Hello,



I want to advance my career in Finance with an (affordable) online, part-time degree or certificate (MSc, Master, MBA or CFA) and would like to hear your opinions (budget max. 30k USD, less is better).



My profile: mid 20s, BSc in Engineering, few years of work experience in banks/asset management, DACH region.



Career goal: To get into my first leadership position within 2-4 years. The degree would allow me to either further strengthen my position at my current employer, or to have a prestigious name on my CV to open doors for interviews with other companies. A manager position within Corporate Development, Strategy or Product Management in a bank would be the most obvious path with my current experiences, however, I am open to a quantitative specialist role (not manager) in other adjacent areas with high salaries as well (e.g. portfolio management).



I currently see the following four options:



Boston University Online MBA via edX (24k USD):

+ an MBA might be the most straightforward degree to get into a management position, the degree itself is very prestigious

+ is rigorous, but at the same time from what I can read online not too difficult and time-consuming (<10 hrs per week / ~84 ECTS equiv.)

- prestigious university name - however, probably less well known in Europe

- smaller alumni network in DACH region

- no finance/banking focus



HEC Paris MSc in Innovation & Entrepreneurship (23k EUR):

+ very prestigious name, business school with great rankings (#1 QS Management Masters / #1 QS Finance Masters / #5 QS MBA)

+ European business school (vs. US), larger alumni network

+ networking: higher possibility to meet other students in person (Paris is geographically much closer)

+ focuses on leadership, strategy, innovation, and "soft skills"

- more time-consuming (20 hrs per week, 120 ECTS)

- not an MBA

- no finance/banking focus



Harvard University Extension School ALM, Field: Finance (~25k USD via MITx MicroMasters):

+ Harvard brand is the most prestigious of the three universities

+ focus on finance

+ opportunity to network in person due to on-campus requirement (3 weeks total)

+ offers the most possibilities for individualization

- academically very rigorous = more time-consuming (?)

- ongoing stigma about mentioning the "Extension school" part on your CV (mixed experiences online, some people point out that nobody looks down on them in any way when you are transparent about the degree)

- the name of the degree is a bit misleading: Master of Liberal Arts in Extension School, Field: Finance

- admission criteria weaker than other degrees

- not an MBA

- difficult to assess the size of the alumni network (do we count regular Harvard alumni or not?)



CFA Level I-III (~5k EUR):

+ very prestigious certificate in the industry

+ being able to write "CFA" after your name (signalling)

+ focus on finance, demonstrates extensive knowledge in the field

+ Most affordable

- no management focus; more suited for specialists (portfolio managers)

- certificate, not a degree (does that have any impact?)

- no networking opportunities (other options allow at least for online group work etc.)

- might be more challenging as you are completely alone and don't have a guided experience

- no real admission criteria (however, passing all three levels to become a charter holder could count)





My opinion:

* I slightly prefer the HEC MSc over the Boston MBA due to the more prestigious HEC Paris brand in Europe.

* However, I fear that I might make a mistake by not pursuing an MBA right away, on the one hand.

* On the other hand, as I am still relatively young, I would have the option to pursue an Executive MBA from an even more prestigious university in 10-15 years, which could boost my career even more in the long run.

* The Harvard ALM is very tempting due to the Harvard brand - however, the whole stigma thing and fuss around the degree is something that could backfire + it does not directly support my career goal

* CFA might be worthwhile after the HEC MSc to be able to carry a "title" and strengthen my finance knowledge - but it is not my first choice as it is not completely in line with my career goal



Which one would you suggest? Do you see other options?



Thanks

[Edited by UrsP on Jan 10, 2024]

What qualifications do people at your company or other target companies have that are in the kinds of roles you want to do? Where did they graduate from? With a few exceptions, qualifications from the USA don't have too much credence in Europe and vice versa. Study close to where you want to work is usually the sound advice. This should be a key focus of your initial research into options.

Also given your relatively young age, don't get too focused on the initial cost. Given the kind of industry/role you work in, your increased earnings potential over several decades will dwarf a few thousand dollars saved now.