What is a financial engineer? Financial engineers design new investment vehicles, use derivatives, model risk, value companies--any situation where advanced financial techniques are needed. For information on this emerging field, read the ContingencyAnalysis.com description here. This introduction to the Financial Engineering News site is also interesting.
			Financial analysts--they track companies and make buy or sell recommendations for a brokerage house, investment firm, bank or mutual fund. They work in the securities & commodities industry; read about it here. BrassRing Campus has one analyst's thoughts here. The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) is a credentialed professional in this field. Check out the Association for Investment Management and Research (AIMR) CFA program at this index. Stockbroker--a licensed professional in the buying and selling of stocks. See the Occupational Outlook Handbook description here. Option trader--a licensed professional in the buying and selling of options: contracts involving the purchase/sale of stocks in the future.  Options are a type of derivative--a financial product based on or "derived from" another financial product. Check out the investorwords.com online glossary here to explore the concept of derivative. Fund manager--an individual responsible for the strategy of a mutual fund. Read the Occupational Outlook Handbook description here. The New York Society of Security Analysts (NYSSA) has information here. Consultants--people with a background in financial engineering have consulting opportunities. Company executives--financial engineering training can be important for CFOs, as well as other top management in financial institutions. Check out Stewart Nagler's story here at BusinessFinanceMag.com; he is MetLife's Vice Chairman.