Careers in Finance
Just as individuals need to manage their financial resources, corporates, big or small, manufacturing or trading, not for profit or commercial, local or global—all corporates—need to manage their financial resources continuously and efficiently. This is of particular significance in these days of severe competition.
The UAE in general and Dubai in particular witnessed a recession during the years 2008-2010. Despite job cuts in the banking sector during the recession, the future looks positive for the professional services, with finance, insurance and accountancy leading the recovery. Needless to say, if a corporation is making good profits, it needs to expand and manage its surplus funds effectively. On the other hand, if a corporation is not doing so well, it also needs to control its finances. All corporations face acquisition, investment and financing decisions.
Procurement of goods and services, sales, marketing and all other functions deal with finance. Projects are accepted and rejected on the basis of not just the profitability but other factors like NPV (Net Present Value). A career in finance prepares students to evaluate and analyse projects.
The role of finance cannot be overemphasised, as it plays a significant role in the overall development of economies, which impacts everyone regardless of whether or not they have studied finance.
Dubai is hosting Expo 2020, and it is time the students prepare themselves for a great career ahead. It takes a minimum of about 5 years for getting good finance qualifications, which include:
- BBA and MBA in Finance
- ACCA
- CFA
- CIMA
These qualifications are of great value in any country and at any point of time, whether it is recession or any economic situation across the globe.
There are vacancies for accounting and finance professionals both in small and large corporations, which include the following.
- Book-keeper
- Accountant – Accounts Receivable
- Internal auditor
- Accounts executive
- Financial accountant
- Management accountant
- Finance manager
- Equity analysts
- Financial controller
- Credit analysts
- Wealth managers
It is a wrong feeling among some of the students that a finance career is difficult to pursue. It is a challenging career like any other. What students need is a mind-set to take up a lucrative career ahead.
The job outlook is different for different jobs in the UAE. The job outlook for an accounting career is expected to grow @ 16% by 2020 and it is expected to grow @23% for finance jobs during the same period.
Some of the most popular courses in finance are as following:-
- Bachelors (BBA) in Finance
- Masters (MBA) in Finance
- ACCA.