In summary…
CFAilure= CFA failure
300 hours= a big time commitment for most people especially if you fail a few levels
So every critics of CFAI is not allowed?
If so - what’s the difference between CFAI and a cult?
Discussion of AM Session results is strictly related to L3 current and potential candidates.
rossu12 , if you personally feel it’s right, you are more than encouridged to report any of my posts here: http://www.cfainstitute.org/ethics/conduct/complaint/Pages/index.aspx.
My lil bro cracked L3 exma last year , although he started on April 10
He studied for around 40 days * 4 hrs a day = 160 hr total
I studied 300 hrs last year and got band 5
So input/output is dependent on a person
/thread
I’m sorry but I have to say something. This is getting absolutely ridiculous. CFAilure, how on G-d’s green earth will the CFA institute be able to give an ACCURATE estimation of time required to study? I have never even timed myself throughout Level I, II or III.
What you are asking is a bit far fetched. CFAI expects candidates to gauge their own level of knowledge and what they still need to prepare for and work accordingly. There is no one size fits all here!! People work at different speeds and need less/more time for certain subjects. I do feel sorry for you that you’ve been at this for years, I can’t say I know the feeling as I sat for Level I in December 2013 only.
Anyways, one last piece of advice, and I’m afraid I’m going to have to agree with the majority of the people on this thread, just stop whining and moaning like a child throwing a tantrum. It will get you nowhere. And by sending Paul Smith (who I can assume is extremely busy) constant reminders to reply to one of the 28,000 Level III candidates flowing through their systems each year isn’t just rude, it also discredits your entire email. If your email had any merit I am sure he would have responded by now. I sent an email to CFAI to find out about Membership and got a reply within 16 hours. Long story short, just lick your wounds, get back up and get over it. I am sure you’re not the only candidate who’s sent an email like this…and has there been any drastic reform that we know of? No.
CFAilure my recommendation to you is to search within and ask yourself - why do I really need the CFA charter? I believe that if you can answer this question truthfully to yourself no one will need to tell you anything - not even a response from Paul Smith can do this task for you.
You have already shown deep commitment and I applaud you, however, is it really for you? If you believe that it is, try to suck it in , dust yourself up and try again. If not, just forget the whole CFA thingy and move on.
That is my 2c.
Hopes and wishes for certain individuals to pass (or not) don’t work in the world of CFA. Want proof?
#VickyPassed
WTF this nazi has versus Russians and Koreans? ban this rassist from the forum.
Regarding the topic: CFAilure as i understand just looser who can not take it and make a decision: retake or abandon the program. Whiner nothing more.
poor baby- pity you lol 
You will be banned very soon for personal attacks.
A loser would peak his belongings and disapear from the AF.
Sure I am not going to register for the exam again. But to my opinion my mission is to make this program more transparent (at maximum) or leave a message for people who did not started their way to the charter (at minimum).
May call me Don Kishot - but I do not really care.
Am confused. I studied 200 hours and passed. Shall I study 100 hours more and retake the exam next year? Or how does it work?
On a side note, tomorrow am going to the beach. I’ll take my iPad and read this thread again. Thanks all for the amazing literature. This is priceless.
My mission in my opinion bla bla… You failed because you were not prepared and the reason is because CFAI didnt say that it’s that hard… I failed my job because boss didnt say that it’s that hard…Looser whiner.
Do me a favor: make a search and find any trace of me in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 - blabla, whining or something.
on 2013 I was here to get some advice.
on 2014 I informed I passed.
on 2015 - I posted here a copy a letter to CFAI President and it is your own decision how you intepret this.
Vibes of love.
…considering to open another thread and just to tell you about my path in the program - just for you, guys, to vilify me there, leaving some space in this thread to discuss my letter and transparency of the exam and not if I studied hard enough.
It’s like when I was in Sochi for the Olympics. I took a bus to another venue that was only spouse to take 1 hour but because of traffic it took 90 minutes and I missed the start of the event. The next day I took a wrong bus and my 30 minute trip turned into a 2 hour trip. I wrote a letter to the Olympic committee and the Russian government about being more transparent about the bus times. If I knew the buses were going to take that long I never would have took them. Still haven’t heard back
^I think everyone knows the rigors of this exam and the sacrifice they will have to make before entering the program.
I also understand that people who do not complete a certain task will feel angry, which then leads to bitterness and resentment. If I was in your position, I would have quit after failing a level twice, let alone spend 10 years on something.
And your point about CFA recommending 300 hours is pointless. How do you measure something like that? I don’t know how long I spent on L1 and L2 and even how many of those hours were actually “effective”. I would probably study a bit then get distracted and browse the internet.
EDIT: In response to CFAilure
There probably should be some kind of system in place to stop people from self destructing (continuing the program when they shouldn’t, forcing people to take their loses before they get worst). It would help weed me out too. They used to have a limit in years you had to complete the program by, CFAI should reconsider it again. It would save a lot of people years of their lives. Time they could spend with family/friends/actual career advancement - doing something more productive. Why CFAI should have an advisory HOTLINE (free or not) to help people figure if the program is worth continuing or even starting. It’s negligence for CFAI to know this happens to people which devastate their lives (ex: 7-10years) and not do anything about it when they can. I suspect it’s money motivated. ***sighhhh
Ya, I bet you want the CFAI to wipe your a** for you too?
Interestingly, there used to be.
When I started the program (1997), you had to complete it within 7 years. If you didn’t, then you had to restart at Level I.
I’m not sure why they did away with that. It would certainly address your concern here.
+1