What is the Best Course to Learn Investing?

If you’re interested in learning investing for work-related reasons, you will need to select coursework that teaches the essentials, such as basic financial terms, how stocks and bonds work, and the most current best practices that financial professionals use. While this all may sound obvious, it’s essential to choose courses that give you the opportunity to receive hands-on training and work with real-world financial information so you can put these skills to immediate use when you graduate, either at your current job or pursue a new career path. The good news is there are many excellent courses available in investing, including short skills classes, bootcamps, and longer certificate programs. This article will briefly explore each of these learning types and the skills they’ll provide you with so you can choose the class that’s best for you. 

Short Skills Classes

If you’re new to investing or have little background in finance, a short skills class can be a great starting point in your educational journey. Because finance is such a broad category and involves so many related skills, some learners may want to focus on one skill or tool at a time before moving on to the next. Skills classes usually take just a few days of time to complete (some require only an afternoon). They’re typically available at the beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels, which allows students to select coursework at the appropriate difficulty level rather than having to relearn old concepts or struggle with those that are far too advanced. These live classes are taught in-person or online and generally provide students with real-world examples so they’ll be prepared to put their skills to use professionally upon graduation. 

Skills classes in investing take two forms. Some focus on one tool, like Microsoft Excel, whereas others provide a beginner-level overview of investing. Noble Desktop has Excel classes at three levels for those who want to explore how to use spreadsheets in a professional setting: Excel Level I, Excel Level II, and Excel Level III. Noble also offers a Stock Market Investing class, which requires just one afternoon of time and teaches students the essential skills they’ll need to get started investing in the stock market. 

Because these classes are relatively short, busy professionals can complete their training over a weekend without having to take off work and pick and choose whatever skills are most necessary to their professional development. Another benefit of skills classes is cost. Since these classes are shorter than other training options like bootcamps or certificates, they are typically a much more affordable option. Some schools provide training for under $300. 

Immersive Bootcamps 

If you’re interested in a longer and more robust sort of training than that which is provided in a short skills class, bootcamps are a good option to consider. These classes are offered by many top providers arond the globe and offer hands-on, live investing training in the small class setting. Unlike certificate programs, which often provide instruction on several investment strategies and skills, investing bootcamps are usually more focused on their scope and teach one skill, such as financial accounting or how Python is used in finance. Bootcamp study is a good learning option for those looking to start with basic investing concepts and progress into more advanced-level training over several days or weeks (depending on whether they’re attending part-time or full-time). Because they’re shorter than certificates or university study, investing bootcamps can be a much more affordable learning option. Some schools offer programs for approximately $500. 

In addition to the supportive and engaging learning environment they provide, finance and investing bootcamps are an excellent way to learn the basics before taking your skills further. Noble Desktop offers training options in several investment-related topics. Learners can opt for the Python for Finance Bootcamp. This class prepares students to analyze SEC financial statements, work with Python’s financial libraries, manipulate financial data, create risk models, and make stock price predictions using linear regression. Noble also has a Financial Accounting Bootcamp for those seeking introductory-level training in financial accounting concepts like accounting statements, as well as more advanced instruction in topics like securities and investments. Each of these programs takes just a few days to complete and includes a free course retake for a full year.

While bootcamps can provide a great opportunity for students to receive hands-on investing training, it’s important to keep in mind that these classes are fairly short and provide a limited type of training. For those who want to fully immerse in investing, more intensive coursework like a certificate or full-time college study may be a better option since it provides a more robust financial context for the investment strategies that are taught. 

Certificates & Certifications 

In addition to short skills classes and more comprehensive bootcamps, certificate programs and certifications are also available in finance and investing for those interested in putting their skills to use in the professional setting.

Investing Certificates

If you’re interested in learning about investing for professional development purposes or to embark on a new career path, certificates in investing or finance are a good learning option. These intensive programs provide dozens of hours (some even offer more than 100 hours) of hands-on training in the live format. Depending on the program’s focus, students receive comprehensive instruction in many core investing skills, including financial planning, corporate valuation, risk management, diversification and asset allocation, and compounding.

Learning investing through certificate study is an excellent way to acquire hands-on training. Those enrolled in these in-person or live online courses not only benefit from real-time instructor-led training but also have the opportunity to fully immerse in their studies for an extended period of time. Because they provide participants with instruction on a range of investment strategies and skills, these robust classes usually take several weeks or several months to complete, depending on whether they’re attended part-time or full-time. In addition to live instruction in the small group setting, many of these programs also provide participants with additional professional development incentives. Some certificates offer 1-on-1 mentoring sessions, career counseling, mock interview sessions, resume critiques, or access to networking events. This ensures that certificate program graduates can put their investing skills to use immediately upon graduation, either in their current job or to apply for an entirely new career path. Certificate study is generally the most expensive way to learn investing outside of a college setting. These programs can cost $3,000 or more to attend. 

Investing Certifications

Unlike certificate classes that require students to meet for regularly scheduled classes, certifications in finance do not require classwork. To become certified in finance, students pay a fee to sit for an exam, which is offered by a third party. Those who pass the test earn an industry-recognized certification that designates they’ve attained a level of mastery of a specific area of focus in finance.

The Financial Management Association offers over a dozen certifications in several areas of finance:

• The Certified Financial Planner (CFP) certification covers more than 100 topics, including bonds, taxes, estate planning, and retirement planning.
• The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) requires that students complete three exams and gain three years of professional experience in subjects like accounting, economics, security analysis, and ethical standards.
• The Certified Management Accountant (CMA) is available from the Institute of Management Accountants and requires that students have advanced accounting expertise in fields like decision support, financial planning, and analysis.
• The Certified Fund Specialist (CFS) requires that test takers have a robust knowledge of mutual funds and the mutual funds industry.
• The Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) tests individuals on their knowledge of financial planning in areas of income tax, investment and estate planning, and insurance.
• The Chartered Investment Counselor (CIC) test is offered by the Investment Counsel Association and is focused on portfolio management.
• The Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) exam covers topics like due diligence, risk measurement, investment policy, and performance measurement. 
• The Certified International Investment Analyst (CIIA) exam is a global finance designation offered by the Association of Certified International Investment Analysts. It requires students to be well-versed in financial analytics, portfolio management, and investment advising.
• The Certified Corporate Financial Planning and Analysis Professional (FPAC) tests students on concepts like integrated planning and forecasting, financial analysis, and performance management.

Some students choose to prepare on their own to prepare for a certification, whereas others may prefer to enroll in a certificate program to learn the essential skills that will appear on the exam.

Learn Investing with Noble Desktop

If you’re ready to get started learning investing or want to take your existing financial knowledge to the next level, Noble Desktop can help. Noble offers in-person instruction in New York City and live online courses for learners at all levels. All Noble courses provide hands-on training and include a free retake option for up to one year. 

Noble’s Stock Market Investing class is available for those interested in exploring stock market basics, such as investing, stock movements, and valuation. This short program teaches learners about the different factors that affect stock prices, how to work with financial statements, and how to perform DCF analysis. Graduates of this course leave with a well-rounded understanding of financial markets.

Learners seeking more detailed instruction can gain hands-on investing training in Noble’s Financial Analyst Training Program. This comprehensive program is designed to take students from spreadsheet basics to intermediate-level Excel skills. Those enrolled explore corporate finance and financial accounting concepts. They also learn core Excel skills, including functions, formulas, shortcuts, and PivotTables. More advanced spreadsheet training is also provided in topics like financial functions, DCF modeling techniques, and cash flow projection tools. This bootcamp is intended to prepare students to pursue a career at a top financial firm. Prior accounting and finance knowledge is helpful but not required to enroll. All students receive a short pre-learning guide a week before class starts, which they can use to brush up on basic concepts. 

Noble also offers a Financial Modeling Bootcamp in which students become familiar with essential finance and accounting concepts. This hands-on program teaches students about accounting, finance, and corporate valuation. Participants work with Excel to create a financial DCF model that’s based on a real company. Those interested in enrolling will find it helpful to have prior financial experience. As a prerequisite, participants should have intermediate-level Excel for business training, including knowledge of VLOOKUP, PivotTables, and IF statements.