@jaminiosilva
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Up5Working through every Blue-box example, doing all of the EoC questions – especially the vignette ones at least three times and solving the questions in the end of chapter review on CFAI website a couple of times (these are hard) is a lot of work and time commitment. I don’t think you need any more “practice questions” than that at L2. I didn’t use any Qbank at L2 even though it was pretty much all i did L1, my time was spent on EoC questions and drilling the numerous calculations.Up4
Got mine at 2 mins past! Passed L1 🙂 Good luck people
Up4@jasdev advice is spot on. The only place I would suggest reviewing L1 material would help would be FRA ratios as there is an expectation you know this already but only as an ancillary to where they’re discussed in the L2 syllabus. Just get studying L2 curriculum, it’s a lot of work and you need to understand those forumlae!
Up3I found his videos very useful for FRA. I was struggling to get through it because it is so dry and he has a great way of breaking down examples. Particularly on SS9 where there are lots of “you should do this under USGAAP but not under IFRS” it is worth listening to the video which only takes 1/2 hour then do the reading. To be honest you could probably do that with every reading and something i will likely do for level 2 (once passed level 1, Inshallah!)
Up2Good
answers here but the key points are you must have a strategy and yes, burn out
is real. Thing with L2 is it is deep, very deep. It’s quite hard to explain how
deep it is until you are quite a way in and start doing the second pass at EoC
questions and that can panic a lot of people when you do your first past paper
and get 40%!There are
a huge number of calculations to do and unlike L1, you can’t just learn the
formula and move on. You need to understand how that formula works in the
context of what they’re going to ask. If there are 5 steps to a problem, they
may ask about step 2 and 4 or 1 and 3 etc. so you’ve got to know every part of
how it works. That takes time.There
isn’t a fixed best time to start as everyone is different, but you need to a)
give yourself enough time to digest the concepts. b) give yourself enough time
to PRACTICE each section THOROUGHLY and c) do lots of vignette style questions
to feel comfortable about how they are going to ask these questions (this is underrated,
you need to do this).The best
advice I read after failing L2 the first time (passing the retake) was to 1)
give yourself 500 hours to read and practice everything in the syllabus (I didn’t
do that but still scraped through, I would have been much more comfortable had I
followed that advice) 2) go through the syllabus and highlight everywhere it
says calculate, then write each formula out in words and a worked example, then
do 5 example questions on that formula (doesn’t have to be complex just putting
different numbers into the worked example). 3) do every EoC questions multiple
times especially the vignette questions as you need practice time on Vignette
and EoC chapter questions are part of the curriculum!However long
it takes you personally to do those things, that is when you start. 300hours
have a good write up on the reality of hours require per week vs when you start
(link at bottom). Personally, I feel that starting really early and just drip-feeding
bits in can be useful but not really getting into the “lock yourself away
all night” phase until after January. 6 months is a long time and burning
out in the last month is a real problem. If you were going to start early, then
I’d suggest starting with the strategy stuff like reading how vignettes work
from the EoC questions even if you don’t know the answer – hint, the questions
are chronological down the page but sometimes a big passage will have 1 question
then a single sentence can have 3*. Also, working through the all the calculate
LoS’ without the pressure of a study schedule was a big help for me as they can
take quite a bit of time to do properly (especially derivatives) and
understanding the mechanics of the formula really helped when I then sat down
to do the reading and had some context for the concept.https://www.300hours.com/how-long-to-study-for-cfa/#.W6DEeflReM8
Edit – *This is how the vignette questions are laid out in EoC, End of section test and past papers; I couldn’t possibly comment on what they were actually like in the exam.
Up1So no sugarcoating: Most entry level analysts get in via a grad scheme. If you are under 25 then strongly consider this route. This will also give you an honest evaluation of whether you can “break in” to the industry because if you can’t get on a grad scheme, it is extremely unlikely you will get hired straight in. As has been posted here many times, the CFA is not an entry exam for the industry. That is, having the designation or passing the exams does not give you guaranteed access to a job as PM/Analyst. What it does do is show you have commitment to both yourself and the industry which certainly helps convince a hiring manager. Passing CFA level 1 won’t be a major help here as recruiters have a set template they are looking for in Grad scheme hires but it certainly won’t hurt.
The other two most common (and i use that term loosely) ways in are 1) from industry and 2) from Back office.
From industry is your best bet, it involves understanding the industry you came from inside out, from the latest products, to who the people are and what the trends are. A good example is Doctors going to work as Pharma analysts. This usually requires a fair number of years working your way up in said industry so you can prove you know it better than a current industry analyst. You’ll need to learn how to model too so those XL skills need to be razor sharp. CFA will be a big help here as it shows commitment to what will be a very difficult transition but not essential.
The other way is to work in a bank’s back or middle office and try to work your way up. Frankly, this is a pipe dream for most as pretty much everyone wants to do this. Again, you need to dedicate yourself to a particular industry as above only you won’t be working in it so is much harder to get up to the required level. Completing the CFA program is virtually mandatory for this route as that is what everyone else will be doing that you will be up against. The key to this route and any others i haven’t mentioned is networking. You have to have some face time with analyst department heads that you can plant seeds of why you would make a good analyst over a reasonably long period. If the back office is separate (i.e. the front office is in new york and the back office is in Texas) then there’s no point in working for that bank if your goal is to become an analyst.
Good luck
Up1Short
answer, No.I took L2
three months after my wife had our first child and it was a massive
error. Not only was I completely exhausted, my study time was poor due to
having to look after my new family and I missed out on time with my child when
he was very young. My wife tried to be supportive but after the exam she said
she felt abandoned. I couldn’t imagine what it would have been like if I had had the baby myself!Interestingly,
I spoke to my local CFA society who was trying to sell me on joining and when I
said I had just had a new baby, she said “so you will be deferring
then?” she was very surprised when I said no.Do
yourself and your family a favor, defer to next year.Up1The article @Rahul12 posted is worth reading but there is no hard and fast rule for which order to study in. In my opinion, for level 1, the key things are 1) start ethics early and do questions little and often. 2) split FRA up into sections and do NOT try to study it all in one go. 3) set aside some time to learn your calculator as if it was a module all of its own. 4) your ratio of Qbank/EoC questions to reading should be at least 2:1. 5) Read the glossary and be confident in all the terms they will use. 6) use a prep provider. Doesn’t have to be expensive premium package but having someone directing you to what is most testable, explaining concepts via video and having access to questions is a big deal.If you want me to expand on any of those points just ask.Up1Level 2 is all about application of concepts via formulae. You learn a formula, then practice every imaginable way of applying it – usually incorporating other formulae into a step by step method. This is where, in my opinion, so many people fall down as they don’t appreciate just how thoroughly the CFAI will test their understanding of how to apply the concept through a formula.
Best advice I was given on L2 and what I attribute my pass to, was to go through every single LOS that has calculate in and write down that formula in notation, words and as a worked example. Then go through and practice them. Over and over again. Make use of the EoC questions and blue-box examples, working through them to understand why the answer is what it is.
3rd parties do help a lot in understanding this application, you can easily get stuck on a concept and waste lots of time trying to figure it out (especially in FRA and Bonds). Classes are unnecessary, all providers do videos that are in enough detail to understand what to do.
Just make sure you do enough practice.
Up0As I only have a Masters in Finance i can’t say which one is better but the fact that after 7 years in the industry i’m now going for the CFA kind of answers the question. In my honest opinion and experience, a masters doesn’t help at all until you are senior enough to use it and usually by then you are doing it out of personal interest rather than something for your CV. A CFA helps loads because you will have all the skills for the job drilled into your brain. Put it this way, no-one wants to have a 30 minute discussion on the finer points of anything with a junior analyst, they just want the answer. A masters equips you for the former, a CFA the latter.
Up0I bought them as a supplement for L2 as was only around $100 or something. Notes were OK, but the question bank was much more valuable as it gave the ability to drill loads of practice which I felt was essential to passing. L1 isn’t that heavy on concepts really so the notes work fine and if you’re finding you’re not getting it then check the curriculum and they’ll have a blue box example. The only way you know if you’re getting it is to do loads of questions!I would hesitate to use them as a sole provider unless you back yourself to work through and understand the concepts on your own; easier to do at L1, would not suggest at L2 or L3.If you’re on a budget, IFT are doing all their video lectures for free and their L1 packages are mostly sub $300. I used their videos at L2 and they worked out good for me. Using Mark Meldrum for L3 and am liking it so far.L1 you need to smash loads of questions*, so whatever package you buy, make sure it has a Qbank. For $99 Analyst notes gives you 10 past papers (half papers), 5k questions, notes and a formula sheet.One thing i will say about some of the more premium services is that they focus in on the important/testable subjects and on taking the test specifically (i.e. how to answer questions/what to expect). There is a lot of ground to cover and it’s very easy to get bogged down trying to get every section perfect and run out of time or focus on low percentage stuff if you’re doing it on your own. Think about how much your time is worth, failing a level adds 6-12 months of extra work so is that really worth you skimping on $500?*(Every level you need to being doing loads of practice questions!)
