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Investment bankers are basically financial advisors that work for large and small firms to raise money for their clients. Their job descriptions often have broad responsibilities and require highly specific skills. Investment bankers are highly valued by their clients, and successful ones are extremely hard working and dedicated to thriving in the face-paced and demanding work environment of investment banking.

What Is Investment Banking?

An investment bank is not the same as a bank where you set up your checking and savings accounts—those are called retail banks. In the simplest terms, investment banks help corporations raise money. When a corporation wants to buy or sell something, they work with an investment banker to figure out how to invest or attain the funds they need to get it done.

What is an Investment Banker?

Investment bankers help their corporate clients secure funds in the capital markets, act as financial advisors, and occasionally help companies navigate mergers and acquisitions. Investment banker positions vary from entry-level to high-level executive.

Investment bankers are highly valued in the corporate world. Without them, it would be very difficult for companies to get the money they need to serve their customers and clients, or develop a solid competitive position in their market.

Is Being an Investment Banker Difficult?

Being an investment banker can be hard because the day-to-day operations are long and stressful. Getting enough sleep and reducing stress can be a challenge for investment bankers, especially at the beginning of their careers. Investment bankers who make it through the adjustment period early in their job will often have long and financially rewarding careers in the industry.

Investment Banker Responsibilities

Investment bankers are ultimately responsible for the success of their clients. In some roles, they take on many responsibilities while others specialize in one or two specific areas. All positions are responsible for raising money for their clients primarily through issuing debt and selling equity in capital markets.

Debt Capital Markets

When a company wants to raise capital by issuing debt in the form of bonds, it often has a hard time finding qualified investors with enough money to invest. Investment bankers will help these companies find qualified investors within their large network and structure how the bonds get issued.

Equity Capital Markets

When a company plans to hold an initial public offering (IPO) to sell stock to the public, investment bankers will help that company find large investors to ensure their IPOs are purchased for the highest price possible.

Mergers and Acquisitions

Investment bankers also help broker mergers and acquisitions. The process often involves them lending their expertise to make sure things go smoothly. Investment bankers will advise their clients by presenting their research with recommendations about the best opportunities.

Investment Banker Skills

Investment bankers need many skills to be successful in the investment banking industry. Learning how to make financial forecasts and develop relationships on both sides of the transaction is key to advancing throughout your career.

Financial Modeling

Investment bankers often develop various types of financial models to value debt and equity for mergers, acquisitions, and capital-raising transactions. The process often involves using Excel or other software programs to make smarter investment decisions in an efficient manner.

Relationship Management

Knowing how to develop and maintain working relationships with clients is an important skill for investment bankers. It’s common for investment bankers to work long hours and be available to their clients as needed when large deals are in process. Ultimately, investment bankers have a responsibility to expand their firm’s book of business and meet the needs of their investors.

Benefits of Becoming a CFA

Investment bankers who pursue earning the CFA designation will gain in-depth, specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities in financial analysis and investment management. Other benefits of earning the CFA include

• The CFA designation is recognized globally.
• Some job descriptions for investment positions say “prefer CFA” or “CFA required.”
• You become a member of a global organization and can optionally join a local CFA Society for networking and further learning opportunities.
• CFA Institute and local CFA Societies Compensation surveys have found that CFA Charterholders have higher median compensation than non-CFA Charterholders.

Ready to Begin Your CFA Journey?

If you are interested in joining hands with a leading CFA tuition provider to help make your CFA journey easier, then Kaplan Professional Middle East is here to offer you the expertise of having helped students to successfully ace their CFA exams for several years with the industry’s leading trainers, world-class support, CFA’s most trusted study materials – Kaplan Schweser, and digital solutions. If you are looking for CFA training, join us as a student to kickstart your CFA exam preparation.

Whether you’re preparing to sit for the CFA® exam for the first time, or you’re planning to retake the level, it is critical to consider the aspects that could lead to a futile result.

Understanding the foremost and broadly recognized reasons for coming up short in the Level I CFA® exam will guide you in creating an effective learning journey. Here are four reasons that candidates often portray prior or during their CFA® exam, and some guidance, so that you improve your chances of success.

1. Failing to meet expectations on exam day

Being able to tame one’s nerves will be important on the exam day. The main thing a candidate can do to battle them is to have a strong exam prep session. The better set up you are, the fewer chances to be influenced by nerves.

A few students will be unable to finish the CFA® exam due to the lack of time. If this is likely to be an issue for you in the exam, take a decision to separate the exam into sets of 10 questions and give yourself a 15-minute time restrict for each. Appropriate exam strategy includes recognizing the more tedious inquiries and abandoning them for the end. The risk of not doing this is, you get distracted trying to solve one question beyond the limit which could lead you to miss out on the simpler questions.

2. Overthinking chosen answers

If you are scoring about 70% on mock exams and can recreate this in the real exam, you are much-ensured for success. What’s more, ensure you adhere to your study technique. Do not begin scrutinizing your answers if you are apprehensive about the exam. Usually, 70% of the time, your first answer to a question will be the right answer. Keep in mind, when candidates begin altering their answers, it could create a trail of wrong answers due to overthinking. Our recommendation would be that unless you are 100% sure that you have committed an error, never show signs of change in your answer.

The Learning Outcome Statements (LOS) are based on the Candidate Body of Knowledge, created by CFA Institute and highlight what the candidate is expected to know from each topic. Therefore, embed this into your study plan, as they will enable you to center around the critical points for the exam.

3. Poor Ethics Score

CFA Institute will survey the applicants’ Ethics score before choosing whether to pass them to the following level. If you have a high band (10 or 9) and a poor Ethics score, this might be your reason for failing. Hence, it’s advisable to study ethics during the months prior to the exam for better retention. Practice a maximum number of ethics questions from CFA Institute’s content to be well prepared.

4. Exhausting your mind prior to the exam day

There is a genuine risk that candidates can over-study the day preceding the exam. The threat is that an exhausting day before the exam, combined with a poor night’s rest, gives you the result of feeling rationally drained right before the exam – tired applicants commit errors.

Ensure that you are at your psychological best for the exam. We suggest you utilize the day preceding the exam to re-read a portion of the lengthier topics of the educational modules, including Ethics. Try not to take mock exams, which can mentally deplete you. Candidates hardly ever sleep well right before the exam, therefore ensure that you get a chance to go to bed early.

Now that you have an insight into the prospective pitfalls, you’ll be in a better position to make a decision.

There are a variety of business analyst paths that you can pursue based on your interests and aspirations to enter and grow in the finance industry. For the purpose of this blog, we will be focusing on the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation (CFA).

The CFA designation is a cost-effective certification that is acknowledged worldwide and will offer you a holistic understanding of investment management. Here are five reasons why you must consider advancing your career through this highly valued distinction:

1. Better Job Opportunities

Although there isn’t one sure shot to guaranteeing a job, the CFA charter will definitely boost your attractiveness in comparison to a non-CFA charterholder. The CFA charter requires a considerable amount of discipline and commitment which is one of the reasons why employers demand it as it demonstrates work ethic, analytical skills, and moral value to employers.

Demonstrating your profound understanding within the range of financial speculation and financial administration, it speaks volumes in terms of your understanding and work execution. Firms that center on the “buy-side” incline towards CFA charterholders as compared to MBAs. Some of the top employers for CFA charterholders, according to CFA Institute are:

• Ernst & Young
• JP Morgan Chase
• Morgan Stanley
• HSBC

2. Reasonably priced

While an MBA can cost over $100,000, the CFA charter costs between $2,400 and $12,000, depending on when you enroll, what materials you purchase, and how many times you appear for the exams. This is quite a steal in terms of cost despite being a gold standard for investment analysis evaluation. Furthermore, you don’t need to quit your job like certain full-time MBA programs either.

3. Professional Growth Opportunities

Completing the CFA Program offers you the chance to be a CFA Institute member, a worldwide network of over 135,000 venture experts. It’s known to be noteworthy as it helps members engage with one another for future job prospects and receive first-hand industry insights. Along with preparing candidates for varied investment-related occupations, such as portfolio or risk manager and research analyst, it has also helped about 7% of CFA charterholders to be chief-level officials.

4. Worldwide Recognition

As mentioned earlier, CFA Institute encompasses a worldwide network of over 135,000 venture experts which not only shows how valuable it is worldwide but how rare the charter is as well. The CFA charter is recognized by controllers, colleges, and certification programs in at least 30 nations and regions. It will not only help you achieve unmatched career assets and connections but will also help you apply for occupations around the world that require a CFA charter or candidacy.

5. Practical Expertise

The charter is considered specialty within the commerce world compared to the MBA, which addresses a wide cluster of topics with less profundity. Receiving the CFA charter permits you to pick up explanatory skills and expertise in quantitative strategies, financial matters, budgetary reporting, investments investigation, and portfolio administration. The acquired set of aptitudes and knowledge throughout your CFA Program journey will serve you well all through your career.

Being an advanced professional certification, Certified Management Accountant (CMA) demonstrates a strong understanding of accounting and financial management skills required by current dynamic companies.

The sooner you achieve the CMA certification, the sooner you can start your journey towards a top-level management position. So, here are 5 tips to pass the CMA exam in the first attempt:

1. Ensure the plan is viable

In order to create a successful study plan, it takes time, effort, and in some cases can prove to be costly as well. Having a well thought out plan ensures that you don’t lag at the end of the term and can cover all the important elements of the CMA exam. One method to ensure that your plan is effective is by following the SMART technique. The SMART technique refers to checking and ensuring that the chosen plan or goal is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound.

2. Immerse in a real testing environment

By practising in an environment like that of the exam day, you can equip yourself better to manage exam day stress. The questions are prone to be presented in indirect ways to test whether the candidate understands the accounting principles and concepts. Therefore, just scanning the content for main points won’t work as almost everything that is included in the course content is important.

3. Engage Your Brain When Studying

Going through the course content repeatedly can be mentally exhausting and ineffective over time. Here are some methods you can incorporate to engage your brain:

• Highlight the important parts of the book
• Jot down notes on the margin or make flash cards for quick access
• Identify your learning method: Visual, Auditory or Kinesthetic

4. Pay Attention to Key Definitions and Terms

Multiple choice questions are most commonly tested for essential concepts, definitions, and terms. Hence, it’s crucial to understand the important terms and be able to differentiate them to prevent confusion or misunderstanding.

Another area where you must pay close attention to is the terms in question statements. Certain words such as least, most, and so forth make a significant difference towards the correct answer. Therefore, don’t be quick to select an answer and rephrase the question to your understanding of the question is confusing or unclear.

5. Refine Your Skill in Educated Guessing

It is not surprising that candidates repeatedly get caught by questions they have never seen before. Therefore, it is exceptionally imperative that candidates hone the craftsmanship of “educated guessing” during their practice sessions. One good way to identify the correct answer would be through the process of elimination or relating it to a similar concept.

All in all, the CMA exam doesn’t just focus on the understanding of crucial accounting and financial management skills, and therefore passing the exam requires more than skimming through the main key phrases or statements.

While there are several methods for studying accounting, it’s important to identify the key crucial factors that can lead to a successful outcome efficiently. To begin with, you must ensure that you have the passion to learn and are willing to dedicate the hard work required.

Most exams offered by noteworthy accounting organizations are created to test your comprehension of key bookkeeping concepts and terms. The below suggestions will help you identify methods that have worked successfully for prior accounting students and help you prepare effectively:

The Textbook is your key to success:

When reading a history textbook, you have a moderate to strong chances of success if you’re able to understand 90 percent of the information or have a general idea of the topic content, but this won’t work for accounting. It’s important to understand a concept in its entirety as accounting concepts build upon one another. If you were unable to understand the concepts taught in chapter 1, you’re going to have a difficult time learning the concepts in chapter 2 and most likely be lost by chapter 3.

One effective way to ensure clear understanding is by explaining the new concept to yourself or someone else which is far more effective than reading the content repeatedly. Although just understanding isn’t enough, you also must learn how to apply them which can be done through working out problems. Most chapter problems are designed specifically to help you discover how to apply the principles or concepts being taught in that section.

Review helps you identify your drawbacks:

Any subject is easier to understand and remember if you thoroughly learned it previously but if you’re unable to remember everything you’ve learned, you’ll have to start from scratch a couple of days prior to the exam. Although this might be a feasible idea for theoretical subjects such as history or management, it won’t work for analytical courses such as accounting courses. Therefore, it’s important to constantly assess one’s learning to identify loopholes and areas for confusion.

You can begin your review process by skimming through your chapters learned on a weekly basis and reworking problems commonly asked and especially struggled with. By taking some time to review your notes frequently, you will be able to refresh your memory and ensure that you have understood everything you studied during the week.

Remember, information that is forgotten must be relearned and the time required to relearn information is often the same as learning it for the first time. Therefore, it’s far more efficient to review as you go than to attempt to relearn forgotten information at the end of the term or semester.

Tackle the exam strategically:

To begin with, go through the exam paper and answer all the questions you know or the ones you find easy. will ensure that you get credit for all the questions you know and relieve a little pressure as you tackle more time-consuming or challenging questions.

You must ensure that you are confident enough to work accounting problems in a timely fashion and aren’t constantly checking the clock and stressing yourself out. Although the ideal situation would be to finish the accounting exam having answered all the questions correctly, it’s far better to complete 85 percent of the exam correctly than to complete 100 percent with a majority being incorrect.

Every candidate prior to or during the CFA journey questions whether they have the skills required to be a successful candidate. To help you answer this question, a group of CFA candidates was surveyed and their answers have been summarised below to help you evaluate yourself and the elements of a Chartered Financial Analyst.

1. Do you have the required level of commitment?

When the CFA Institute states that a candidate is required to undertake 300 hours of training during the CFA program, they certainly mean it. You must understand that being able to balance one’s priorities along with the CFA classes isn’t the easiest walk in the park. Therefore, an implication that students face due to the lack of an efficient study plan is having to catch up with the lost content. It may not seem like a tedious task at first considering you only have one topic but when it turns into having to prep for 2 – 3 topics, that’s when the guilt and regret sets in.

2. Do you have traits that successful CFA® charterholders possess?

Successful charterholders set high regard for ethics especially for elements such as material non-public information, investment analysis, and referral fees as non-compliance could lead to legal issues. To be an effective CFA charterholder, you need to also display a high amount of interest in the profession. This interest or rather the constant need to learn deeper regarding a situation or topic is what helps them grow from a decent budgetary expert to an incredible one.

Furthermore, The CFA exam isn’t an exam that you can cram for which means there aren’t any shortcuts besides using an exam prep provider. Instead of investing a lot of time and energy acing basic ideas, the best way to guarantee that you have quick foundational learning is by utilizing prep provider notes created especially for comprehensive learning. First things first, for Level I, it’s particularly imperative to not be satisfied with “sufficient learning.” Each level of the CFA Program expands on the information learned in the earlier one. So “sufficient” to pass Level I could place you in an awful position for Level II since you’re expanding on an earlier base.

3. Do you have the ability to give your 100% to each and every topic?

During the CFA journey, excuses can often be the easiest to state considering how much the CFA classes demand from you. As one of our candidates stated, there will be times when you have had an extremely exhausting day or are just so tempted to choose a night out overstudying. Those are the times when you need to remind yourself what the CFA charter truly means to you as even though you don’t have any desire to study, you just have to.

Along with, being thorough is also one of the core requirements of an efficient CFA charterholder both during and post the CFA journey. Charterholders are profoundly sought after for their ability to be detail-oriented and notice factors that others often miss out on which helps imply an effective element of understanding and commitment.

Therefore, before you chose to do your CFA Program, aimed at learning to incorporate these details into your day to day life to receive a headstart