PRM - do you need a Certificate?
Submitted by iadmin on Sat, 31/07/2010 - 12:55pm
1.Certificate of PRM.
By way of introduction, you should start with critical revision of the information about the PRM Certificate presented at:
http://prmia.org/index.php?page=exam&option=trainingCertification
Please note, that from March 2010, the PRM Exam 3 and Exam 4 will change. Risk management is developing dynamically, so these changes are logical. The financial crisis has exposed some poorly managed risks, and also added a few interesting cases.
Having obtained PRM Certificate, you should not expect you will immediately be attacked with job offers by world leading companies. However, PRM Certificate will undoubtedly give you a number of competitive advantages, great business acumen and insight.
The first thing - chasing PRM Certificate will help to obtain practical knowledge on international standards in all areas of Risk Management. Pursuing PRM degree you are getting a solid foundation upon which you can specialize on the risks that you manage. On average, the exam takes 1-2 years.
Second - your PRM Certificate is a signal to the labor market. For someone familiar with risk management, you will, other things being equal, a positive stand out from many other candidates. The employer will know that you:
A.Possess the solid level of risk management
B.You are able to freely extract professional information in English. Does not matter where you work - in Russia very few specialists fluent in English to a sufficient extent.
C.You are indeed very self-motivated and disciplined person.
Third — PRM Certificate is a valuable investment. At the time of writing this article, there are not many PRM Certificate holders in CIS countries: 14 in Russia, 1 in Ukraine, and 2 in Kazakhstan. The Association is developing, and have received the support from a number of top-quality universities in the U.S. and Europe.
Fourth - convenience. In contrast to the CFA and FRM - PRM exams can be taken on virtually any date, subject to places available in test centers, you have in your region (FRM and PRM exams delivery takes place through Pearson Vue).
2.PRM Certificate alternatives - myths and facts.
Myth 1. In Russia, you can get a quality education in the field of risk management.
None of Russia's institute or university provides an educational program and qualified teaching staff in this field, for quality training of Risk Management. The major deterring factor - the lack of qualified trainers. To briefly assess the trainers - just ask how many of them are certified PRM / FRM / CFA and have relevant degree and experience in the field. Academic honors received in Russia, which may be just bought, unfortunately, discredited itselves.
However, there are two excellent schools that are more the exception:
School of Albert N. Shiryaev, Moscow, Moscow State University (given serious mathematical training in the field of probability theory and mathematical statistics).
School of Novoselov Arcadiy Arsenijevic, Krasnoyarsk (the founder is the author of several articles in Western journals on finance, the emphasis is on mathematical aspects of risk management)
http://risktheory.ru
Myth 2. FRM better / worse than the PRM.
From an academic point of view, FRM and PRM are quite similar programs. In our view, in Russia FRM and PRM certificates are equally known to business professionals, only style of presentation differs.
Myth 3. FRM / PRM and CFA certifications are alike.
CFA is often incorrectly compared to FRM / PRM. Simply speaking, CFA puts emphasis to non-quantitative finance primarily, and not on risk management. This way, if you are pursuing a career in the field of finance - CFA is the right choice. If you career goals more in the Risk Management field - PRM / FRM is your choice, obviously. CFA Program curriculum will give you just overview but not deep insight of Risk Management. The opposite is also true - neither PRM nor FRM will give you an edge in Finance as the CFA. In the CFA Level 2 there is a section devoted to Risk Management, but major idea is to provide an overview of interrelated fields and highlight main areas of Risk Management.
3.Associate PRM (APRM) Certificate
In 2009, the Association released a new PRMIA certificate APRM. It is focusing on the fundamentals of Risk Management, without deep consideration of the mathematics beneath. The logic of Risk Management is well described, the most important factors are explained, which are not visible in the textbooks behind the advanced formulas, much attention is devoted to corporate standards in Risk Management and practical measures and a large number of case studies considered.
APRM Certificate will be useful for senior managers, for professionals to begin their career in the field of Risk Management, as well as for those not very proficient in English. APRM preparation may be useful to fresh up the terminology, and pass the exam, hopefully.
In top of that, APRM Certificate provides an exemption from the PRM Exam 4.
4.PRM - English level to prepare and pass an Exam
Nobody expects you may freely discuss the Risk Management topics with native speakers, easily understand rapid slang of financial tv-speakers, and start writing sophisticated essays immediately on the language. Your English will be improving with you professional knowledge. The only thing you need at the Exam - is the ability to read and understand the professional literature in English.
The best way to learn - just do it. As one wise man said: "The best way to learn to ride a bike - it is to ride a bike."
If you don't have any problems understanding this pitch - your English is OK to begin with your PRM Certificate.
Prepared for riskofficer.ru and focustraining.ru by
Vladimir Manaev, PRM.
Business coach, Head of Market Risk.
to be continued ...
