CFA vs Masters in Finance

[Konnichiwa]

Msc finance is something "sure get". You go for course, do the required work, and they give u the msc finance.

For those not acdemically good, CFA may be very hard to get. Some may think, "what so hard, just study only lor.". But in actual, this 3 paper exam is really super hard.

I seen many registering this exam with the "what so hard just study lor" and end up not coming for the exam. Why? It it too stressful to study for this exam. Imagine you have to work and study at the same time. For me, i have 1 hr to study on weekdays and study around 7hr on weekends (burn 2 wekend). It will be 19 study hours. You need at least 400 study hours to pass the test. So you will need to spend atleast half year doing this routine in order to pass each level of test. are you able to commit this kind of time?

There are many people who like to talk cock, saying that Cfa is no longer valuable as everyone has it. Can we also say mbbs is no longer valuable as there are millions doctors in the world? There are 200+ new charterholders admitted in Singapore every year. I think there are more new doc and lawyers in singapore every year. -2 cents from a l3 candidate

yes...but doctors became doctors and lawyers mostly became lawyers...

and CFAs...hmm...

 

[maisatomai]

yes...but doctors became doctors and lawyers mostly became lawyers...

and CFAs...hmm...

It just a board governing them, and there is no such board for finance people. People taking ACCA become accountant too. People who graduated from NIE become teacher.

 

[amerell]

@maisatomai

Its more like how you use it and whether your using it correctly? If your using it to get into Investment Banking, Bank ops, risk management, relationship manager, hedge funds, venture capital or trading kind of jobs, what use does it make? If your telling me your gonna use it for ER, investment management jobs, then of course it works wonder. But always take note having a CFA doesnt mean a door towards these jobs, experience counts and most seniors will tell you dont need a CFA to enter these jobs.

If you trying to compare it in terms of broadening your knowledge, definitely its something worth studying for? Why deprive of yourself knowledge? This is the fact your comparing towards studying an MBBS, law degree and bla bla.

 

[Konnichiwa]

@maisatomai

Its more like how you use it and whether your using it correctly? If your using it to get into Investment Banking, Bank ops, risk management, relationship manager, hedge funds, venture capital or trading kind of jobs, what use does it make? If your telling me your gonna use it for ER, investment management jobs, then of course it works wonder. But always take note having a CFA doesnt mean a door towards these jobs, experience counts and most seniors will tell you dont need a CFA to enter these jobs.

If you trying to compare it in terms of broadening your knowledge, definitely its something worth studying for? Why deprive of yourself knowledge? This is the fact your comparing towards studying an MBBS, law degree and bla bla.

Some studied CFA with a expectation that IT IS THE DOOR to investment banking.
I think they are likely to dissapoint themselves?

 

[amerell]

Yes Konnichiwa. I rather you invest those hours of studying into going for networking sessions or talks or even learning technical analysis of stock trading. CFA is always best studied when your already in a related-job. Thats my personal opinion but there will lots of pple chasing it right after their degree and they expect a good job just because they passed all 3 levels. Well, thats the paper-chase society.

When you see people passing all 3 levels without any experience in the finance sector, then they start making noise why they can't find a good research-based job? Only then they will realise how important experience counts and they will be so demoralised that they have to use back-office to network their way in which is a waste of time i feel.

 

[JJJ010101]

Hi. Anyone currently taking/planning to take/a graduate of Macquarie University's Masters in Applied Finance? My colleague recommended it to me, and the program is partnered with SHRI. Can anyone care to tell me more about it?

or, are there any other recommended Masters in Applied Finance?

Thanks in advance

 

[jarlaxle1771]

Some studied CFA with a expectation that IT IS THE DOOR to investment banking.
I think they are likely to dissapoint themselves?

IB is sell-side, CFA is more for asset management/buy side. very different leh.

 

[monte_carlo]

Can anyone tell me the difference between CFA and Masters in Finance?

CFA is a professional certification, whereas MSc Finance is academic recognition.
CFA is a very focused study, whereas M.Sc Finance cover more holistic view of financial industry. IMO if you are not sure where to work in financial industry, you should go for M.Sc. Finance. Even M.Sc. Finance itself has lot of major area, but at least the choices are more than that just holding CFA alone. In case you want to further into academic career, M.Sc. can get you to work in school or even can further to doctorate, but you cannot do that with CFA.

 

[monte_carlo]

it is one of the top school in uk.

Nanyang Technological University also has no link to business, but they produce good graduate for accounting and business as well. Some school just developed beyond their name implied, i think.

Anyway, I am doing this distance learning now in M.Sc. Finance (Quantitative), hopefully to complete in 2years. So far I like this program because:-
- the content is quite interesting and encourages critical thinking, not like typical unis that usually force syllabus into your head.
- suits my work environment, since I am required to travel overseas sometimes.
- more efficient study, since you really have to understand what you read and study, instead of typical one-way lecture in school here where sometimes don't even know what the lecturer is teaching. i had this experience when i took M.Sc. engineering course in NTU, which I gave up half way, which I think attending the night class is kinda waste of time, and energy.
- they have interactive discussion forum for students and tutors, but some courses forum are active, some are really quiet.

Cons:
- doubtful about recognition in sg, but since I think all UOL degrees in sg is considered distance learning (the difference is just that they are conducted in some schools like Kaplan or SIMS), I am less worried. I think for those UOL degrees offered in Kaplan or SIMS, you can choose to study yourself, then register the exam with UOL directly. Anyway, I believe certification is just the beginning, you need to market yourself and prove your performance in long run.
- require high self-discipline and resourceful, especially since you are on yourself most of time.

My plan is to get M.Sc. Finance, and see if I could get a good/interesting job in Finance. If CFA could enhance my job, then I will take it slowly in future while working. Currently, I have a decent job in engineering (manufacturing). So, really no rush for me to get into finance industry, unless manufacturing dies abruptly, which I don't think so.

 

[monte_carlo]

Yes Konnichiwa. I rather you invest those hours of studying into going for networking sessions or talks or even learning technical analysis of stock trading. CFA is always best studied when your already in a related-job. Thats my personal opinion but there will lots of pple chasing it right after their degree and they expect a good job just because they passed all 3 levels. Well, thats the paper-chase society.

When you see people passing all 3 levels without any experience in the finance sector, then they start making noise why they can't find a good research-based job? Only then they will realise how important experience counts and they will be so demoralised that they have to use back-office to network their way in which is a waste of time i feel.

Yes, i agree that we should really beware of "herding effect". If not very sure whether CFA is really what you want, I suggest go for M.Sc. Finance.

 

[monte_carlo]

Will CFA actually give an edge to those who aspire to be in the public sector?

I think public finance is very different than that studied in CFA. Public finance may deal a lot with economics (macro & micro) and/or international finance (forex and global trades).

 

[samschwar]

hey,

saw on the requirements that CFA lvl 1 needs to be in the last year studying for a degree? are there any exceptions to that rule, cos i vaguely remember seeing a few cv's of year 2/3 business students having lvl 1 CFA!

thanks

4 yr of relevant working experience. can erode off the degree requirement

 

[turtle5a1]

Is there any school that provide courses for cfa...

 

[kensi81]

i just feel cfa is overhyped especially in this market condition where experience really matters.
having cfa 3 does not guarantee you a job....

 

[Nitendo69]

Do your CFA first, start work. Masters can be done later

 

[friendlyguy]

I have spent 4 months to study CFA, end up register CIMA than CFA in last minute

 

[Veron4]

hi guys,

probably need ur opinion abt my path to greater heights.

currently i am working in a bank under a trade finance dept,
i am thinking of pursuing a Masters in Finance part time, but the
issue is most of the modules (in fact all) in the program are not relevant to wat i am working right now. Hence, i will need some opinions from u
guys whether Masters in Finance is a right path for me or otherwise?

 

[Raider04]

hi guys,

probably need ur opinion abt my path to greater heights.

currently i am working in a bank under a trade finance dept,
i am thinking of pursuing a Masters in Finance part time, but the
issue is most of the modules (in fact all) in the program are not relevant to wat i am working right now. Hence, i will need some opinions from u
guys whether Masters in Finance is a right path for me or otherwise?

Education is to prepare you for the bigger role in the future and not merely the role you're playing now.

 

[friendlyguy]

Path Finance - Home - CFA ® Level 1 - Finance Accounting Statistics Economics

I have found free videos

 

[SITneva]

yes, cfa does provide a good prospect in jobs within the finance market, but it also locks you into the industry becos of your specialisation. On top of that, only 30% of the cfa candidates pass lvl 3, and gets the certification. So, what happens to the 70% who failed? Retake the exams again? On average, people take 5 years to complete their CFA. 5 years to some doesnt seem long, but if you are at the age of 28-30, when will you receive your CFA, 33-35? By that time, do you think you still need a CFA?

A Masters of finance does not provide you a better job prospects now, but if you are talking about "management" level, it does provide a better prospective. Most managers or c-levels now hold a masters, unless they have 20 years of experience. Some masters in singapore takes about a year to complete like Kaplan or Aventis. The chances of passing are higher, especially if they are executive masters of finance, because class profiles for executive programs are working adults only!

So if you compare the timeline between executive masters of finance (if you have the experience) VS CFA:
EXECUTIVE MASTERS OF FINANCE
Year 1: Study and work
Year 2: Graduate with EMOF
Year 3: Find a new job
Year 4: Got a job or promotion
Year 5: Earned back your school fees (ROI)

CFA
Year 1: CFA level 1 and work
Year 2: CFA level 2 and work
Year 3: Retake CFA level 2 and work
Year 4: CFA level 3 and work
Year 5: Retake CFA level 3 and work
Year 6: Certified CFA and find a job
Year 7: Got a job or promotion
Year 8: Earned back your school fees (ROI)

The above is based on a "I wish" scenario. 5 years to get back your returns on school fees for Masters, and 8 years for CFA.

That is just the timeline. How about the process?

If you look into the brochures of any CFAs, they will tell you straight up, exam-focused. Most CFA candidates are working adults, and now they are telling you to go back to school and study like a nerd again, then go for exams again. And the best part, chances of you failing and retaking is 70%. When they say exam-focused, they will probably provide you case studies based on what they think will come out during the exams, and what is shown in your textbooks. If this is what you want, you must be hoping to teach finance subjects after receiving your CFA.

If you look into the process for executive masters of finance, they are industrial focus. They expect every students in the class to contribute their previous experience like problems they had faced, or solutions they had provided in the past. So it's not just about the textbooks, in fact they probably won't even use it, it's about actual experience and what is happening in the world. Just last week, I'd stepped into an executive masters class, and the professor was engaging students on debts issues in the EU, and what are the best strategies to prevent this from happening again in the next cycle. So there are lots of interaction, and the materials on the desk was hardly utilised. And the best part? If you take up executive masters in american universities, they will always try to avoid examinations!

But of cos, american universities are sometimes quite expensive, normally about $50,000 range if you look at University of Chicago from Chicago Booth. But they sell you networks too, like CEOs and MDs of MNCs in singapore or the region.
City University of New York from Aventis also offers the finance program in singapore, at about $30,000 range. They also offer you the networks and practical process.

I heard there is a preview presentation coming up next thursday, it's either chicago booth or aventis that is having the presentation. I think you guys should go check it out to know more about the differences.

Hope the above helps.