Some MBA students are expected to take the extra steps in the coming months towards launching careers as financial analysts. According to Iowa's Press-Citizen newspaper, the University of Iowa's MBA program is teaming with the CFA institute to help prepare students for passing the CFA exams. "In this job market, students need every advantage they can get to start their careers, and this gives a powerful tool to Tippie MBA finance graduates," Catherine Zaharis of the Tippie School of Management’s Finance Career Academy told the newspaper. The newspaper also noted that students are generally required to study for about 250 hours for each of three different exams, and that the worldwide pass rate for the tests is under 50 percent. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has cited a strong demand for financial analysts, although recent economic developments are likely to have cut demand in some larger companies. Overall, the BLS envisions a 34 percent jump in demand for these jobs, in part because of the growing complexity of markets and a trend for more firms to offer investment advice services.  |