Does having the CFA help for MBA admission?
Title pretty much sums it up. Does completing the CFA before applying to b-schools offer any significant advantage? *Note: would take level 1 senior yr of undergrad.
Nontarget -> BB (Complete CFA) -> PE - Top Bschool?
Would a CFA help for the above goal or should focus be placed on other areas instead?
It doesn't hurt, but I think a lot depends on who's reviewing your application and/or interviewing you. Most of the admissions committee people I met when considering b-school seemed to know strikingly less than you'd expect in terms of the technical stuff, different roles in the financial industry, etc. I'd passed Level II at the time I applied for b-school and I didn't feel it meant much to them. I interviewed on campus with two of the Ivy's (not Harvard or Wharton). At one school, my interviewer was a lady who didn't seem to have any background in finance, and at the other, my interviewers were two ladies--one admissions committee member and one student-- neither of whom seemed to have any background in finance.
I'm not sure they even realized that the CFA was a bigger deal than me being a CPA. You'll be surprised at how arbitrary and subjective the b-school admissions process is. It made me lose respect for the entire MBA degree in terms of its utility beyond a networking retreat.
The problem is that it's so subjective and there are multiple agendas being pushed to let in legacy students, well-connected or wealthy students (George W. Bush to HBS, for example), URM's and women that there is a HUGE range in the quality of the graduates from any one particular school.
Obviously, most people at HBS are extremely impressive. But I've also met people who went to HBS that did not seem terribly impressive (nepotism/family wealth, diversity admit, etc.) and people who went to UT-Austin who were brilliant (maybe chose a full scholarship at McCombs instead of borrowing money for Tuck or Darden), and everything in between within the Top 20 or so programs.
While I realize that's to be expected to some degree, I was shocked at the wide distribution of candidate quality within programs. That's why I don't put too much faith in an MBA from whichever school without knowing a person's full story. The MBA programs are judging on metrics that help further the program's interests (rankings, future alumni donations, looking progressive, etc.) not necessarily finding the "most qualified" candidates based on each person's story. There's certainly a correlation between the two, but they're not the same idea.
By comparison, when I'm talking to a CFA Charterholder or fellow CPA, I know they didn't get the credential based on any family connections or wealth, their race, gender, etc. They all passed the same test, so I can safely assume certain levels of aptitude and commitment.
If you're still in undergrad and you want to go P.E. (as opposed to portfolio management or certain hedge funds) you're probably best to focus on crushing the GMAT. If you take the GMAT and get a 750 or better, then move on to the CFA as icing on the cake.
You won't pass all three levels while in investment banking. Level 1, maybe. I passed Level II while working about 70 hours a week in a consulting role, but I was doing practice questions on the train, reading on my phone on the toilet, at lunch, everything. It was not fun.
I pursued the CFA because I know my end goal is to move into a hedge fund, and I've learned that they generally don't care about MBA's much at all. I'm not a PE guy and I advise you to ask a PE guy, but I know that many PE firms do care about top MBA's because re-engineering a company is generally much more of a "relationship" job as opposed to most hedge funds.