Investment Specialist at Insurance firm AM arm Exit Ops (No Undergrad Degree)
Hey everyone. wondering what my exit opportunities are from my current position. So I have a background in Big 4 audit (spent 2 years at one of the big 4) in the banking and capital markets team. I completed a few ACA exams but didn't finish it off since I had an opportunity in FO AM. I joined one of the largest AM firms in the UK with around 350 - 400 Billion AUM as an investment specialist in the credit liquid markets team. My product focus is emerging market debt but the liquid markets team covers investment grade, high yield and other short term credit investments. My role is essentially to act as the proxy PM, answer any technical questions clients have and shape the messaging of our investment strategy (essentially articulating our investment strategy and process). I sit on the trading floor with the PM, traders and origination guys. My question is how easy would it be for me to transfer to a larger AM firm (ideally one of the big banks AM team or Blackrock, PIMCO, Fidelity etc.) A lot of the investment specialists/directors are ex PM's who got bored of their job and wanted to be involved in a client facing role (we do a lot of pitching and essentially as the technical guys answering the Qs that general sales people can't answer). I'm in a unique situation in the sense that I don't have an undergrad degree (in the UK you can join an apprenticeship/trainee program out of sixth form instead of going to uni). I've completed a few of the ACA exams and the IMC CFA qualification as well as the CFA ESG qualification. Was wondering what my options are in terms of moving around the industry. Would it be easier to pivot if I transfer to a different role as I can transfer to a research/trading role in the same team, or to potentially shift my product focus to something else in the credit team. I could also just go and do an MSC in financial and investment management since I have experience and professional qualifications (all be it from non target unis like Liverpool and Kings). These are also distance degrees but they are CFA affiliated courses so wondering if that might help me in making a transition since I have an official degree from an university. I know that target universities are big for IB but is it the same for AM? Plus since I have directly relevant experience and a few professional qualifications + an MSc from a Russel group Uni (Liverpool/Kings or Bayes) is that enough to transition into a larger AM firm. Again I can move around the business to a research/trading role and shift focus to a different product in the credit team too.
Also would having an MSc supersede having a BSc I assume it would since it’s a post graduate qualification that is directly relevant to the work I do.
Familiar with US and UK in terms of background. I think back in the day you could get away with just A levels and still rise to a major position in UK investment management but IMO those days are long gone (can’t recall seeing someone without a degree on an investment team of fixed income funds of what you are currently doing). Asset management is a global industry so even if you were able to skirt by in the UK you’d be limiting your future options to move to other countries etc
I think the part time msc is a reasonable option given you already have a job in industry though hopefully some UK bros can chime in bc let’s just say can be a bit snooty about schools etc. Under this path you should decide what you like
1.) em is a pretty unique and specific career that most are passionate about
2.) dm credit will give you more opportunities but arguably more boring
3.) are you convinced you would like research/trading? Going down the marketing/coo career path is a viable one too
agree with other poster that best to switch internally- if they will give you an internal front office investment specific role and you do a degree you’ll be golden (I can’t see a great case for doing full time undergrad given you’re already in the industry and as an aside AM is less picky about schools but still value degrees).
lastly dunno if a part time degree bsc from UoL or something would be an option
Another thing I could do is convince them to let me do a degree apprenticeship. How it works is you get your undergrad from a russel group uni + some professional qualifications (CISI + CFA Level 1). I could ask them to amend my contract to reflect that but this is the most difficult path in my opinion as they would essentially have to pay for the training courses (around 5% of it as 95% is funded by the government) and actually partner up with the university (I'm also not the only person who joined on the trainee program so it may be hard to convince them to do it exclusively for me). Goldman, UBS, BOFA and JPM all have the same degree apprenticeship program too so it is well known in the industry. Maybe that might be the best way forward?
I think it's a long shot and highly doubt they would go through with it even if they like the idea. I just got accepted into Bayes Business school global finance program, based on experience. It's an MSC from a relatively reputable university. Do you think not having an undergraduate might hold me back in the future though? My main hope is that once I have the MSc I wouldn't need an undergraduate in the first place. Again it's a part time MSc but I'm honestly just doing it so I can say I have an actual degree from an university as I don't want to be held back.
Aside from those 2 ideas I have the only thing I can actually do is go back to university for 3 years get my bachelors and re apply (which I honestly don't want to do as it feels like a step back to me)
Also part of my role is research oriented. I suppose it's different for each firm but I do sit in on all the research meetings and I need to know the portfolio as well as the PM. It's around 20-30% research I'd say. The career path here is pretty good I know a lot of the investment directors were ex PM's who were bored with their jobs and wanted a client facing role. My main thing is it's such a niche role as it sits between sales and the investment side of the business. I think it's a great place to start but I honestly just feel like I'll have more options to move around the industry if I move into a research/trading role.
US based, keep that in mind.
The most practical route is to leverage a few years of product/investment strategy experience to move explicitly to the investment side of the house - trading, research, etc. would all position you for a PM role and add value, IMO, to your resume should you want to go back to strategy at a different firm or a relationship manager/business developer role somewhere. You are fortunate in that the area you sit is a bit nebulous - some of those roles are really glorified sales/marketing/etc. Others are more quantitative, investment driven, research roles, that help inform the portfolio managers or crank out thought leadership for those on the investment team who don't have the time (or ghost write them in some cases).
It's also probably easier to build that experience and make that switch at your existing firm first - then look to the larger AM shops down the road. The CFA in your position would probably be a net positive given you don't have a degree (I'd recommend going back to school and getting at least an undergrad - though I'm just not familiar enough w/ UK hiring practices).
The role does involve a bit of a research aspect already, as specialists we normally sit in to all the research meetings as we need to understand the strategy (but we don't actually make the investment decisions) I'd say it's 30-40% research which does give me some decent experience right?
Voluptatum pariatur fugiat dolores voluptates. Non repellat dolorem incidunt at sed nihil. Hic aut ex id beatae dolorem debitis. Sit odio pariatur sunt officia doloribus consequatur. Provident autem accusantium quod eaque ullam.
Excepturi quia non omnis delectus. Deleniti dolorum molestiae nihil cum quibusdam ea rem. Qui illo aut doloribus enim officiis rerum.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...