2018 - sitting on the half yard line to the MPS, looks pretty dang close but still didn’t pass. 50-70 in every category!
I got married in mid June (thinking the test would be the first weekend in June) so I blame the date change this time around. Coupled with prior 2 years of studying, I truly thought I passed this time around. Anyone take level II more than 3x then pass? Not sure what to do at this point. Just turned 30, so still relatively young I guess?
I said I was gonna check at the end of work day, but couldn’t resist my temptation to check.
and I failed…pretty darn close to that MPS if you ask me…shit
sucked it up. already smoked half a pack of cigarettes, will get hammered tonight, and re group and start pounding again.
this will be my 5th attempt…2 of those attempts were burned because I got rear ended by some girl who was texting and forced myself to study with chomping pain killers with 18 month treatment.
who cares if somebody got it all in one attempt. it’s all about getting there.
…I’ll tell you this… you won’t be alone. Take the path you really want to take - the choice is always yours you know.
I love this kind of encouragement from actual Charterholders, They have been there, done that and they know what’s up. And still want to show up on AF to encourage others. Nothing but respect. The journey is long but rewarding!
I will repeat my advice to another poster today. not going to try to persuade you either way.
Do you feel you have test anxiety? Do you zone out, get really worried, and do worse on the actual exam than most of your mocks? There are specific steps to help with this.
Do you have trouble sleeping the night before? Did you stay a hotel near the exam?
Have you taken any of the cram courses? Is Level Up offered near you?
Have you always used the same text (e.g. always Schweser, always CFAI)?
Did you use the CFAI Practice Questions extensively?
Do you monitor your reading progress and exact EOC, qbank, practice problem and mock scores by chapter or topic? I found this very helpful for effective use of my time.
Did you get the Schweser videos? If repeating the exam, a new format might be helpful. I used those videos for Level 2 and watched some a second time as review.
Do you have a guess and revise strategy? This gets a ton of attention from students in my course. Estimates of the effects of this are usually about 1-4% score improvement on average.
I am one of the instructors for a prep course for a local society. You can PM with questions if you want. I got my Charter last year, so my experience is pretty fresh.
I think band 10 is a 50/50. On any given day, you probably could have gotten the pass score. It may have been bad luck, bad draw, bad category mix etc, that got you the fail.
The only sure way to pass is to get so far over band 10 so that you don’t play with the odds.
Thanks. For people who failed by a little, they usually can fix it and get to passing. I will give a short story from my university days.
I was doing poorly in a course for my major, the reasons still aren’t obvious to me, I asked the professor what score I would need to get a C. Ouch. That wouldn”t be easy. How about a B? That would probably require something like 36 out of 40 to get a B. The means were usually around 20-25 out of 40. I asked, “so I guess I can’t even theoretically get an A?” The professor looked at me and made an offer. “If you get 40 out of 40, I’ll give you an A”
Of course, I asked “How many people have ever gotten a perfect score?”
“In the years that I have been teaching this class? None.”
I talked to other professors who had taught the class, the department head, and students from the prior year. They gave me advice, sample problems, and help with certain concepts. I wasn’t just aiming to pass the exam, I was doing well in my other courses and had almost three full weeks to devote to serious prep. Fear and anger had been replaced by confidence and a calm determination.
Judging by the scores of other students, it was a hard exam. The guy who usually had the highest score looked surprised to find he wasn’t even close to high score. I did a two hour exam in about 20 minutes. I got all 40 points. The professor laughed, shook my hand with a surprised look on his face, and said “When you turned in the test so early I was worried. Congratulations”.
The older scoring system told you how close you were to passing… Band 10 was very close (just under MPS) while a low band such as Band 3 meant u werent even close lol…
The new system just draws lines and regions so you have to guessimate! I believe band 10 meant you were within 2-3 questions of passing.
i passed L1 dec 17 at the age of 35. Didn’t want to do L2 this year so am doing it June 19 when I’ll be almost 37. Earliest I could possibly get all 3 will be pushing 38 years old. Assuming I fail at least one, I’ll be 39 or 40. I don’t think age should be a factor. I know a guy who started late 30’s and finished it at age 42. You could fail another 5 times and still be ahead of where I am now. Don’t give up.
I’m an attorney and took last year off because of my workload – I needed a break from studying late at night. I ready to sign up for the 2019 Level II. I’m not giving up, nor should you. Let’s knock it out next year!
I’m 39 (nearing 40 honestly) and I passed L2 in 2018 attempt, which was the fourth one.
Attempt 1 - Band 10
Attempt 2 - Band 9
Attempt 3 - Didn’t appear for exams as had lot to juggle on professional and personal front.
For L2, I believe perseverance and incremental improvements over the last attempt make a lotta difference. Just keep going and you should get it done in 2019.
