Financial Analyst Qualifications

• Financial analyst jobs require, at minimum, a bachelor's degree in finance, business, accounting, statistics or economics. Jobs in the securities industry generally require a graduate degree in one of those subjects. For some financial analyst jobs, it is helpful to have a degree in the area of specialization, such as engineering, communications, medicine, physics, mathematics or law.
  
  

Securities Analyst

• A securities analyst specializes in finding good investments for their employers or clients, studying companies in their industry of specialization and making evaluations of the future success potentials of those companies and their likely performance as investments. They work for investment advisers, portfolio managers, pension funds, bank trust departments, mutual funds, hedge funds, private capital funds, venture capital firms, investment banking and securities brokerage firms, among others in the securities industry.
  
  

Securities Industry

• A financial analyst could work in the securities industry in other capacities than securities analyst. Entry-level jobs in the securities industry often are financial analyst jobs, and as the analyst develops expertise, she can move into positions with greater responsibility, such as investment banker, broker, trader or any number of positions in the treasurer's office, controller's office, compliance, credit analysis and risk management.
  
  

Compensation

• Salaries for financial analysts range from a low of approximately $40,000 per year to a high of approximately $140,000 per year. Mid-level securities analyst salaries range in the area of $100,000, with senior analysts and portfolio managers making $140,000 or more. Many securities analysts also receive performance bonuses, which can be substantial.