Does experience as a financial analyst at a non-financial company translate into Finance industry?

Question

Hey guys, I wanted to see if I could get some insight from anyone who has experience/knowledge of this. I've been working at a big name non-profit healthcare company as an Assoc. Financial Analyst in ITS Business Ops for the last 5-6 months. Previously the only relevant experience that I had were low-level short-term (2-3 months each) finance/accounting temp positions. Additionally, I just passed the Dec '16 CFA Level I exam. The company that I work for pays decent money and has great benefits, but I don't feel like I'm getting great experience as far as finance goes. I would like to stay long enough to at least build my resume up, but at the same time I'm worried that it will only cost me time, and I won't have enough relevant experience from this job to impress potential employers at financial firms (IBs, PEs B4, etc) in the future.What would you do if you were me? My quasi-plan is to stay at this place for at least a year, but is it possible that this could hurt me more than it would help? I'm 30 now so I'm not really at the age where I can waste time without advancing my career. Thanks!

rsparks · Answer

If you can relate your experience to corporate finance and financial reporting you're fine. CFAI has a broad based curriculum that covers areas outside of investment analysis; albeit not a lot.

tacheman · Answer

If you have the motivation, time and energy (no small feat especially if you're studying for the CFA exams), I would always advise constantly looking around the job market. Looking around at the very least would inform you whether staying put would hurt you more than help, and help inform your what your target jobs/companies are looking for. Personally (and sorry to be a downer) I don't think staying where you are for a long period is going to do you any favors if your plan is to move to IBs or PEs.