Financial Analysts
Conduct quantitative analyses of information involving investment programs or financial data of public or private institutions, including valuation of businesses.
Salary distribution (US)
Real salary data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The p10–p90 spread tells you more than the median alone.
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Economics and Accounting
- Mathematics
- English Language
- Customer and Personal Service
- Administration and Management
- Computers and Electronics
- Law and Government
- Sales and Marketing
A day in the life
You arrive at your desk early to scan pre-market news, earnings reports, and economic indicators before the opening bell, updating your financial models and valuation spreadsheets with the latest data. Your morning is a flurry of reading analyst reports, building discounted-cash-flow models in Excel, and preparing investment memos or pitch books for portfolio managers or corporate clients. Afternoons bring meetings with company management teams during earnings season, calls with traders to discuss positioning, and presentations to investment committees where your recommendations are scrutinized. The rush of getting a call right and seeing your thesis play out in the market is exhilarating, but the pressure of tight deadlines, volatile markets, and the constant need to be right keeps the stakes high.
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