Actually aku pun x de pengetahuan yg mendalam ttg kedua2 nye nie,,,pe yg aku post kan nie just summary utk keduanye..harap membantu anda semua dlm penerangan kecil d antara CFA n MBA...
One common one is the
CFA vs. MBA – should you take an intense exam that requires hundreds of hours of preparation, or spend 1-2 years at a top business school?
It depends on your past experience and what you plan to do in the
future – the CFA is better for some industries and the MBA is better for
others.
Why You’d Take the CFA
The CFA is most useful for
portfolio management – managing large investment funds and deciding where to invest money.
It’s also helpful for equity research, but more so at the higher levels – in equity research, Analysts are
above Associates and when you look at research reports, many Analysts have the CFA credential next to their names.
It can be helpful for certain types of hedge funds as well, though
it’s certainly not required – in fact, hardly any of my friends in the
hedge fund industry actually have the designation.
Outside of those industries, the CFA can be helpful as a resume
booster – especially if you have weak business/finance experience or
you’re in a region like
India or
South Africa where it’s valued more highly.
But if you’re aiming to break into investment banking, private
equity, venture capital, or sales & trading, the CFA is marginally
helpful at best.
It won’t
hurt you, but there are better ways to spend your time
The other issue with the CFA is that you need 4 years of full-time
work experience before you can list the letters after your name.
You can still list “CFA Level [xx] Candidate” on your resume or CV,
but that makes less of an impact than dropping the letters after your
name.
So if you have absolutely nothing business-related – no clubs,
coursework, or personal investing – you can study for Level I just to
write it on your resume, but don’t go beyond that – otherwise the return
on time invested is poor.
Long-Term Career Choices – Which Industry?
The CFA is like a pencil sharpener: it makes you
sharper, but also more narrow.
If you do anything outside of portfolio management, equity research,
or (some) hedge funds, it’s useless – so if you make a career change and
decide to do business strategy at Facebook, wave goodbye to all the
time you spent studying.
The MBA is
broader, but less useful for specific fields –
if you did IT before but now want to be a venture capitalist, people will take you more seriously with an MBA; if you want to move from advertising to M&A, an MBA makes that easier.
With a top MBA, you can work at almost any company – the only
exceptions are portfolio management and equity research, where a CFA is
expected / required.
A lot of MBAs still become bankers or
consultants
since banks and consulting firms are lucrative and always in search of
fresh blood – but even if you want to work in other industries, the
degree is “proof” of your worthiness.
Recognition of the CFA and MBA Internationally
In the US and other developed markets like Western Europe, top
business schools are plentiful – so banks and consulting firms place
more weight on an MBA from one of those institutions.
In other parts of the world – especially East Asia and emerging markets like
India and
South Africa – many employers recognize the CFA and MBA equally and job requirements often include “CFA or MBA.”
That’s because the top business schools are still mostly in the US
and Europe – as that changes and the reputation of schools elsewhere in
the world rises, so too will the reputation of the MBA there.
To summarize the CFA vs. MBA argument:
CFA Pros
- Almost required for portfolio management, equity research, and certain hedge funds
- Gain specific, specialized knowledge that’s widely recognized in finance
- Can study for the exam while working full-time
CFA Cons
- Requires close to 1,000 hours of study for all 3 levels, which means
sacrificing your limited free time if you’re in finance already
- You won’t build your network until after you’ve already taken the
exam and joined a CFA Society; you also won’t get access to recruiters
- Outside of finance, the CFA has little value
GMAT / MBA Pros
- Gives you direct access to recruiters at banks, consulting firms, and other finance and non-finance companies
- You gain a strong network and better “soft skills” for evaluating businesses
- The MBA degree is useful and widely recognized even outside of finance
GMAT / MBA Cons
- Requires leaving your full-time job for 2 years for the best programs (some exceptions internationally, such as INSEAD)
- Very high cost ($150,000 USD for top programs) and opportunity cost
- Not terribly helpful if you’re already in a finance or business role
