It’s every student’s dream to get a good job in their field of study right out of college. Who wants to flip burgers for a year and waste that education? Depending on what industry you’re in, finding a job right out of school has varying levels of difficulty.
Being a financial advisor is not the hardest job to get right out of college, but it certainly isn’t the easiest. For the most part you’ll be making your own way and won’t have a defined path, like one would with medicine or teaching. Preparation and experience while being an undergrad will increase the chances of your landing a job right out of school.
If you live to manage assets, and are good at understanding a person’s goals and how that matches with their income, you should look into becoming a financial advisor. Here are a few tips on how to smoothly transition from undergraduate studies to a career managing money.
Get The Right Education
You’ll want to make sure you’re on the right path before even considering a career in financial planning. An undergraduate degree in finance, accounting, business, statistics, or economics will be required as you’ll need the basics to understand a person’s personal finances.
Additionally, the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) suggests that you pick up a certificate before getting into financial planning. Here are the standard certificates you should research and consider acquiring in order to jump-start your career.
Certified Financial Planner (CFP)
Personal Financial Specialist (PFS)
Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC)
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
The CFP is an industry standard and is required at some financial planning firms. You should look at what the standard is in your state, or where you plan on practicing and then take a class and accompanying test to earn it.
Being Realistic
Chances are you won’t be managing the personal finances of Drake right out of college and you need to be realistic. The average age of a financial planner is fifty years old, so this means that you’ll be up against some stiff competition. Going off by yourself as a free agent will most likely be impossible unless you have a wealth of prior experience. Finding an entry-level job at a financial advisory firm will probably be your best chance at getting your foot in the door.
Don’t fret, though. As with every industry, being a millennial also gives you advantages. Millennials understand tech trends better and may be able to connect with other millennial clients in a deeper way than their older colleagues and competitors. Keep this competitive advantage in mind when marketing yourself to potential firms and clients.
Network, Network, Network
Hopefully your school has a co-op program or interning opportunities. Having an internship or job while you’re an undergraduate not only gives you the crucial experience that firms are looking for, but it also provides you with a wealth of networking opportunities. Make sure that if you do get an opportunity to work in a firm, that you learn everything you can and find someone who can serve as your mentor. Having their support in post-graduate life will come in handy especially if you were an exceptional intern.
Collaborating and talking to other young professionals that want to get into financial advising is always smart too. Check out websites like FPA NexGen or NAPFA Genesis that will give you a place to network online with other millennials.
Marketing yourself via social media is also a very important tool that you should develop early in your career. Posting economic trends or giving tips via social media will increase your digital fingerprint and bring in more potential clients. Because experience sometimes trumps intelligence, you need to make sure that you brand yourself in a unique way to stand out from other advisors.
As much as financial advising has to do with number crunching and economic trend following, there is also a really personal aspect to it. It’s not only about balancing someone’s expenditures with assets, but understanding where a person or family wants to be in the ten years. You will be counseling on investments and will be influencing someone’s life. For this reason, you need to not only be cautious and intelligent about your decisions, but willing to listen to your client and work in their best interests. While there is a great deal of work and preparation needed for the field of financial advising, it can also be a rewarding career both financially and spiritually.
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