Audit -> Real Assets @ 30-33 (London)

Hey Everyone,  

Just wanted to get some second opinions on how realistic my proposed transition is.

I'm living in London and have spent my whole career here.  I'm entering my seventh year in siddur now,  and I'm an assistant manager. At a mid tier firm now after being fired from a Big 4 3 years ago for a (single) exam failure. I'm just over 2 years pqe. I basically only audit pe/vc funds and fund managers. I just sat cfa level 1 last October, will be sitting level 2 later this year and aim to become a Charterholder in 18 months. 

I want to specialise in real assets now for the rest of my career. My plan is to get into real asstlets fund accounting or a management accounting role at a real estate developer, do that for 2 years while finishing off the cfa + building 6 watertight financial models (3 real estate, 3 infrastructure) so that by 2028 I can start applying to the jobs I'd really love, which are all in infrastructure/rela estate credit (I.e. development banks/uk civil service/real assets funds). The hope is that the cfa and these 6 models (corr, core+, development, availability based, green and brownfield) will get me to the interview stage and outweigh 9-10 years of accounting. 

My question is - is this realistic? Is there anything else you would do or modify to put myself in the best possible situation to make that final jump in 2028? 

I won't get into this too much, but I just want to be completely honest and emphasise how much o hate not just audit, but the accounting profession in general, and think that this is the highest probability route to be able to escape it and do something interesting & well compensated. Friends at the IFC/KFW/EBRD/Brookfield are all encouraging me, but it honestly feels so far away from where I am now as an auditor entering his 7th year.  It's hard not to get discouraged. What do you all think? 

1 Comments
 

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