In the latest of his "Junior Job Hunter" series, our columnist tells us how working in the wrong job means his equity-markets knowledge is rapidly disappearing.

If you haven’t read his other articles, click here, here and here.

Go back to early 2009 and ask me a question about snowboarding and I could almost certainly give you a knowledgeable answer. Only six months after my first real snow experience I had immersed myself in the sport. I could tell you the top-10 American resorts, parks, riders, videos…you name it, I could give you an answer, and more importantly, sound like I knew what I was talking about!

Fast forward to today, and after six months living in the driest state on the driest continent, my knowledge is waning. I can’t easily go snowboarding, people around me aren’t interested in it, and I no longer watch tricks with the same enthusiasm. If you asked me a question now, well, I might just…stutter.

My point? Having graduated four years ago and not having a job that is definitively on my desired career path, nor being around people who have knowledge in equity/investment analysis, I’ve forgotten most of what I learned at university. It’s still there somewhere but it needs to be refreshed. My desire to learn and absorb needs to be rekindled.

This is a problem faced by many young finance professionals with limited experience. Because of the financial crisis and the subsequent retrenchments - particularly at the bottom end of the banking sector - many now people work in positions that don’t match their career goals.

University learning is important but a “hands-on” approach always seems to sink in better. Speak to anyone doing an MBA and they always place the most value on studying alongside like-minded individuals.

Back to snowboarding: you watch a friend/instructor; they take you through the process of finding your edges and your balance; you practice to get the feel, watching and learning; and voila! you improve!

I recently applied for an investment banking analyst position and was rejected almost immediately. This knock-back made me realise that it’s time to go back to the drawing board. So how do I convince an employer that I know what I’m talking about in order to get that all important interview?

So what should I do?

If “knowledge is power” then surely a refresher of basic portfolio theory/fundamental analysis techniques from university would help? But I’m not going back to the classroom, so what can I do privately? What skills do I need to demonstrate to show that I have, or can attain, specific asset knowledge?

Should I write a mock equity analysis for an ASX-200 company, looking at PE ratios and forecasted earnings, and email it to HR? Should I check Bloomberg or visit ASX.com and go through their online learning tools. What do people value doing outside of working hours to improve their interview prospects?

I’ve spent the last six months immersed in looking for a course to study to make myself more marketable for the future but I feel like a victim of “paralysis by analysis.” Despite all the time I’ve spent checking countless courses, websites, info sessions etc, I still feel that I’m missing the point.

What about marketing myself? What do employers want to hear from less experienced candidates that would put them ahead of the pack? Is there a specific software package people recommend to learn? SQL? Will it help to take an online course or even just read the help section in Excel? Should I download a list of broking firms and cold call them to try to get my foot in the door? What information do people recommend immersing themselves in?

For now, until I return to my snowboard and hang around with similar people in oversized fluro snowpants, I’ll put my dwindling knowledge of the snow on the backburner and see if I can’t rekindle some of that knowledge I learned during five years at uni.

If you are an Australian-based candidate (no consultants or recruiters please) and have an interesting story to share with eFinancialCareers readers, please email: apac.editor@efinancialcareers.com