Hi all, Need some advice on whether I should write L-III exam again in June 2011 or not. Am so depressed & disappointed with myself… never failed any exams before CFA… Sailed thru L-I (Dec 07) and L-II (June 08) easily with no hiccups at all. The AM session in L-III (June -09) totally took me by surprise and I flunked… Started studying again for June 2010 in end of Feb, all braced up to kill it this time. Couldn’t get much done beyond Schweser review cos was constantly ill in my first trimester… busy puking and taking antacids all through April & May; even on the exam day. Now more than half way thru my pregnancy. The D-Day is Dec 30. My maternity break would be Jan to Mar 2011 and I’ll get back to work in April 2011. I am wondering whether I’ll be able to study anything during Jan to May 2011 once my baby comes. Would it better to appear in 2011 or 2012 or should I just forget about it altogether… Anybody on the forum with experience of handling CFA and an infant together? Thanks in advance
Hi, First of all congratulations! I understand very well how hard is it to study and to take the exam while being pregnant. I took LII June 2010 while being 40 wks, 1 day after the D-Day. Luckily, my son was born 6 days after the exam, and not in the exam room. And in addition I was fortunate enough to pass the exam. He is now 2 months old and I decided to give it a try and to study for LIII in June 2011. It is very hard to tell how the first months after pregnancy will go, because every baby is different and it also depends how you will feel after the birth. Although theoretically babies should sleep around 16 hours, mine was eating all the time. So since I’m breastfeeding the first 6 weeks I was so exhausted, that I couldn’t concentrate enough to read Vogue, not to speak of CFA materials… It got much better afterwards, but it is still a challenge to find even half an hour of free time during the day. My advice is to get somebody to help you at home - mother, sister, mother-in-law… Your partner doesn’t count - although my husband was on paternity leave for 4 wks, but both of us got exhausted pretty soon. Also I’m planing to start studying next week. I think staring early is the only way to get enough time for studying. Good luck!
I’m the father of two kids and my wife gave birth to our second on May 5th. I second the “help” advice above. If my mother-in-law hadn’t lived with us for a few weeks before and the entire month after our son was born, I would have probably failed the exam from acute exhaustion. Having her there relieved my wife and I of our parental duties for *short* stretches of one to three hours. I used my time to get out of the house to a nearby coffee shop to put in quick but intense study sessions. Sometimes I used my breaks to sleep. Both contributed to my passing L2 by keeping me from getting totally derailed after the birth. @Laima, I am so impressed that you passed L2 a week before you gave birth…wow.
this is amazing we have the same due date : ) i thought if i failed i would register and give it another try. for me, money is not much an issue as much as the frustration of not getting through it. Luckily i passed, but i completely understand what you went through. you should be proud of yourself that you did not give up and tried. if you are one of those amazing women that can juggle 100 things at a time (successfully), i would definitely take the chance. it has been done before, and i agree, it depends on you, your baby and your family. Congratulations, do you know who it is?
You might want to read this thread. Kudos to onon12 - http://www.analystforum.com/phorums/read.php?13,1193567
Cheer up! Watch a pile of comedies or something and forget the result. Your baby should feel only positive; he/she shares your emotions. I’m a man but I know. 
You passed two levels smoothly, you can do it with the 3rd level as well. I’m absolutely confident. Start as early as you can for 2011 so you are done with reading 1.5-2 months before the test. This is a MUST (you’ll feel very very confident if you do so). The real studying starts with writing practice tests. Otherwise, it’s just passive reading that has little to do with the test skills (w/o counting EOC questions). I started late last year (March) and flunked as I had only 2 weeks for practice tests. This year, I had over 40 days for practice and passed. For now, just enjoy life.
Wow congrats. I have three boys when you look back it is amazing how much time you have when you don’t have kids. (I’m a husband not the wife so I have seen the pain not actually been in your shoes) the keys are: 1) Don’t give up even if you bag it for 2011, don’t quit!! 2) Once the child is born and you look into their eyes you will have a new reality and you will do ANYTHING to support your child the best thing you can do is finish. Good luck, my other thoughts are, you may have some downtime especially after 4-6 weeks and if the child is on the bottle you could actually get quality study time. I’d try to get notecards written now and use them when you have a moment. Best of luck.
Thanks guys… ur replies make me feel better abt this situation… I will surely give June 2011 a serious thought before just giving up… @Laima… Agree with ATH… Writing the exam in the 40th week would have been something… great feat… congrats… My mum is going to be with us for the first three months after the baby comes… that should help me at least finish the readings by March if I decide to give 2011 a shot. Congrats AHT for ur second kid and LII! @lenchik101… same due date is quite a coincidence… :)) congrats on killing this demon despite the 1st trimester… Now u can totally concentrate on the baby… Came to know yesterday that it’s a boy… what abt you? @Eman & Cpepin… you are right… even my hubby says that I shouldn’t stress our baby by worrying abt this… but like lenchik101 says, the disappointment and frustration of not getting through is difficult to handle… Especially when ur hormones are hyperactive for just abt every emotion… I hope they haven’t made any major changes to the syllabus for 2011… will search the forum to check if the syllabus change discussion has already happened… Thanks
Reading posts like this makes my completion of the program seem insignificant.
RESPECT!!
I was exactly where you are last year. I was due 12/26, sat throug L3 pregnant and sick. I actually felt pretty confident I passed, but I didn’t (the most painfully fail, b/c I walked out feeling the best of any CFA exam). I asked this exact same question last year and got a lot on encouragement and was ready to give it a go this year. After my son was born a gave it a month to think about it and decided to jump in. For me it was a mistake. I tried to study for a few months, but just couldn’t focus, I’d feel so guilt leaving my little man to study and or I was just to exchausted to do it. I ended up not even sitting for the exam (I’ve never bailed on an exam in my life). I know it’s a big adjustment for the father, but in my opinion it is much more so on the mother. Good luck with your decision.
I had my little man in November and sat for the LIII the following June and failed. If I had to do it again, I would not have done the exam. My husband did more than in fair share around the house, and I had a lot of help, but it is far more difficult for mothers than it is for dads. You’re going to be dealing with fatigue, hormones, return to work and nursing (if the last 2 apply to you) and that was plenty, if you ask me. I look back and think that I should have enjoyed my growing family and started studying a year later. Believe me, there will be several Junes to follow and you will get your chance to do the exam…
I just sat and passed level 2 when I was 39 weeks pregnant. I already have a 2 year old. Quite surprised i wasn’t the only one! I thought I was crazy and was more stressed about going into labour in the exam hall than the actual exam! Not sure how I’m going to cope next year for level 3 with 2 babies. Hoping it can be done and am reassured that thereare other people in the same boat. Good luck to you all!
Mercsss66, brewey, would you like to get in touch and share some experience and tips how to handle studying and infant at the same time? you can drop me an email: hotdangeroussexy@hotmail.com. Is any of you by any chance also in London?
Hi laima, i’m not the most organised person so i hope other people will be able to share some advice too! I think as soon as you have children you really have to be strict about what time you are going to allocate to studying. I started studying in December as soon as received my books and then studied virtually every lunchtime in work until the exam. I also made sure i was home by 6:30 so i could play with my daughter until 8 and then study until 10 most nights. Of course some times i was tired or had appointments so i didn’t do this every night. I probably studied for 10+ hours each weekend too, when my daughter was sleeping or out with her dad. I was lucky and work paid for a course for me which was 10 full days of studying and then i took 2 weeks off before the exam and studied for 10+ hours each day just doing loads and loads of questions. I then worked from home for a week until my daughter was born. For level 3 next year i am hoping to take a course again and also take Fridays off for a few weeks before the exam and then take 2 weeks off before the exam. I think i will probably start studying in November (looking at other posts on this forum i probably need to!). For the moment i’m studying level 1 CAIA and the exam is in 3 weeks, luckily my baby has decided to sleep all night and that has made a huge difference to my concntration span!
Sure laima… drop me a mail at mercsss@aol.com @vici09 & @VC_PM… After reading what u have to say, I think I’ll give the Sept registration deadline a miss… & take the final decision in Jan 2011… @VC_PM… did u finally get a chance to write the exam again?
I was in your shoes 2 years ago Plus an older child. I felt horrible when I found out that I failed the exam. My older daughter grew up with me taking level1 and level2 and I just wanted to focus on the baby and older daughter and not the exam. I had my son in Dec and i registerd for 08 exam. I passed. Honestly, i told to myself this is my last chance. Either I am passing or I will take a long break. How did I pass? I started studying in Aug right after I found out that I failed. I worked on my weak areas: IPs When I was on maternity leave I used every second that i could to study. I literally was pushing the bassinet and reading the book at the same time. I returned to work in Apr. I had a babysitter on a weekend so I can study. I told to myself that it’s better to leave the baby to study now when he sleeps most of the time and doesn’t understand anything then when he is one year old. I took 2 weeks before the exam off and studied from morning till evening. It worked - I passed. Was it hell? Yes, it was. But I am glad that I am done. I can enjoy my kids now Good luck to you. Remember everybody is different. think what is best for you emotianally. But it can be done and my advice do it sooner rather than later. While whatever you learned last year is still fresh in your head
Mercsss66 - yes… (well almost). I took it this year and failed, but I knew passing was a long shot, as I didn’t put in the work. I am taking it next year and I feel that this time I am really ready to pass. My little guy is potty trained, sleeps through the night and can play by himself. However, I agree with aptr - it is better to do it when you’re fresh from the last attempt. If you decide to do it next year, my advice is that you start right away and do one round of reading and practice problems before the baby is born. I believe that had I done that, I would have passed in '08. It is my opinion that starting in Jan is too late for working moms with very young children.