How To Become A Senior Portfolio Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a senior portfolio manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

A senior portfolio manager is someone who works for finance companies such as banks, mutual fund companies, brokerage firms, or other similar companies. These companies provide services for people who are interested in investing money. Senior portfolio managers oversee the investments of the company's clients. They study the market and identify the best type of investment that will grow the client's funds while also considering the client's risk appetite. They can invest the client's money in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, or any other financial instrument available in the market. They allocate the client's funds in different buckets based on the client's expectations, preferences, and investment longevity. They also consider market and economic trends in their decisions.

To become a senior portfolio manager, one should have at least a bachelor's degree in business administration, economics, finance, statistics, or any related course. They may pursue graduate degrees in the said fields in order to gain more knowledge. Aside from that, they should also have licenses and certifications that will enable them to manage client funds and invest these funds in various financial instruments.

ScoreSenior Portfolio ManagerUS Average

Salary

8.0

Avg. Salary $115,805

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.5

Growth rate 17%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.34%

Asian 10.14%

Black or African American 7.56%

Hispanic or Latino 14.48%

Unknown 4.10%

White 63.37%

Gender

female 28.09%

male 71.91%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress level

9.5

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.3

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.9

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a senior portfolio manager

Explore senior portfolio manager education requirements

Most common senior portfolio manager degrees

Bachelor's

68.2 %

Master's

25.5 %

Associate

3.9 %

Start to develop specific senior portfolio manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Portfolio Management	10.02%
Risk Management	6.14%
Project Management	5.37%
Real Estate	4.83%
Business Development	4.48%

Complete relevant senior portfolio manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior portfolio managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a senior portfolio manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior portfolio manager resumes.

Research senior portfolio manager duties and responsibilities

Manage internal pricing system for exchange trade securities and over-the-counter instruments by verifying all instruments have valid daily closing exchange price.
Improve portfolio s performance by enhancing research quality, analyzing equities, and selecting stocks that outperform relevant benchmarks.
Provide oversight and execute multiple complex transactions under very difficult market conditions.
Review and monitor construction and provide oversight from inception of a portfolio to operations and disposition.

Get senior portfolio manager experience

Generally, it takes 6-8 years to become a senior portfolio manager. The most common roles before becoming a senior portfolio manager include portfolio manager, vice president team lead and senior project manager.

Prepare your senior portfolio manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your senior portfolio manager resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a senior portfolio manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

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