Work experience self-assessment
Find out whether your work experience qualifies you for CFA membership, as well as information on alternative membership options.
Overview
When you apply for regular membership, we will ask that you describe your current and prior job responsibilities to demonstrate qualified work experience. We will review your application with the following requirements in mind:
Length of time
You must have at least 4,000 hours of experience, completed in a minimum of 36 months.
Relevant experience
Qualified hours must be directly related to the investment decision-making process or producing a work product that informs or adds value to that process.
Work arrangements
Experience earned through full-time, part-time, or remote work arrangements – before, during, or after your participation in the CFA® Program – can qualify.
Questions for self-assessment
The following guiding questions will help you evaluate whether your work experience qualifies. Answer the questions for each position you have held, even if they were held at the same company, and think about the majority of your duties as you answer.
If you can answer "yes" to any of the following questions, your work experience is likely to qualify for regular membership, and we encourage you to apply. Please note that these questions are intended only as a guide. If you have specific questions about your work experience, please email membership@cfainstitute.org.
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Do you construct or rebalance client portfolios, prepare financial models, or perform/evaluate independent analysis leading to an investment decision?
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Do you make investment decisions based on the application of financial, economic, or statistical data involving securities or similar investments held as part of an investment portfolio?
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Do you supervise employees who evaluate or apply financial, economic, and/or statistical data as part of the investment decision-making process?
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Do you determine capital structure and funding needs through equity, debt, and alternative investments, conduct long-range financial planning, evaluate financial fundamentals, analyze and value securities for public offerings or mergers and acquisitions, and/or make asset sales and capital investment decisions?
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Are you engaged in investment/financial advising or planning for corporations, institutions, or individuals (other than yourself or your family)?
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Do you conduct asset allocation analysis or apply investment knowledge to develop, analyze, and/or explain investment policy statements or strategies designed to achieve investor goals as part of the overall investment process?
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Do you oversee legal/regulatory compliance matters in the investment profession, perform due diligence, and/or ensure that investment firms adhere to applicable laws, regulations, and professional standards of practice?
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Do you research or develop tools, models, strategies, and/or communications that assist portfolio managers and traders with investment decision and risk management?
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Are you a full-time professor or instructor teaching finance related courses and/or CFA Program curriculum, developing educational content, and engaging in research to advance the understanding of investment practice and theory?
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Do you design and implement software solutions for people, processes, and technology that directly drive investment decisions (i.e., software and/or platforms that are used to build financial models, construct, manage, and analyze portfolios, analyze risk and return)?
Still gaining your work experience?
If you answered "no" to all the questions listed above, your work experience does not qualify you for regular membership. But you can still become an Affiliate member of CFA Institute. This option (which requires you to join a local society) gives you many of the same benefits as regular membership while you earn your qualifying work experience.
