I've been hmm'ing and haa'ing as to what would be the best path to follow to pursue portfolio management. I'm obviously not expecting to get to the top for a long time, that is not the point though. I want to make sure I make the right decisions. I am 21yrs old. Had my head into the markets early on, started trading early, saw good successes (learned alot) and saw good failures (learned alot), nothing major but I really wish I had kept a record. Traded high volume at a scalping firm for a year, by the time I left was doing 250k shares/day and I wasn't losing money (granted I wasn't making much). Did 2 years of undergrad, left for world experience. Been around for a year, did and saw some cool shit in the oil industry, drove commercially, got a taste of the real world (was earning 120k at one point but lost that job, used money to pay off personal debts lol). Also got a bit of travel (went to Asia for a month, ate some cockroaches) I'm at a crossroads now and these are the options I face: Do I bite the bullet and finish school now? If I grind hard I could get my undergrad in about year and a half. Do I go work again (I could get myself into another 100k+ position easy) and build a track record for trading? Do I even contemplate applying for an MBA program or CFA? I figured I got a shot because of my intellectual curiosity and I am good at demonstrating my passion for things (maybe my world experience will count for something). Do I get certifications for banking industry and climb the food chain there? I am so ambitious but I have no clarity in what I should really be doing right now to achieve what I want (which is to break into portfolio management). Thanks guys
Go to school. Your options in life are far greater with an proper college degree than not. Decide on trading later.
You have to finish school. You can't apply for an MBA without an undergrad, a CFA would be useless without undergrad, you can't get into banking without an undergrad (and probably without a MBA), if you want to manage money no one will give you any with only a high school dipolma. Unless you want to drive trucks and trade your own account from home, you are going to need a degree. Its not that it opens doors, but so many will be closed without it. Plus I suggest working for an established firm so you learn the tricks of the trade before going off on your own, there will be a lot of lessons that you will learn working for someone that would take you years to figure out if you tired to go it alone. And you need your undergrad to get a job at such a firm. If you are ambitious, but with no direction, finishing school will give you the oppurtunity to find something you want. Talk to professors, get a summer internship and talk to other students with similar ideas. And keep in mind, you probably know next to nothing, so keep an open mind. 5yr
My advise is to finish your college degree part time/night and work days if you can make over $100K. I know college not right for everyone, but you never know what you'll want to do in ten years that might require it. Get the most out of both. Good luck....stay away from eating bugs!
No college can teach you how to manage and to grow money. No shitty certificate (CFA) program can teach you how to manage and to grow money. But one thing can teach you how to manage and to grow money: make money, manage money, make mistakes and learn from mistakes. If I could do it all over again, I would completely forget about school and would've headed to Wall Street sooner, work whatever job you can in the money management industry, while continuously working on perfecting your own managing money skills. I would've also went into business for myself sooner.
The only people who work on Wall street without college degrees are the street sweepers. The days of starting as a clerk and working your way up are over.
Degrees are overrated. You would be amazed at the collective intelligence of Wall Street. What one really needs is discipline & focus. You don't really need a degree to work on Wall Street, if the desire is there. Taking some classes in Finance/Business would only help. If so, do it in the evenings/part-time.
Degrees might be overrated and school may not teach you anything, but it's hard enough to get a professional job without a degree. It's even tougher to get one without a degree.
I know several successful Hedge Fund managers who have dropped out of school/who do not have a degree. Degree helps, but that's not the end of it all. Actually, if you really want to successfully manage a portfolio, you would be wasting a lot of time learning about junk that you couldn't care much about. I guess, if there is a will, there is a way.