Good afternoon! I have a few questions for those of you who work in the Investment Management industry. It has been my dream/goal since I can remember to work in the Investment Management industry and my ultimate dream/goal being to start my own firm. I am faced with some dilemma's though. I am currently going back to school and majoring in finance but the school I am attending is far from an Ivy League school. I have been teaching myself about investing and such for quite a few years now, so I'd like to think I know more than the average person. I currently manage/operate a construction/landscaping business that is owned by my older brother. We also own a few rental properties. I have been doing this kind of work since I was a kid, working during summer break and when I finished high school, its been my full time job ever since. The reason I'm saying this is because on a resume, I have no work experience in the field I want to be in. I am 30 years old and I find myself worrying that it is too late for me to do what I want to do. I read about people my age, in the industry, they have graduated from an Ivy League school and already have 5+ years experience. I guess my question to you guys is, where do I go from here? Is it too late? Do I even have a chance at getting an entry level position at a firm to get some experience? I am a very hard worker and I don't know of many people that poses the work ethic that I have. I keep hoping that I'll meet that someone that will give me a shot and help me get my foot in the door. Any thoughts and/or insight would be greatly appreciate it. Thank you for your time and have a great day! Sincerely, Christopher Winner
When you say Investment Management, do you mean stockbroker / financial advisor ? Then you need a Bachelor's degree. A Business background is best but FA are salesmen. You don't need a B.S. in Business but it helps. You need charisma and sales skills. You also need a clean background without any major criminal offenses as well as a good credit rating. If you can't manage your own affairs you can't manage anyone else's. You don't do a lot of analysis. You sell mutual funds, insurance and long term investment goals. The washout rate is incredibly high. Fifty percent of the people don't pass the Series 7 and most of them are let go. If you pass that, they have hack marks you need to make. You might need to have 5M in Accounts the first year and 10M the second year etc....90 percent of the people that start in the business aren't there 2 years later. If you want to be an analysis, a bond trader, a fund manager etc...I would visit the website of my local college and read the background of the professors in the College of Business. Some of them might have backgrounds in financial management, similar to what you are pursuing and they might be able to help you establish the right educational track to get there. I'd email them to set up an appointment with them during their office hours and see what they tell you. Good Luck.