I am 24 and dont know what to do in my life. I have a finance undergrad

freke1234

13 5

Posted May 02, 2020 14:14

from a top school but unfortunately graduated with very low grades and took a lot of advance math classes and advance derivatives/ accounting/ statistics classes which i barely scraped through. Since my uni was amongst the top 5 in the world, most of my classmates got excellent jobs in a wide array of fields and some are Phds in economics at MIT/ Harvard. The ones who did badly like me and didnt get top jobs, went in for a CFA or scored a 720 plus on the GMAT and went to other top schools.
However, I was depressed and got admitted to a hospital for 6 months. The wasted year made me realise that most of my classmates had already become associates in top banks etc. My mental illness forced me to return to my country as well, leaving behind all my friends who have now moved on. Since I was not a citizen of the country i studied in my outcome was way worse than others with the same grades as me.

I recovered in october 2019 and joined a startup with a salary of only about 500 dollars a month. I handled the operations and finance of the firm and was well prepared for the valuations and projections/ accounting statements which were needed for the role. I am still at the firm and my boss is a well connected Oxford grad who has worked in private equity etc and i get to learn a lot from him but unfortunately there is no space for any growth.

This brings me to my present situation. i have turned 24 and have nothing to show for it. I graduated at the top of my high school but just couldnt handle the advanced finance and math classes. I really dont know what interests me and i have offers in finance and business analytics at mid tier schools but i really dont know if i can handle all the math heavy courses.

I decided to prove to myself that i too can clear the CFA like my friends etc but i just keep working from 8 am to 2 am, trying to solve some conceptual issues. I have been stuck on deferred tax liabilities for the past 3 days and dk how to handle anything.

All this has made me very depressed and idk what my goal should be and if i will be able to find any job in the future. I just dont feel like living anymore as i am an utter failure who got in a good uni by fluke. All the business analyst roles in my country require the CFA or an engineering degree. I know that banking etc has people with a much higher iq than me who will not give a chance to an utter loser like me. I hope i can get some advice

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Duncan

14.013 15.475

Posted May 02, 2020 14:40

I don't think this is the right place to get advice. If you have depression or suicidal thoughts, you need to speak to a health professional. Most people in the world are not CFA, MBAs, bankers or business analysts and they are happier than those who are. Don't pay attention to other people's ideas of what you should be doing.
More than anything else, put your health first. Speak to a professional and take their advice. Stop listening to people who are not actually helping you. Only when you have more balance, then think about the things you CAN do and the aptitudes you HAVE. Stop focussing on what you cannot do and focus on what you can do with the skills and resources you do have.

I don't think this is the right place to get advice. If you have depression or suicidal thoughts, you need to speak to a health professional. Most people in the world are not CFA, MBAs, bankers or business analysts and they are happier than those who are. Don't pay attention to other people's ideas of what you should be doing. <div><br></div><div>More than anything else, put your health first. Speak to a professional and take their advice. Stop listening to people who are not actually helping you. Only when you have more balance, then think about the things you CAN do and the aptitudes you HAVE. Stop focussing on what you cannot do and focus on what you can do with the skills and resources you do have. </div>

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freke1234

13 5

Posted May 02, 2020 16:38

I don't think this is the right place to get advice. If you have depression or suicidal thoughts, you need to speak to a health professional. Most people in the world are not CFA, MBAs, bankers or business analysts and they are happier than those who are. Don't pay attention to other people's ideas of what you should be doing.
More than anything else, put your health first. Speak to a professional and take their advice. Stop listening to people who are not actually helping you. Only when you have more balance, then think about the things you CAN do and the aptitudes you HAVE. Stop focussing on what you cannot do and focus on what you can do with the skills and resources you do have.

So how do I ascertain what aptitudes I have? I had scored a 660 on my GMAT so maybe I can go in for a mid tier MBA?

[Edited by freke1234 on May 02, 2020]

[quote]I don't think this is the right place to get advice. If you have depression or suicidal thoughts, you need to speak to a health professional. Most people in the world are not CFA, MBAs, bankers or business analysts and they are happier than those who are. Don't pay attention to other people's ideas of what you should be doing. <div><br></div><div>More than anything else, put your health first. Speak to a professional and take their advice. Stop listening to people who are not actually helping you. Only when you have more balance, then think about the things you CAN do and the aptitudes you HAVE. Stop focussing on what you cannot do and focus on what you can do with the skills and resources you do have. </div> [/quote]<div>So how do I ascertain what aptitudes I have? I had scored a 660 on my GMAT so maybe I can go in for a mid tier MBA? </div>

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Inactive User

728 405

Posted May 02, 2020 19:56

Why do you want to do MBA?
Most people are neither at top nor at bottom, they are always somewhere in between. Compare yourself with the ones on top - you'll feel frustrated. Compare with the ones below you and you'll feel accomplished.
Not everyone is cut out for Finance or Consulting. Aptitude is not measured by GMAT. I read that only 1/3rd of CEOs of Fortune 500 have MBAs.
My sister's friend's husband did his MBA from Chicago Booth and worked in Investment Banking in NYC. I would have happily traded my left kidney for it. But the guy works 8am till 2/3am sure he pulls in $175k/year but he literally couldn't see her daughter grow up. I have a 5 month old and I love that i can work from home and play with her, change her diapers and take a nap with her in the middle of the day. So I'll happily keep my left kidney now.
You are just 24! Go see the world, make friends, play a sport or an instrument, work in different fields - see which one do you like. Target Rotational Leadership programs post your MBA - if that's what you end up doing.
I am 35. I graduated from MBA 5 years ago. I don't remember a single thing that was taught. I remember the friends I made, the fun we had at pubs. I remember the time I spent in Disneyworld, friends I made in Lithuania more than how to calculate break even for a socks company.
You'll be fine.

Why do you want to do MBA?<div><br></div><div>Most people are neither at top nor at bottom, they are always somewhere in between. Compare yourself with the ones on top - you'll feel frustrated. Compare with the ones below you and you'll feel accomplished. </div><div><br></div><div>Not everyone is cut out for Finance or Consulting. Aptitude is not measured by GMAT. I read that only 1/3rd of CEOs of Fortune 500 have MBAs.</div><div><br></div><div>My sister's friend's husband did his MBA from Chicago Booth and worked in Investment Banking in NYC. I would have happily traded my left kidney for it. But the guy works 8am till 2/3am sure he pulls in $175k/year but he literally couldn't see her daughter grow up. I have a 5 month old and I love that i can work from home and play with her, change her diapers and take a nap with her in the middle of the day. So I'll happily keep my left kidney now.</div><div><br></div><div>You are just 24! Go see the world, make friends, play a sport or an instrument, work in different fields - see which one do you like. Target Rotational Leadership programs post your MBA - if that's what you end up doing. </div><div><br></div><div>I am 35. I graduated from MBA 5 years ago. I don't remember a single thing that was taught. I remember the friends I made, the fun we had at pubs. I remember the time I spent in Disneyworld, friends I made in Lithuania more than how to calculate break even for a socks company.</div><div><br></div><div>You'll be fine.</div>

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George Pat...

597 233

Posted May 02, 2020 19:57

Getting your health in order is not a wasted year. It is the most important way to spend the year. Even two or three years if needed.

There are many nice options to explore. With an undergrad degree in finance you can work in a finance company, but not necessarily in a finance job if you don't like the quant. (or not work in finance company at all)

If you have problems with math and accounting, you can consider jobs like Human Resources (in a finance firm) where you won't really need quant skills, but your undergrad degree will still be of some use if it is a finance firm. Very often people with depression have good empathy skills; they actually care (which is why they get depressed) so a job in HR may be a good fit, even if the salaries are not great.

But if I were you, I wouldn't worry about the timetable. You have plenty of time to get the things in order. Remember a good MBA needs 3 years work experience.

When the time is right, you can aim for a great MBA from a top school like an M7 to steer to a different job sector, or just advance your career. Many many many people switch careers at their 30s or 40s. So don't worry much about not knowing what to do at 24. It is very normal and very much like half the people out there.

At 24, you can probably get an MSc in a field that interests you. What you need is a decent job where you will eventually (in 2-3 years) get a promotion to show career progression for your MBA application. An MSc is good for this, in any field that interests you right now.

It is best to get some kind of aptitude test with a professional to get a better idea at what you are good at, since this is really not an ideal place for this. So any advise from me (and most people here) you should take with a grain of sand.

[Edited by George Patsoulis on May 02, 2020]

Getting your health in order is not a wasted year. It is the most important way to spend the year. Even two or three years if needed. <div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div>There are many nice options to explore. With an undergrad degree in finance you can work in a finance company, but not necessarily in a finance job if you don't like the quant. (or not work in finance company at all)</div><div><br></div></div><div><br></div><div>If you have problems with math and accounting, you can consider jobs like Human Resources (in a finance firm) where you won't really need quant skills, but your undergrad degree will still be of some use if it is a finance firm. Very often people with depression have good empathy skills; they actually care (which is why they get depressed) so a job in HR may be a good fit, even if the salaries are not great.<br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>But if I were you, I wouldn't worry about the timetable. You have plenty of time to get the things in order. Remember a good MBA needs 3 years work experience. <br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>When the time is right, you can aim for a great MBA from a top school like an M7 to steer to a different job sector, or just advance your career. Many many many people switch careers at their 30s or 40s. So don't worry much about not knowing what to do at 24. It is very normal and very much like half the people out there. </div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>At 24, you can probably get an MSc in a field that interests you. What you need is a decent job where you will eventually (in 2-3 years) get a promotion to show career progression for your MBA application. An MSc is good for this, in any field that interests you right now. </div><div><br></div><div><div><br></div><div>It is best to get some kind of aptitude test with a professional to get a better idea at what you are good at, since this is really not an ideal place for this. So any advise from me (and most people here) you should take with a grain of sand.  <br></div><div><br></div></div>

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Larry

556 212

Posted May 04, 2020 16:41

Most people in the world are not CFA, MBAs, bankers or business analysts and they are happier than those who are. Don't pay attention to other people's ideas of what you should be doing.

It's really quite useful to put your situation in context: just because you feel like everybody in the world is moving much faster or farther than you, it's really not true. Not everybody leads the life that they show you on Instagram or whatever. I'll tell you that at 24, I lacked half of the experience you already had and didn't have the ambition to ask these kinds of questions. So you are on the right track!

[quote]Most people in the world are not CFA, MBAs, bankers or business analysts and they are happier than those who are. Don't pay attention to other people's ideas of what you should be doing. [/quote]It's really quite useful to put your situation in context: just because you feel like everybody in the world is moving much faster or farther than you, it's really not true. Not everybody leads the life that they show you on Instagram or whatever. I'll tell you that at 24, I lacked half of the experience you already had and didn't have the ambition to ask these kinds of questions. So you are on the right track!

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