Daj, Good for you man. This is my first post in LII. I got my books two days ago. I have to work this Saturday, but when I get back, I’ll be starting with SS1. -g
I wasn’t going to sign up for the LII (mostly because I figured having a level 1 degree in a C.F.A. on the resume was good enough) but thanks to you daj I figure I will order my books and do the L2 with you as well. Also, I know I should use the search, but before I do, is the CFAI worthwhile to get as well. It seems like people are doing both? If I pass L1 the first test in CFAI can I put CFAI level 1 degree after my name and on my resume as well?
Daz, according to the CFAI you get a guaranteed porshe and a hot blond after getting your charter…in addition to your “dream job”.
gameday0 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I wasn’t going to sign up for the LII (mostly > because I figured having a level 1 degree in a > C.F.A. on the resume was good enough) but thanks > to you daj I figure I will order my books and do > the L2 with you as well. Also, I know I should > use the search, but before I do, is the CFAI > worthwhile to get as well. It seems like people > are doing both? If I pass L1 the first test in > CFAI can I put CFAI level 1 degree after my name > and on my resume as well? \ you mean CAIA? no, you need to pass both levels and have a BA and have 1 yr exp to use CAIA after your name you better get to level 2 dude…makes no sense to do things “half hearted” level 1 by itself is not enough. you need the three letters after your name and next time I talk to you you better have registered for june 09 : ) -
i dont care for cars. all i want is happiness. for me, that means researching stocks all day and/or doing deals. I need my CFA to help me get there. dont be ridiculous. and for blonds, already crushed 2 in college. now i like voluptuous latinas. I’ll probably marry a high maintenance cubanita in 10 years, but first, i gotta hit my goals.
Starting now as opposed to February will add absolutely no value, none, zilch, whatsoever. Unless one has some kind of learning disability, there is no reason to waste the time. You are better off focusing on networking or some other activity that will add value to your career. At this time last year, I was just starting to study for Level 1. The 10 months that were to follow gave me MORE than enough time to master the material for both exams (including 2 months of waiting for L1 results).
I got to admit this … even before L1 results … i started peeping into L2 schweser notes … have already done Quant, and about half of equity. Derivatives and Fixed Income are very much similar to FRM … so I think by Dec I should be almost 80% done with L2 with FRM added next to my name… Edit: I will crush, kill, chew & … L2
> > Edit: I will crush, kill, chew & … L2 glad i am not the only one. we’ll celebrate in 2010 if we both pass 2 and 3 . you have my word. boston bar, downtown, june 2010. i’ll invite half the buy side to help us tear the place down. and i keep my promises. trust me
bannisja, shoot me now…
i’d let mr level 2 lube you up a bit before you start making celebration plans, daj. seriously bro. we’ve all been there. the initial enthusiasm is understandable. but you’ve only been on one date with this level 2 chararacter. he is not as nice and interesting as you think. i’m not saying you won’t pass, you probably will. but before you tell him you love him, know that he’s packing some lunchmeat and doesn’t intend to make this fun for you. just saying… good luck everyone… it’s getting close. i’m in a house in tahoe on vacation logged onto the forum… there is something wrong with that picture. and i’m nervous as hell.
daj224 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > : ) - i already cracked the books open, couldnt > wait. quant looks nasty, what the hell is econ, > equity manageable. i like how FSA is smaller book. > i like the focus on earnings fraud and the > consolidation. i wondered why it was not on level > I. > > > i am building huge pro formas all day and this > level II stuff will help with industry sizing and > consolidation post m and a. > > love it!!! going to dinner and crushing about 4 > natty light then hitting books tonight. > > PS - i will keep drivel posts like this to a > minimum, but after 8/19 it is fair game and i will > go nuts. Not meant to be a personal attack, but people with online personalities like this are almost invariably complete losers in real life. Seriously.
Some support from a fellow June 2009 LII candidate: there is NO WAY I am starting studying as late as February. Right now I’m thinking October/November. I started studying for LI in February, and was totally stressed out in April because I hadn’t finished the material yet. I agree starting in August is a little extreme, however consider the following: 1) some people may want to use this opportunity to get the maximum value out of the material 2) some people (like me) get stressed out when they’re on a tight schedule 3) some people want to maximize their chances of passing (btw, this point relates directly to all the horror stories about LII difficulty that have been circulating on this board) Basically, I accept the fact that it’s possible to pass LII by only cramming Secret Sauce for three months, but I’d much rather enjoy understanding this material really well and feel a little more confident on exam day.
Dude(ette)s, listen Billy, CAF, DAJ, and Busprof, everyone, literally, unanimously, everyone who has taken L2 is telling you the same thing, that studying now will be more to your detriment than your advantage. Yet you four continue to argue with us having no experience with this exam. We are saying this for your own good. I started in Feb along with many others and we felt that another month or two wouldn’t have changed our odds one bit. However, starting earlier will cause you to increase your likelyhood of a major burnout or loss of motivation. We have all been through this and seen people come in all eager, and in the end while they studied more hours, the quality of their study time in the final weeks was greatly diminished which worked against them. Furthermore, one of the key things you all are missing is you want to peak right at exam time in terms of your intensity in the subject, if you start now or even october, you will peak too soon and be off your game when the exam day rolls around. Busprof and crew, you are making a huge mistake when you assume LII tests basic understanding in the sense that LI did. When we say you won’t remember anything you study now, we don’t mean it in the literal sense. Instead what we mean is you won’t remember anything at the level to which the CFA tests. For LII, the questions are very particular and specific and rarely resemble anything either remotely common sensical or even fair for that matter, which is why your final weeks of prep are key no matter how long you’ve studied. Given the specificalities of CFA questions, you are unlikely to remember anything to the degree required on test date that you studied 8 months ago, and the basics you do remember will be no different than what every other kid that got it wrong remembered. Let me put it this way, there were 5 questions of 120 on the exam that came from two separate paragraphs that combined covered approximately 1 page of CFAI text out of 3000+ there is simply no way that will be in your mind, other than random chance, no matter how long you studied. We aren’t here to bash on you, but we are here to try to steer you in the right direction (forcibly if need be). I understand that I probably did a poor job of convincing you guys, but if all else fails, reread my first sentence and think hard about what that indicates when each and every overachieving regular here is telling you to put the books down and wait until Nov/Dec at the soonest if you want to be super hardcore. Also, someone mentioned networking while another mentioned getting a life. Both of those are actually key points as I believe some of you may have forgotten that the interview process is rarely an exercise favoring unidimensionality.
cfasf1 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > i’d let mr level 2 lube you up a bit before you > start making celebration plans, daj. seriously > bro. we’ve all been there. the initial enthusiasm > is understandable. but you’ve only been on one > date with this level 2 chararacter. he is not as > nice and interesting as you think. i’m not saying > you won’t pass, you probably will. but before you > tell him you love him, know that he’s packing some > lunchmeat and doesn’t intend to make this fun for > you. just saying… good luck for you on level 2. i will try to tone it down, i think you were right – it was initial enthusiasm and now that i looked into the derivatives section, i am not that excited : ) -
Actually Busprof, my bad, I shouldn’t have lumped you in there, you were just saying you thought they’d remember the material, and that was the only point of yours I was addressing, which you weren’t wholly wrong on.
Billy Collins Jr. Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Some support from a fellow June 2009 LII > candidate: there is NO WAY I am starting studying > as late as February. Right now I’m thinking > October/November. I started studying for LI in > February, and was totally stressed out in April > because I hadn’t finished the material yet. > > I agree starting in August is a little extreme, > however consider the following: > 1) some people may want to use this opportunity to > get the maximum value out of the material > 2) some people (like me) get stressed out when > they’re on a tight schedule > 3) some people want to maximize their chances of > passing (btw, this point relates directly to all > the horror stories about LII difficulty that have > been circulating on this board) > > Basically, I accept the fact that it’s possible to > pass LII by only cramming Secret Sauce for three > months, but I’d much rather enjoy understanding > this material really well and feel a little more > confident on exam day. Thx for the support, billy. let’s put the guns down guys. in 9 days, all of you will pass and me and the newbies will raid this forum. so good luck, keep mum, and let me get back to my auto-regression : ) -
Black Swan Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Actually Busprof, my bad, I shouldn’t have lumped > you in there, you were just saying you thought > they’d remember the material, and that was the > only point of yours I was addressing, which you > weren’t wholly wrong on. Swan: I understand that some might not retain material if they start this early. I think that’s more a function of approach than anything else. “Deep” learning stays accessible, and getting to this level requires time, a LOT of repetition, and a lot of reflection. But the breadth (and depth) of the Level 2 material is several magnitudes greater than that of L1. But some people are simply slower learners than others, some don’t do well with more than 2-3 hours studying at a time, and some are simply risk averse and justifiably scared from the things they’ve heard on the L2 Forum (best comment - “L1 is KY, L2 is No KY, L3 is No KY and Sandpaper”). So if they want to start early, more power to them. The opportunity costs are pretty big, but tradeoffs are always tough. I think that like in most cases, “Corner solutions” don’t work. Starting a year early is probably excessive, unless you’re like Daj, who seems to be from another planet (just kidding - actually, I love your enthusiasm man, at least for now…). Starting in April doesn’t leave enough time unless you’re the bastard child of Rain Man and Gordon Gekko). But within those two bounds, there’s a lot of play. I passed L1 in December, and started studying for L2 the first week of February (and not that hard until Mid-March). Personally, between job, sick kid, and the usual merde that life throws at us all, I could have used another month (we’ll find out in another week or so). And I have a pretty strong background in a lot of this material. On an unrelated note, I appreciate all the good advice you give on the forum. Keep it up (and a very cool name, BTW).
Black Swan Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Dude(ette)s, listen Billy, CAF, DAJ, and Busprof, > everyone, literally, unanimously, everyone who has > taken L2 is telling you the same thing, that > studying now will be more to your detriment than > your advantage. Yet you four continue to argue > with us having no experience with this exam. We > are saying this for your own good. I started in > Feb along with many others and we felt that > another month or two wouldn’t have changed our > odds one bit. However, starting earlier will > cause you to increase your likelyhood of a major > burnout or loss of motivation. We have all been > through this and seen people come in all eager, > and in the end while they studied more hours, the > quality of their study time in the final weeks was > greatly diminished which worked against them. > Furthermore, one of the key things you all are > missing is you want to peak right at exam time in > terms of your intensity in the subject, if you > start now or even october, you will peak too soon > and be off your game when the exam day rolls > around. Busprof and crew, you are making a huge > mistake when you assume LII tests basic > understanding in the sense that LI did. When we > say you won’t remember anything you study now, we > don’t mean it in the literal sense. Instead what > we mean is you won’t remember anything at the > level to which the CFA tests. For LII, the > questions are very particular and specific and > rarely resemble anything either remotely common > sensical or even fair for that matter, which is > why your final weeks of prep are key no matter how > long you’ve studied. Given the specificalities of > CFA questions, you are unlikely to remember > anything to the degree required on test date that > you studied 8 months ago, and the basics you do > remember will be no different than what every > other kid that got it wrong remembered. Let me > put it this way, there were 5 questions of 120 on > the exam that came from two separate paragraphs > that combined covered approximately 1 page of CFAI > text out of 3000+ there is simply no way that will > be in your mind, other than random chance, no > matter how long you studied. We aren’t here to > bash on you, but we are here to try to steer you > in the right direction (forcibly if need be). I > understand that I probably did a poor job of > convincing you guys, but if all else fails, reread > my first sentence and think hard about what that > indicates when each and every overachieving > regular here is telling you to put the books down > and wait until Nov/Dec at the soonest if you want > to be super hardcore. Also, someone mentioned > networking while another mentioned getting a life. > Both of those are actually key points as I > believe some of you may have forgotten that the > interview process is rarely an exercise favoring > unidimensionality. i dont believe you can “peak” too soon. what the hell does peak mean anyways? it seems like u think peaking too early is a major problem. while you may peak early in the sac, i think that your mind is best on the material when you are scoring high in the sample/mock exams. if you do this early you should be motivated to continue learning what you got wrong. i dont believe you can study too much for these types of exams. best of luck daj. i aint starting yet cause i am having minor surgery but will jump in head first in september.