At 2 p.m.f May 17, 2025, the special lecture on "Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and Career Directions in the Financial Industry" of the Financial and Capital Markets Forum, hosted by the School of Business of Shenzhen Technology University, was successfully held in C5-101. Moderated by Associate Professor Hu Guolian, the lecture invited Mr.Xu Yue, a senior financial valuation expert and CFA charterholder, as the keynote speaker, focusing on in-depth discussions on core issues of financial career development and CFA designation.
Mr.Xu Yue cited data from the National Bureau of Statistics to point out that the average wage growth rate of urban private-sector employees in the financial industry reached 235% from 2013 to 2023, highlighting the industry's strong attractiveness.He also revealed the structural mismatch in talent supply and demand: research and marketing positions are in high demand (e.g., the TSI index for private bankers reaches 4.43), while junior-level positions are oversupplied.He categorized financial roles into four types, namely research, marketing, support, and risk control—and he further analyzed their skill requirements. The research type requires financial statement analysis, fixed-income analyses, economics, quantitative methods,and valuation modeling capabilities; the marketing type emphasizes client development and product interpretation; and the risk control type needs to master the skills of risk quantification,analysis and compliance.
Regarding the CFA curriculum framework,Mr.Xu Yue highlighted the three new specialized pathways added to the Level III exam since 2025: Portfolio Management, Private Wealth, and Private Markets, emphasizing that its knowledge framework proactively covers industry trends. Through recruitment cases of leading institutions such as Tencent and the China Financial Futures Exchange,he noted that CFA charterholders have significant advantages in competitive hiring. Additionally,he shared resources provided by the CFA Institute, such as study groups, industry salons, and Greater Bay Area internships, advising students to leverage these platforms to build professional networks. Combining his own exam experience,he proposed exam preparation strategies and career development pathways, stressing the need to supplement skills with data analysis tools like Python and SQL to meet the requirements of financial technology positions.
During the Q&A session, students actively asked questions about "priority of CFA exam preparation" and "employment prospects in the financial industry," and Mr.Xu Yue answered them one by one by integrating industry trends and policy developments. After the lecture, participants shared their feedback that they systematically understood the CFA certification framework and the professional bodies of knowledge of the financial industry through case studies and data analysis, which provided practical guidance for their academic planning and career choices.
As an important activity in the financial discipline construction of Shenzhen Technology University, this lecture not only built a communication platform between academia and industry but also helped students deepen their understanding of the financial industry and enhance their professional competitiveness. The university will continue to launch a series of forums in the future to promote industry-academia-research integration and empower students' growth.
Source of Materials：Chen Hongdan
Reviewer：Woo Kok Lian
