How to help his son on CFA preparation

Question

Hi.

My son just decided to jump for the CFA Level I 2014 challenge.
He is actually in exchange program in USA, while his family is in France.
We support financially, but beside encouragement, I dunno what else we can do.
I look for some advices about how to help him

I thought about some books, but I dunno which one to get.
Can you help with you opinion on following questions :
- Is the documentation sent with the subscription enough ? Or is it better to complete it with additional books/packages ?
- There is collection of books for each year 20xx. Is the one of last year enough, or does it make sense to get some of few different years.
- Paper / ebook : I know it depends of the reader. But is it really viable to study CFA on a tablet only.
- What else can I do ?

I found a lot on e-bay and amazon; what's you opinion on following books/package :
- New PACK KAPLAN SCHWESER 20XX CFA Level 1, 2 & 3 + Pratice exams
- Examwise Volume 1 for 20XX Cfa Level I Certification the Candidates Question
- CFA Level I Exam Companion: The 7City/Wiley Study Guide to Getting the Most Out of the CFA
- Examinsight for Cfa 20XX Level I Certification: The Candidates Guide to CFA
- Mccaulay's Cfa Level I Practice Exams Philip Martin McCaulay Createspace Busines
- A-Plus Study Notes Cfa 2013 Level I Certification: A Complete Course of Study for CFA
- CFA Institute Program Curriculum 2013 Level II Volume 1,2,3,4,5,6 Wiley test pre

thanks a lot

Sophie Macon · Answer

Dear @sspslv - it's lovely to hear from you and see how much you care/worry about your son's CFA prep!

I think encouragement and understanding of his tough study schedule is a great first step (and frankly enough on your side!), but a lot of it he has to do and accomplish on his own! So you're doing just fine on this respect.

It may be good to ask him to join the forum here too, as it serves as a great sounding board and we guide candidates with tips and concept explanation all the way through.

To answer your questions, in my opinion and experience:
- CFA books are sufficient, but are generally quite thick and detailed if terms of notes. Supplementary materials from third party providers (in our Reviews & Offers section) are very helpful, especially for practice questions, which I highly recommend. An extra plus is to get the notes itself (and ignore the curriculum material), which is shorter and more concise, which saves a lot of time (certainly in my experience as my full time job was hectic at that time)
- It's preferable that you get the latest study books for exams
- I think having physical books are important, I personally can't do much with ebooks. Plus it's a huge distraction when you have the internet, facebook and games on it!
- You've done more than enough. Success for the CFA exams determined mostly on the candidate's determination and hardwork. Understanding his schedule already helps a lot, and you've done too much already :)

I'd suggest not to get books from eBay or Amazon, as they tend to be outdated. However he doesn't need all of the books you've listed, all he has to do is choose one provider in the Reviews & Offers section - they are all pretty good - with Schweser, Elan, 7City and BPP being the top ones, and just put in the hours and hard work to get it done. No special tricks here I'm afraid.

Hope this helps!
Sophie

christine · Answer

Hi @sspslv! Self discipline is incredibly important to pass the CFA exams (especially in the later levels). If your son signed up on his own initiative and is reasonably driven, he shouldn't have a problem.

I second @sophie's suggestion that he should sign up as a forum member here if he has any specific issues :)