I feel 20% will be straight forward if you are lucky
? So the rest needs practical “risk manager experience”???
i dunno why, a lotta of questions that i did, my answers didnt seem to be one of the choices… 
and this FRM thing, i can’t believe they don’t care about ppl putting food around, i also saw this girl having her study materials by her table… i thought it was gonna be like taking the cfa, i thought wrong…
They have changed style of the questions tremendously. From the way the questions are set yesterday - first they require candidates with at least several years of solid EXPERIENCE in risk management in a bank and/or fund who already have a risk management mindset, are working with the concepts and dealing with numerous risk management situations every day in their work. Next they require learning from the original assigned readings. Cramming in or reciting a study pack from cover to cover or even back to front will not help passing it. It is a high quality paper targeting at testing experienced risk management professionals. The questions are probably set by very experienced risk management practising people asking a few “simple” questions from the perspective of a chief risk management officer - screening people who are in the risk management profession from those who are not. They ask little on models, whereas Schweser introduced about 100 models? and 200 formulas. But for the couple of questions on models - they would be on specific details of the models - and probably only people who have used them in their job would know. So… don’t bother attempting it unless and until one has a few years solid risk management experience under their belt in credit, market and operational risk; have attained the risk management mind-set, are used to credit rating changes; hedging; are used to dealing with numerous risk management calculations and issues in their everyday work. Before when they were building up the title - the syllabus and question styles were introductory - one could cram in a handbook or study pack - and can easily pass. Now having built up reputation for the designation, they are now seeking to restrict this title to people who are already in the industry practising risk management - and not just one or two years experience, but probably 4-5 solid years of risk management experience in a large bank or fund - beyond junior level - likely in middle management - before they can have the exposure required to deal with the level and style of the questions. Well more than half of the questions are general, require comprehesnive situational application… you are the chief risk officer, and your bank or fund has this and that, and the market is like that… what do you do??
It will be interesting to see the passing rate this year. I guess it would be less than 40%. It would be miraculous if I pass… But by doing this I think I have given myself a leg up in CFA 2, hopefully. 
This test sounds incredibly brutal with experience oriented questions now a primary factor. Seems like a total changeover compared to the FRM’s old reputation as passable without any experience and nothing but the Schweser notes.
3weeks Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > My exam center (Philadelphia) has about the same > show-up rate. There were 38 seats, but only 25 > candidates showed up. Some people left even > before I finished half of the exam. > That’s pretty sad that only about 25 people are writing this in a city the size of Philly. I’m glad I chose not to pursue this waste of time. No offence guys, best of luck.
http://www.garp.com/frmexam/registry.asp It’s interesting that if you click on the classes, so many of the FRM holders are indian or chinese people… http://www.garp.com/frmexam/frmclass.asp?examYear=2006 Take 2006 for example… How many people are charter holders/candidates for the FRM?
If there is a message to learn out of this thread, is that it would be wise to take the exam of a new designation as soon as the disignation is created. The challenge is to determine years in advance if the designation will have value in the future. Sort of like buying a stock at the low. Although I will break the Standards of CFA by typing this, the CFA exam was probably easier to pass decades ago then it is now. It seems like the FRM will be more challenging as the years go by too.
I was seriously considering taking this exam next Nov. but now the results are scaring me…
if those people who have passed the exam in previous years were to take the exam yesterday, probably vast majority of them would have been slaughtered yes, it is application of your stock selection skills - buy it when it is low and small. So if you think CAIA has value and will grow, do it now or asap. A couple of years ago, they were simply giving away the title - it was almost easier than level 1. You pay 3000 dollars, and it is yours. Now they have already changed the syllabus to be more related to hedge fund. And they might change it again before long if they see exponential increase in number of candidates enrolling for the exam - like the FRM. They have to make it easy and the barrier of entry low to build it up. Then as it gains momentum and “prestige” - the haves will increase substantially the barrier to protect themselves to keep the aspirants out. If the haves were to sit for the difficult exams they are setting to keep the newbies out - many of them will also likely to fail miserably! It is a business strategy - that simple.
I used the Schweser to prepare the FRM and so far I’m satisfy with the results. It’s a good thing to have the LO and the theory after. If you’re not satisfy with their explication , you can still check in Jorion or an other book … I think the exam was tough but I was well prepare. I started studying in early august and I have never stop. I did all the exercices and the 2 practice exams. I also bought the Schweser final review(kind of “Secret Sauce”), it’s a good thing to go through all the materials quick an other time.They only reget I have is not to have spent enough time on Credit Risk. I don’t think you need to have a lot of experience to pass the exam, you simply have to master the curriculum. Last year I was doing my MS with my friend (a corporate finance guy) and he pass the FRM simply by studying the Schweser 4 weeks(even if he didn’t have time to finish the AM exam). Then we pass the CFA level I in june with only 3 weeks of studying(37% passing rates). I hope that my experience with the CFA, my master degree in financial engineering and my Schweser notes will be enough to be a passing candidate of the FRM(since I had time to complete all the exam compare to my friend…). I’m ready for the CFA level 2…
Did you read the source material (jorgen) in its entirety or just use it for reference? Congrats!
did you take FRM this year? if you say this year’s Schweser helps you pass - then probably you are making all this up and you are working for Schweser! I know Schweser back to front and get over 90-100 marks in their questions and have done many of their mock questions. I wouldn’t say what you would. There is NO mapping between this year’s test and Schweser, but that is not Schweser’s fault. They have done a fine job to the best they can.
hmmph, he only has one post in his post history…this reminds me of the time when a guy who obviously worked for the “swiss investment banking institute” tried to promote it here.
People in another forum are also bitching about this year’s FRM exam. Looks like it is no longer a piece of cake any more. Fortunately, I have no plan to take it.
what’s the other FRM forum? Schweser is watching…
Yes I took the exam this year. I’m not working for Scwhweser and I’m not sure if I’m going to pass. Sorry to have offence you guys, It’s only MY OPINION. I don’t see how you can do best with an other provider. The Jorion is good but it sometimes to short. The best way would be to buy the original material. But it’s too much for me. My friend who pass the exam last year told me at that time that Schweser were totaly off the track, but he pass the exam anyway(but I know he was strongly mastering Schweser’s notes, even they were incomplete), so you never know… Sorry to love Schweser, but when you pass the CFA I in 3 weeks, you think the material is good… Maybe it’s not good enough for the FRM… I think it depends of you background, the way you deal with exams, stress, you practical experience(I have less than one year), etc. There’s so much stuff in these exams. I believe that if you succed to learn EVERYTHING in Schweser or JORION or what ever provider you will pass, because that’s impossible (for me) to read all the real books and retain everything. So you have a tradeoff: read the offical readings and not missing a single small point(And I think I’s gonna take you at lot bounch of time) or simply read a resume but trying to retain almost 100% of it(it’s still very difficult…) Sorry again for those I have offence, it was not my intention.Yes I’m new in this forum, and I love it. PS: Does anyone have used the OFFICIAL GARP readings ? How was it ?
By the way I don’t think the exam should be a piece of cake. If it was, you would not earn any prestige to pass it…
It will be interesting to hear somebody who took exam more than once. Where’s the other forum by the way?