The power of passion
One of my students yesterday told me he was going to listen to a speech called “How to live a passionate life”. Another told me she had a passion for human development. A common message from the many careers and … Continued
Motivation, career advice and how to be happy
It’s the time of year when students expect uplifting speeches of uncommon wisdom which will guide them in their future lives. Well, they do in the US. In the UK we’re a bit more modest. When you graduate from the … Continued
Master of Finance degrees and the job market
The Cambridge MFin careers report came out a few weeks ago. It showed that for the class of 2011/12, 11% were without jobs as of January 2013, four months after the end of the degree programme. Actually the figure should … Continued
Go east – but only if you speak Mandarin
Two forces fuel the growth of financial services. First, the growth of household income leads to demand for basic banking then saving and pension products. This in turn drives the growth of commercial banks and institutional savings businesses like pension … Continued
Hedge funds as employers
MFin and MBA students often ask about working for hedge funds. I’ve never worked for a hedge fund but used to have several as clients and have done some consulting for a couple, which gave me some inside perspectives. Most … Continued
What you know or who you know…?
A student told me the other day that getting a job depended more on who you know than what you know. While I would agree that it helps to have contacts or friends in the business, I don’t agree with … Continued
The quant spectrum
Is the Cambridge Master of Finance a course for quants? In short, no, but it’s worth commenting a bit more on this. Finance has become a lot more quantitative over the years so that the entry level requirements for some … Continued
Financial analysts versus consultants
The approach of the annual group consulting project (GCP) on the MFin prompts me to think what the differences are between financial analysts who work in investment banks and those who work in consulting firms. There are many shared skills … Continued
What sort of people work in finance?
Cambridge University’s Judge Business School has a strong collaborative ethos. So for example students are not “incentivised” by being told their grades relative to each other. We tell them the actual mark, the class mean and standard deviation but no … Continued