CFA Exam?

[sprmario]

Anyone taken this? I'm going to take it in December. I'm an extremely good test taker and I don't remember getting much lower than 99 percentile on any standardized type test in my life. I have heard that the CFA tests are hard. A guy who beat my GMAT score by 20 pts (I had a 750) failed his CFA I test and then gave up. Just interested in some additional feedback on the exam if anyone has taken it and how long I should expect to study for it to pass.

CFA = Chartered Financial Analyst btw.

[DpR]

I am a CFA. The exams are hard I suppose. Bottom line is you are not going to pass if you do not know that material. That said, if you are a good test taker you do not need to study as much is recomended (like 500hrs per test).

I had my MBA before taking the exam so I knew a lot of the material. I studied zero hrs for the first exam, ~40 for the second (mostly jsut doing practice exams), and ~100 for the third (I had to learn a bunch of that material). I passed all three on the first try.

You are not going to just walk in and pass these exams. Less than 50% pass each of the first two exmas. You are wasting your time if you think you can just walk in to them and pass.

The CFA exam is not like other certifications (like CPA or CFP) which are pretty simple.

Good Luck.

BTW - these are nothing like SAT/GMAT where you can do well without prep.

[buffett]

[ QUOTE ]
I am a CFA. I had my MBA before taking the exam so I knew a lot of the material. I studied zero hrs for the first exam, ~40 for the second (mostly jsut doing practice exams), and ~100 for the third (I had to learn a bunch of that material). I passed all three on the first try. BTW - these are nothing like SAT/GMAT where you can do well without prep.

[/ QUOTE ]

[bodhibabe]

they do reward people who take exams well, though. been some time since I did mine but my experience was there is a severe time crunch vs the material you need to get through. it rewards those who allocate time efficiently, go for part marks, blah blah

there are condensed "Coles notes" available for purchase (not sanctioned)which cover the larnin material in exam question format and weed out the fluff for you. Never used them but heard very good things about them if you are pressed for study time. Sorry, I forget the name of these... Schliemanns notes? something with an S?

- go over the old practice exams timed and under exam conditions, cannot stress enough
- bring a spare calculator; don't be a dork like me with the batteries dying on the HP and it takes them 30 minutes to find a solar calculator you can barely use with the lighting lol
- although the CFA has an agreeable "rocket scientist" aura to it, the exams are not hard to pass with preparation (or without - I passed 3 for 3 with very little prep but I hear they have become tougher since my day) and do not require a 150 IQ at all.
- always go for part marks eg. if you forget a formula, say I forget the formula but assume the answer is X. Proceed to solve the rest of the problem as follows blah. common sense I know but as a former MBA marker it is amazing how often you see blank space when you are dying to award some part marks

Best of luck to you.

[sprmario]

Thanks for the advice. I'll try to allocate a reasonable amount of study time. I know there is a big ethics portion which you pretty much just need to learn from scratch.

I'll look into the study materials recommended.

[Rotating Rabbit]

These exams are a pointless waste of time, and im dismayed to be sitting level 1 in june. The focus is very much on regurgitating as opposed to understanding. They are also incredibly easy but time consuming (the thing you dont have when u work in finance). In fact its just like learning the phonebook.

[DpR]

[ QUOTE ]
These exams are a pointless waste of time, and im dismayed to be sitting level 1 in june. The focus is very much on regurgitating as opposed to understanding. They are also incredibly easy but time consuming (the thing you dont have when u work in finance). In fact its just like learning the phonebook.

[/ QUOTE ]

Please repot back with your change of heart after you have completed the second and third exam. The first one is pretty stupid......

[bodhibabe]

hey sprmario, I was googling trying to figure out the name of the notes for you. The ones I remember are still offered and are called Stalla's notes. They are pricey but apparently worth it - the associates in my firm used to gang together and buy a set and photocopy it.

I found a CFA prep forum for you in the midst of that... it might just be a bit of a shill for prep courses but whatev. chekit
http://www.analystforum.com/

Rotating Rabbit, despite being flippant, has a point. These exams reward patient memorization; nothing more, really. I agree with previous posters that the first one is a breeze, the second fairly so, as long as you have decent accounting knowledge, while the third will require some work.

[sprmario]

I'm going to take the I in Dec, II next June or July or whatever month it is and then III the year after.

Basically I have my MBA, and I'd like to do a little something extra. CPA isn't really an option as I really don't feel like taking the tons of classes necessary for that. CFA isn't insanely valuable for me as I'm in corporate finance, but it can't hurt and I'm sure it will add some value in the future.

Thanks for all the extra info guys. I need to register already so that I don't let it slip again. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[SleeperHE]

sprmario-

Sitting lvl 2 in june...

For lvl 1 I would say a 1 to 3 solid months of doing practice problems should be enough to prepare you for the test... Results may vary given your experience and education level.

www.schweser.com is another exam prep provider.

I use them just because they have an online study guide and online practice tests. Not sure if they are any better than the others, but their materials suited my needs for level 1.

Good Luck...