law school or financial advisor? Forum

[itachiuchiha]

Would you rather go to a law school ranked from 30-50 without a significant scholly (50%) or enter a Financial Advisor Associate Training Program at a firm like Morgan Stanley or Merril Lynch? The program is 3 years of training and you are sponsored to take the series 7 and 63. You move up through the company from there.

http://www.morganstanley.com/about/care ... e-fa.html#

[guano]

Do you like sales? Can you bring in clients?

Just about any idiot can be "hired" into a financial advisor training program, but if you can't bring in clients and make sales, you're gonna starve

[Tiago Splitter]

I'd be surprised if even 20% of those entering the program you listed make it the full three years. So, incredibly, the odds of success might be worse than going to law school. The difference is that financial firms will pay you to fail, while you have to pay law schools to fail. Either way, you should probably figure out if you would like to work as a used car salesman financial advisor or lawyer and make your decision based on that.

[itachiuchiha]

I kinda wanna join and have them sponsor my series 7 exam and take it just to say I have a license.

[Tiago Splitter]

I kinda wanna join and have them sponsor my series 7 exam and take it just to say I have a license.

There are easier ways to get the Series 7, but why is getting a license such a big deal? The Series 7 just qualifies you to either work in glorified used car sales positions like that of a new financial advisor, or work a 40K call-center job. If you leave the industry (for example, to go to law school) the license expires after two years. It's really not a big deal, especially on its own.

[Lumieres]

I seriously think some people believe that financial advisor jobs are similar to careers in vc/pe/hf/ib.

[guano]

I seriously think some people believe that financial advisor jobs are similar to careers in vc/pe/hf/ib.

Yeah, I'm happy to dissuade people of that notion, having worked in both

[Tiago Splitter]

I seriously think some people believe that financial advisor jobs are similar to careers in vc/pe/hf/ib.

To be fair managing money could be pretty cool, but the problem is that a new financial advisor doesn't really manage money.

[JJ123]

Don't become a financial advisor. It's extremely cutthroat, you only make money if you can bag big clients, and it will take years before you get very many clients. If you want to become a financial advisor, I would actually advise you to become a CPA or attorney first, then try to start selling financial services to your established clients. Much easier/safer/more lucrative way to get into the business.

[zozin]

I don't know about Morgan Stanley, but JPMorgan Chase financial advisors are pretty much just used car salesmen, whose entire salaries are commission based. They sit in the branch, cold-calling customers, trying to get them to come in to discuss their 401K or some other bullshit. If you're good, you can make six figures. It's hard to be good. You also work Mon-Sat, usually 10-11 hours a day. Again, this was Chase, so Morgan Stanley might be different, but I doubt it.

[UMich11]

If i were you i'd try to take a 1yr gig, get your series 7, 63 and whatever else, then go to Law School.

I'm in M&A right now and either attending this fall to a T20. or starting at a T10 next summer. If i start at the T10, i'll have my 73, 63, 7 and one more by the time i enter. Not sure of the life of each but being as i'd like to enter m&a after school i think it gives me some extra leverage when going into OCI and being a bit more attractive to some firms and other employers.

but maybe i'm over hyping the whole thing...

[guano]

If i were you i'd try to take a 1yr gig, get your series 7, 63 and whatever else, then go to Law School.

I'm in M&A right now and either attending this fall to a T20. or starting at a T10 next summer. If i start at the T10, i'll have my 73, 63, 7 and one more by the time i enter. Not sure of the life of each but being as i'd like to enter m&a after school i think it gives me some extra leverage when going into OCI and being a bit more attractive to some firms and other employers.

but maybe i'm over hyping the whole thing...

How do your NASD licenses not lapse? If you do not work for a member firm for over two years, the licenses expire.

[UMich11]

If i were you i'd try to take a 1yr gig, get your series 7, 63 and whatever else, then go to Law School.

I'm in M&A right now and either attending this fall to a T20. or starting at a T10 next summer. If i start at the T10, i'll have my 73, 63, 7 and one more by the time i enter. Not sure of the life of each but being as i'd like to enter m&a after school i think it gives me some extra leverage when going into OCI and being a bit more attractive to some firms and other employers.

but maybe i'm over hyping the whole thing...

How do your NASD licenses not lapse? If you do not work for a member firm for over two years, the licenses expire.

For my 2L/3L years i will be a part-time/on-call consultant for my firm to ensure they stay current. My boss wants me to do that during 1L but i already told him the chances of that+doing well will be very small.

[jingosaur]

If you have any kind of personal network that can get you at least some clients and if there is some sort of guaranteed income while you're in the program, I think it would be best to be an FA. I spend most of my time at work at a top Wealth Management firm and it's a pretty solid industry right now. Law school doesn't become a better option until you can either get T14 or fail as a FA. The work experience would also help you at OCI.

Another thing is consider is that FA and then Law School is a reasonable path, but once you get a law degree, you probably won't be able to get a job as an FA unless you go to one of those real unpaid/scam/crap programs.

[JJ123]

Estate attorney?

[jrsbaseball5]

To piggy back off of OP's question assuming that you are able to maintain some securities licenses would that help you at all during OCI or in M&A?

[Tiago Splitter]

To piggy back off of OP's question assuming that you are able to maintain some securities licenses would that help you at all during OCI or in M&A?

I did come across one firm that does investment banking and therefore could sponsor (and have use for) someone with securities licenses. But that was a small corporate boutique, and I imagine that's the very rare exception. Otherwise it will be about the work experience gained, not any licenses one might have. If you ever take the Series 7 you'll realize the test itself has little relevance to things you actually do in the financial world.

[jingosaur]

Pretty much anybody could pass those certification tests. Legal employers like FAs because being a successful FA shows that you can:

1. Work with clients, specifically clients who have lots of money.
2. Work long hours.
3. Survive the corporate grind.

It makes hiring you less of a risk.