I am being realistic and not pessimistic. i most likely flunked.I fell short on revision & practice, mostly the latter.There was very little on the exam i hadn’t studied but when it came to solving i realized i hadn’t put in as much practice as i should have.the result was i got stuck midway or in some questions even at the beginning.I did almost all CFAI EOC but struggled to recall many a concept in its entirety when it was needed the most. I work full time incl saturdays and have a 1 year old daughter.Time management can be a problem but in my case i had managed to find time, early mornings, late nights, weekends etc.the effort was there alright but not enough.lack of practice killed me.However there no excuses for not being up to the mark.Level I can be cleared if you put in time, effort and lots of practice.sadly i couldn’t. I believe at level I your choice of prep provider doesn’t matter. your hard work does.
dont worry try for June if you dont clear, i m gonna try till i dont get that charter behind my name, so what if it takes even 5-10 years, i dont care. i know more effort is needed then the one i put for the exam and i came to know about this yesterday itself so m gonna put up my best effort for June if i fail this time. Atleast we got to know the exam experience,feel,difficulty levels. Vikrant
Confused, I am sorry man, but if this exam was tough for you, then you might be in big trouble. For every I’ve talked to who has failed level I and retook, this was a cakewalk. You got your shot, but it’s only going to get much more difficult, CFAI isn’t just going to allow a 60% pass rate to continue…
dbfinley Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Confused, I am sorry man, but if this exam was > tough for you, then you might be in big trouble. > For every I’ve talked to who has failed level I > and retook, this was a cakewalk. You got your > shot, but it’s only going to get much more > difficult, CFAI isn’t just going to allow a 60% > pass rate to continue… Not at all! Although it was the first time I take a CFA exam and I was shocked by its easiness, I would still not underestimate the time needed to prepare for the exam. If someone hasn’t prepared well enough for it, there is no way in which he/she would have passed no matter how smart they are. There were many questions that you wouldn’t have been able to guess if you haven’t had clue about them before
I agree for L1, the provider doesn’t matter. The material is so basic. If you really gave it your all, and still find L1 very tough or challenging, the program isn’t for you. L2 +3 are several times harder
“Confused, I am sorry man, but if this exam was tough for you, then you might be in big trouble. For every I’ve talked to who has failed level I and retook, this was a cakewalk. You got your shot, but it’s only going to get much more difficult, CFAI isn’t just going to allow a 60% pass rate to continue…” ^ I could not disagree with this more. People with drive and determination will keep at it no matter how long it take. The :Tin Cup" approach. This is exactly why employers tend to hire ex athletes who are not quite as smart as non-athletes who are a bit smarter. You have to have the don’t give up attitude.
But there is a limit to the amount of time you put into something before it becomes not worth it.
I disagree PC79, eventually you just realize it isn’t in the cards. I passed Level I by the skin of my teeth, and then got hammered by Level II last June. If I fail Level II again, then I give up. It’s just not in the cards for some people, and the sooner you realize that, the happier you’ll be. I’d hate for you to waste 1,2,3 years on something that will never materialize. That said passing Level I basically got me my first job, so there actually is merit, even if you never go on to 2 and 3
I disagree with you dbfinley. It’s either this or an MBA, in terms of career advancements. MBA is for people who want to become officers or directors in a company. CFA goes more for people who want to go into asset management. While there’s people who just want to fast track through their career, some want to do asset management. Some can’t study well or just aren’t test takers - either way, they want to get this charter and do what they love.
Linfone Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > Some can’t study well or just aren’t test takers - > either way, they want to get this charter and do > what they love. Then why the hell would you ever do the CFA? Level II was a huge memory dump, that my pint size non HYP brain couldn’t manage. Some people just aren’t mentally capable of passing the CFA. Sure you can keep giving the CFAI money, but it really isn’t for everyone. If you struggled with Level I, especially an apparently incredibly easy one like this past one, IMHO I wouldn’t continue.
dbfinley: When you say that it was easy, what is this based on? Did you take the Level I exam this year? When you say “Level II was a huge memory dump…”, does that mean you’ve passed Level II? I’m confused. So are you saying that because something is easy to some people, who’re on this forum(?), or at a test center, who could be just as clueless as the general population, they have no chance in the future? I also noticed this post: http://www.analystforum.com/phorums/read.php?1,1183597 I mean, it’s ok if you have what you want, but if you want more, you’ve got to earn it.
I am in full agreement with DBFinely Disclosure: I passed L2 foolzzz
NYCGorilla, the real question is should anyone ever give up? If it’s what you want to do, shouldn’t you continue? If you already have a cushy job like dbfinley, that’s fine. If you want more and you think the CFA charter will help, then you should continue. It’s like the 90 year old college grad; it may be too late to be useful, but it’s still a win.
*Some* things are not worth it. For instance, if I decide today that I want to be an NBA player, is it worth quitting my job and training full time? Of course not. Similarly, for some people, the CFA is just not worth the time commitment. They could be doing other things that will give them joy and satisfaction. (Of course, this argument falls apart if you say your time has no value outside of the CFA program. But if this is the case, you probably have bigger issues…)
Linfone Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > NYCGorilla, the real question is should anyone > ever give up? Yes. Would you spend 20 years studying for the CFA? What about 10 years? There is always a point at which you should give up.
Go ahead, man! Don’t let them discourage you! As soon as its your desire, go for it! No one can stop you! You never know!
This was my first attempt at level I. The material wasn’t that hard.I didn’t practise as much as i should have.I shall attempt again in June 2011.i should pass.I had decided before registering for CFA that i would give 2 attempts max for level 1 and quit if i didn’t get through.Its simply not worth doing CFA “at any cost” i am from India and CFA is expensive. I have a family to look after and i am already 35.
Level 1 is doable. i probably fell just short. lets see when the results are out.i don’t plan to spend several years doing CFA and then giving up out of frustration. its wastage of precious time away from my family and money which could have been invested in interest bearing assets :D.
Just wondering, does CFAI ever release the answers to the exams? so people who failed can learn from their mistakes?
No - if they did that there would be copies of the questions.