Dear members,
I’ve been looking at this forum for a few days, and I discovered a few useful tips that I started applying, but even then I find myself struggling to keep up with the schedule for level 1. I work 9AM to 8PM, so I come in early around 6:45 to put in a good 2 hours before the day starts, I use flashcards and Schweser notes and I have access to the full Qbank and exam practices. The CFA website recommends 250 hours of study before taking the test and at least 2 weeks of exam practice just before the exam, so I added a margin, and came up with a 300-hours study plan and an entire month of review before June 2, including a week off work just before the exam.
I put all that in an excel file in which I write down my daily hours and my progress, and the result is that I must work 1:30 hours every day to reach the 300hrs mark by the beginning of May (I started in October). The excel file uses a today function to tell me where I stand, and I’m on track for the hours.
However, I added another sheet in which I divided the whole material in 18 blocks of equal size (see breakdown below) and so, I should be completing these blocks in: 300/18 hours, roughly 16 ½ hours, and I’m not even close to completing these chapters on time.
At first, I may have used time-consuming study techniques, such as watching the Schweser videos AND reading the schweser notes + answering EOC, but it led me to complete quantitative methods readings 5 to 8 in over 34 hours instead of the 16.6 hours on my schedule. Now that I know the videos are a waste of time, and I stick to the Schweser notes, flashcards and EOC, but even when being very conservative in writing down my hours, I’m still a little above the 16.6 hours mark. Do you guys think it’s normal? Or does it get easier/faster later? I’m following the CFA curriculum, and I am currently studying Economics reading 16.
Also, I was wondering whether it would be more efficient to keep all the subjects fresh (i.e. taking practice exams regularly on the subjects already studied) or to just study it, make sure I understand it, and freshen it up in the last month?
How did you guys do it? Those who passed level one, did you study more than the 250 hours? I’m concerned I may be studying the wrong way: if I try and master everything and keep it current, I think by the end of the program I’ll have spent way more time on keeping things fresh than on learning new stuff. Any advice?
Topic: Ethical and Professional Standards, Readings 1-4
Topic: Quantitative Methods, Readings 5-8
Topic: Quantitative Methods, Readings 9-12
Topic: Economics, Readings 13-20
Topics: Economics, Readings 21-28
Topics: Economics, Readings 29-32
Topics: Financial Statement Analysis, Readings 38-39
Topics: Financial Statement Analysis, Readings 33-37
Topics: Financial Statement Analysis, Readings 40-43
Topics: Financial Statement Analysis, Readings 44-46
Topics: Corporate Finance, Readings 47-51
Topics: Portfolio Management, Readings 52-54
Topics: Equity Investments, Readings 55-58
Topics: Equity Investments, Readings 59-64
Topics: Fixed Income Investments, Readings 65-69
Topics: Fixed Income Investments, Readings 70-72
Topics: Derivate Investments, Readings 73-78
Topics: Alternative Investments, Readings 79