I've taught high school math for the past few years and am starting to get burnt out. I would also like to make more money. I'd also like to do something more analytical and less pushing and prying kids to do the bare minimum amount of work needed to graduate. I think getting a CFA would be a fun and motivating challenge, but also obviously a big commitment.

1. Google says the median base salary for a CFA in the US is $180,000 and avg total compensation is $300,000. If those numbers are accurate, how much of that is attributable to the CFA itself and how much is other factors (like the fact that many CFA holders probably have marketable degrees and other credentials)?

Put another way: I have a worthless liberal arts degree and learned math independently, and gained my math teaching license through an alternate testing pathway. If I got a CFA, would my earning potential still be comparable to most other CFAs?

2. For the work experience requirement for CFA, I assume teaching high school Calculus and Statistics won't cut it. How difficult would it be for me to find some kind of entry level finance work that qualifies for the CFA work experience?

To be clear, you can't get a CFA charter without already having finance work experience, 4000+ hours in 36 months or less, type of full time experience. That's already a highly paid subset.

You can only take and pass the exams on your own without being in industry first. While having passed lvl 1, 2, or 3 can be a plus factor if you're already in the recruiting pipeline (as a masters of finance/accounting/ba candidate for example), CFA tests on their own won't open doors for you.

Getting CFA charter is more for people looking to get a "plus" factor trying to move into subareas of finance such as asset management and equity research where CFA is pretty well respected. People already in those areas also get CFA to get some salary increases and be better positioned to lateral.

I got my CFA, didn't open any doors for me. Still had to start at the bottom,it should open doors as I move up the ladder though.