I am 36 years old and I want to get into Investment Banking, especially equity analysis

I did my engineering, then I jumped to Accounting to do a CPA. I know! And I and have been working in Finance ever since. A string of wrong choices and relationships led me to where I am today, not well paid and unsuccessful. I thought I would hate Investment Banking, so I never ventured in. Now I am 36, hate my current job and I look at Investment Banking and go, why did I not pick that as a career.

I am trying to enrol for CFA level 1. And then I hope to get a break into IB. I was wondering if anyone of you could advise how might I go about it.

I have been trading equities, forex and options with good success the last few years. If IB doesn't pan out, then I will most likely end up as a day trader.

Any advice on how to get into IB would be most appreciated.

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Best Response

OP, I am 34 and a CPA and recently accepted a role with an EB. The one thing that benefited me was I went back to school and got my MBA and had significant M&A experience in previous roles. It also helped that I networked like a ninja for two years.

I agree age can be an issue, a few of the people that I met for informational interviews did bring my age up and try to convince me that I was over the hill.

If this is something you really want, I would recommend that you have a good story as to why you want to move into investment banking, why you want to move now and how your past work experiences will allow you to hit the ground running.

Have you thought about going back for an MBA?

 

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