your MBA, and saving the P9/11 benefit for that, which is smart--but I'm not 100% onboard that this is the best use of that resource in your situation. Your immediate target is to get your undergrad and get a job in the field you want... and getting a good job is going to be one of the major determining factors as to whether you're going to get into the MBA program you want.
The reason I asked about your HR experience--since it was in your military time, my feeling is that it gets treated slightly differently than if you had gotten out then worked in HR. My feeling is that folks generally look at experience in the service as 1st--military experience, 2nd--whatever particular job you had. I think it's perfectly appropriate to play up the military side (talk about leadership, teamwork, etc) and place less emphasis on the particulars of being a personnelist, or S-1, or whatever your branch called your job.
Am I making sense, or does this seem like crazy-talk? All of this is hugely dependent on your specific situation, so I'm trying not to present these ideas as one size fits all. Let me know.
Thank you for serving this great country. We are indebted by your services. Thank you and God Bless America.
Square - One of my state universities does offer an online program for finance. However, it is more expensive than UOP. The UOP discounts veterans tuition to $250 per credit and a $95 resource fee for each each class. The state university is $292.83 per credit plus the cost of books and additional fees as well. Financially UOP is cheaper. Also UoP credits do transfer as they are accredited by Higher Learning Commission and their business programs are accredited by ACBSP as well. Though I may transfer but, having only 6 classes left is kind of difficult to transfer. I understand where your coming from, I don't think its crazy talk, I think it is one path that I could take.
pcubed - Your Welcome, hope you were able to achieve your career dreams.
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