Forum Topics Career Advice!
Hackofalltrades
Added a month ago

So, a bit of an update here, I've ended up starting a financial advisor course through Kaplan (and have completed two courses), but am having some second thoughts on it due to some things I've heard from a personal friend who is a year or two ahead of me in this role. He seems to be in a specialised risk management advice business and a lot of what they do seems to be networking with other professionals to get referrals, which surprised me, though perhaps it shouldn't.

I was wondering if there are any financial advisors on here that would be open to me asking them a few questions - mainly about what is involved in the work day to day.

If you are, please send me a message!

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Rocketrod
Added a month ago

g'day Hackofalltrades

I was a financial adviser for 20 years. More than happy to have a chat with you. Send me s DM and we'll arrange a convenient time.


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raymon68
Added 10 months ago

Bellie looking for Analyst.

Intelligent Investor is looking for an analyst

We're currently looking for an analyst to research Australian and overseas-listed stocks.

By

Nathan Bell

·

14 Jan 2024

·

2 min readShare

  •    

We are a small, friendly team that wants to get the best possible returns for our members and investors and have fun while we’re doing it.

We’re currently looking for an analyst to research Australian and overseas-listed stocks unafraid to make decisions based on their analysis.

The role will suit you if you prefer to work independently but with the support of a wider, experienced team. You will love finding new buy ideas and can explain your analysis succinctly and in plain language.

Having provided research to our members over 25 years, in a way that is simple and easy to understand, we can help you to become a proficient writer. You must, however, know how to analyse and value a stock and understand value investing principles. This is not a junior analyst role. It is suited to someone more interested in growing their own portfolio with flexible working hours than earning a huge salary.

Most importantly, you will like working as part of a close team; enjoy influencing portfolio returns; have a friendly, positive and humble attitude; can join discussions and podcasts; and eventually become a Portfolio Manager. But most importantly, we need you to love analysing stocks and finding new opportunities.

If this sounds like you, please send your CV, a short cover letter and an article in the Intelligent Investor style of no more than 600 words explaining the investment case for a stock you like to jobs@intelligentinvestor.com.au.

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Strawman
Added 10 months ago

Thanks for sharing @raymon68

fwiw, i know some members have used their Strawman portfolios as part of their job applications in the past. I good public track record can go a long way in helping you stand out from the pack.

I think Intelligent Investor would be one of the better places to work as an analyst. From what I understand they have a good culture.

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Hackofalltrades
Added 2 years ago

I've been looking at the Chartered Financial Analyst course and this one looks like it might be a good option. It seems reasonable in terms of price, particularly compared to the university courses out there, the workload seems manageable (1000 hours would be ~25 weeks of full time study), and it seems like it would give a solid grounding in finance generally, which has all kinds of benefits. It also seems like passing the level 1 or level 2 exams alone might be enough to lead to jobs in the field. 

Has anyone started or completed the CFA course?

Does anyone have any idea if there would be value in just completing level 1 or 1+2?



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Solvetheriddle
Added 2 years ago

@Stuey727 i did the course from 1998-2000. i thought it was great, since there was nothing like it when i was at uni. some have criticised it for being too US centric, esp regulatory issues, maybe , but still the best course i have done in finance. the failure rate , when i did it was 50% pa so a 1-8 chance of getting through it in one shot. as i remember it is quite full on. the second year is the analytical one, third year PM focus. i loved year two. pretty much required in the industry nowadays imo, there are a lot of smart young people around. if i did the first two years, i would definitely do year three to get the qualification. depending on how you find the workload. im still a charterholder many years later. btw the exams are a 6 hour marathons, and quite tricky as i recall! hope that helps

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Mujo
Added 2 years ago

I completed level 2 last year and will go for level 3 this year. I did level 1 in 2018 so i've taken my time. The exams are online now, so you go to a test centre and they sit them more frequently as a result - it used to be only once a year which is handy. I travelled in 2019 and then COVID so I just didn't get around to doing level 2.

Level 1 was a breeze given its a rehash of a lot of uni courses.

Level 2 covers a lot of new content. I would say none of it is difficult, but it is very broad, there's a lot of coursework and you will need to be dedicated knowing it will take up a lot of your spare time. It covers all asset classes, and the curriculum does change year to year - like there is machine learning as a topic now etc. Some of it will go into short term memory which you will forget and probably never use again, like all uni courses.

I would say definitely obtain the full CFA if oyu start it, I believe it has a 2-year industry experience requirement too. There's a big focus on ethics and how you refer to CFA which may also get you into strife otherwise too. I think employers look at it now as more a tick the box like a degree but like all things it will just demonstrate your commitment it (some will value it some will not). It is still the most widely respected financial qualification despite the flack it gets from a lot of people (rightly or wongly). It will be more widely respected by instructional fund managers/superannuation funds etc.

If you are looking to join something like a small cap fund manager or boutique I think starting a blog and getting a portfolio track record may get you further. So depends where you want to go in your career.

I'd just highlight the CFA is not all equities, there's fixed income, quant, ethics etc. some which you may not enjoy.

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Remorhaz
Added 2 years ago

My daughter (who finished Uni about 2 years ago and is an equities analyst) has just passed her CFA level 2 late last year and I presume will do level 3 this year. She said the course workload is fairly intense and the failure rate is very high. If you had any specific questions I could easily ask her

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edgescape
Added 2 years ago

This is one of the subjects taught in Applied Finance at MQ from the Unit Guides.

https://unitguides.mq.edu.au/unit_offerings/154723/unit_guide

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You can see how mathematical is. I don't think the tutors at Kip McGrath would be able to help me here - now that could be a new offering :). Whether the theory taught in the subject is questionable also. The only positive of the subject is I've learnt a few more useful "tricks" in Excel today.

But is regression, option pricing and probability distributions going to be useful in real life? Will it help in finding arbitrage in share prices? I think these are the questions I'm struggling to come to terms with at the moment. Unfortunately this is a core subject and I have no choice but to take it.

Anyway the unit guides is one place for finding out more about the teachings and each course and planning out the course ahead. Have to give credit for MQ giving so much detail for each offering as it definitely helps selecting what subjects to take.

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