Full Careers - i am joining the air force. I would like to have a future career in finance/stocks will it help?

i am joining the air force. I would like to have a future career in finance/stocks will it help?

I am joining the air force mainly to do something fun and different before i'm in an office job for the rest of my life, i'll be 27 when i'm done and at that point i'd like to work for a company as an investment banker/stock broker. my father says that my time in the military will make me a much stronger applicant although i will not have a degree in finance. He said stocks is a learned job. Will my military service be a plus when applying for a job? what military jobs should i look at?

Public Comments

I think you need to look at what jobs there are in the financial industry. A "stock broker" is passe. First off all they really were, were sales people. Today most "stock sales" is automatic over the internet. An "investment banker" is more of a finance/research position. A Wharton MBA will do more for you than being grease monkey in the Air Force. If you want to work in finance, my advice would be to get a PhD in Math, focus on stochastic calculus. Then you could become a quant guy.
Try getting into the dispersing area they deal with pay. A variety of areas within that. I hope that your math skills are good because you will deal with a lot more than pocket change. Going from paying personnel to the big bucks spent in the supply area. One wrong move and it will not only cost the person in their paycheck but the whole civilian world that pays taxes to include the active duty person end up with the bill.
If that's a career you want to get into, and you want to join the Air Force, I suggest getting a Finance job. I'm not sure what the AFSC is, but just ask a recruiter. Then, while you're in, you CAN get a degree in any field that will help you. And after you get out, you can use your GI Bill to further that degree. That way, you're going to have a great deal of experience, and a degree or two under your deal, all for free.
God Bless You.
military service in general will give you a small boost, due to learning teamwork and self-discipline...and if you become an NCO you'll learn leadership and management. For an AFSC that will help you in finance, try getting a job in 'accounting and finance'...supply might even get you trained in inventory management...both are good for numbers, bookkeeping, accounts, etc.
Oh yes, I think that there is quite likely a future for you in business after the military. I mean, consider the tight, massive, and colluded relationship between the government and the arms industry (as well as others). Eisenhower referred to it as the “military-industrial-complex” and was apparently concerned about it. But yes, as Guild Scott Herron <msp> sung in 1982. “As wall street goes, so goes the nation; and here’s looking at the closing numbers. Racism’s up, Human Rights are down. Peace is shaky; war items are hot; and common sense is at a low time with heavy trading. We used to look everywhere and now we are looking nowhere because we are all now staring in a B movie; and we’d all rather had John Wayne.” So yes, there is money to be made: even in the Iraq fiasco, as Cheney’s Halliburton and Saudi Oil Inc attests. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlPjsGFcXlg Ron Paul 4 Freedom - Music Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlPjsGFcXlg or vote Libertarian
This question is interesting because I actually know someone that worked with my husband who left a 6 figure income doing investment banking and joined the Army Infantry after Sept. 11. Him and three of his friends vowed to do this and he was the only one who followed through on his promise. He enlisted (for some reason he chose enlistment over being an Officer even though he already had a degree), did his four years and got out. He had no problem finding a job that wanted him back after leaving. A lot of employers were impressed by his decision and dedication. It's never a bad thing to follow through with your dreams. If this is what you want to do then do it. It worked out fine for him.
Not for the banking and financial services jobs you'e thinking about. I'm an AF vet, currently attending business school at the University of Texas. Many investment banks, etc. recruit here. They are looking for mastery over financial concepts such as the time value of money, financial statement analysis and security analysis. The main attributes you'll develop in the military will be leadership ability, some management skills and decision making skills (assuming you are going to be an officer). That's not to say that it will HURT you, but other jobs will help you more (such as one of those office jobs you don't want). On the other hand, many companies DO value that type of experience (GE, Amazon.com, others). The other main benefit is the military network: one of my classmates is a fomer Marine and got an investment banking job through military connections. The real question you need to ask yourself is this: if you don't want the job NOW, what makes you think you'll want it LATER? Here's a window into the investment banking business model: work the new recruits like DOGS (12 hour days are for slackers), weed as many of them out as possible and the few who are left standing after 5 years of that get to battle it out over who makes partner. Not a game for anyone wanting a sane lifestyle.