With just days until your Level 1 CFA Exam, all of us at the Stalla CFA Review team want you to know we are behind you all the way and wish you the best of success! If you've followed our guidance about how to succeed with the Stalla System, you've prepared, focused, and committed in a way to assure mastery of the Level 1 program curriculum. Now it's time to demonstrate peak performance on your exam.

We'd like you to share a few words of counsel with you prior to going into the examination:

1. Take the last practice exam early in the week under time pressure, and spend the rest of the week reviewing the areas of weakness, your final notes, and your exam tips.

2. Break off your final exam review the day (not the night) before your exam in order to let your mind regain focus.

3. Get lots of rest and exercise for several days prior to the exam, and make sure to eat a substantial (preferably high-protein) breakfast that morning.

4. The evening before your exam, check your alarm clock, layout your clothes and items for your exam (see below), and replace the batteries in your calculator.

5. Arrive early to the exam center to reduce the stress of arriving close to or after start time. Unanticipated hindrances can happen when you least expect then. If you are unfamiliar with the exam site, do a test run before exam day.

6. Dress comfortably and with layers in case it is too warm or too cold to allow you to fully concentrate.

7. At the examination itself, quickly answer as many questions in your areas of strength as possible to improve both your confidence and overall scores. Then, review and answer the remaining questions, making sure to leave none blank-even if you have to guess at some of them.

8. Don't lose track of time. You should be averaging 90 seconds per question, though some may take longer to answer than others. However, try not to spend more than 5 minutes on any question--period.

9. At the lunch break, resist the urge to discuss the exam with other candidates. It may discourage you in the afternoon and negatively impact your confidence and results.

10. When you've finished the exam, relax and spend much deserved time with your friends and family.

Don't forget: What to Bring to the Exam Center

• A printed copy of your admissions ticket, which is available online via the CFA Institute website.
• An approved CFA Institute Calculator, including a Texas Instruments BAII Plus (or BAII Plus Professional) or a Hewlett Packard 12C (or 12C Platinum). You are free to bring an extra calculator and the calculator cover with keystroke instructions if you desire.
• A current and valid photo ID issued by a government agency. This cannot be a photocopy or a combination of IDs, and it cannot have expired. It is essential that the name on your ID exactly match that on your admission ticket.
• Optional items that you may choose to bring include your wallet or purse, erasers, calculator batteries, a screwdriver for replacement, pencil sharpeners, eyeglasses, earplugs, medicine, tissues, and food or drink for consumption outside of the exam. ANYTHING besides these items-including cell phones, scratch paper-may be confiscated.

Importantly, your examination score may be invalidated if you fail to adhere to any of the guidelines set forth by the CFA Institute, which are included in your October 2004 CFA Institute Candidate Bulletin.

We'd like to wish you good luck, but we believe luck has nothing to do with it! The hard work and commitment you put into your review will pull you through on Saturday.

We're behind you and we believe in your success.

The Stalla Team

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