Investment Consulting with CFA - what are the exit opportunities?

One possible career path I am exploring is to work as an Investment Consultant at one of the insitutional advisors/brokers (Aon, Willis Towers Watson, Mercer) and complete the CFA qualification. Much of the work will be advising pension funds on their investment strategy, governance, asset allocation and which investment manager they should use. There might be some direct delegated investment decisions which I will get involved in through the fiduciary portfolio management area of work. So I could be doing research into specific assets and Asset Manager type activities. But I think most of the research work will be focussed on the investment manager in the market - finding the right ones for the client to invest their money in.

What are likely exit opportunities from this career + CFA qualification? I'm particularly interested opportunities in Asset Management buy side, Equities Research and Investment Banking.

8 Comments
 

CFA will not help with IB.

"If you always put limits on everything you do, physical or anything else, it will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them." - Bruce Lee
 
Most Helpful

I don’t think you need to rule out ER if you can spend time networking and crafting a stock pitch. You don’t have fundamental analysis skills but you have an analytical framework you probably built in your role. On top of that, the CFA should carry some weight. You probably won’t get into a BB ER spot but maybe try for a smaller shop? You can go to an AI shop, join a family office, you can join a bank in the asset management arm, there is institutional consulting at wealth management firms…or you do an MBA and pivot with more of a sure path. 

 

Sed aut voluptatem voluptas sapiente cupiditate. Sint rerum et officiis pariatur doloribus praesentium fugit.

Magni dolor nihil fugiat rerum corporis voluptates. Ut est voluptatem et nostrum sint incidunt animi. Cum vel repellendus quae illum quis consequatur minus. Atque distinctio ullam exercitationem soluta harum odit.

Iste voluptatem labore exercitationem debitis eos dolorem quia. Dolores eaque velit et consequatur enim perspiciatis. Nihil in corrupti molestiae ab laudantium ut consequuntur.

Dolorum iure vitae nam magni. Deleniti voluptatem odio et nobis. Quasi et eaque eos voluptatem illum velit dolor non. Quo voluptate commodi nisi. Aliquid aut nulla magni est quo fugit tempore.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (15) $434
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”