I wonder whether these local review courses are necessay / helpful? Sydney CFA Society is running a 16 week course I think, once every week for 2-3 hours, instructed by industry professionals who care chartholders. It costs AUD$999 (before 15 Dec) or A$1350 (after 15 Dec)… I’m not very sure… Ideas?
I haven’t written any CFA exams yet, so this isnt based on any experience, just opinion. I don’t think many people take these classes and still pass, however it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. If that fee includes all your extra study materials and practice questions etc, it may not be that expensive. If you are someone who has a hard time sitting down and forcing yourself to study, it may also be a good option. It could also be a really good networking opportunitiy if you’re spending 16 weeks with charterholders and other candidates.
You don’t need these review courses. Just practice tests for each reading again after you have gone through the material as much as possible and then you will be fine.
I speak from experience and it was just a waste of time. You’re much better spending your time just getting started on practice questions as you will learn much much more quickly this way.
If you need to review the material I would advise you get a copy of the Schweser Secret Sauce or the Elan Eleventh Hour Guide to help you during your final weeks. These condense all the study notes into one book which makes finding information to refer to when you are stuck on a question all the more easier. I just wish I had started using mine earlier rather than the notes during the final weeks leading up the the exam.
necessary? ofcourse not…helpful? they better be at this crazy- dingo- stole -my -baby price!!
I used 7city in NYC and I personally felt it was very helpful & beneficial (I may reneg on this comment in about a month tho). All jokes aside, imo the cfa text uses verbiage and math to complicate subjects that can be best explained in laymans terms. In subjects like quant, fra, & pm I firmly believe they greatly improved my skills, and for the other dull materials, they provide a condensed version of notes. Overall, when you look at the big picture and the amount of time you will spend taking this test (300hrs right), adding a pre-course is well worth the money. Hope this helps, best of luck
The price includes a Boston Security Practice Exam in sitting conditions 2 weeks before the actual exam. But the price doesn’t include any notes. We’d have to purchase Schweser ourselves.
I guess the course might not add on a whole lot to the actual mastery of contents. Just wasn’t sure whether it’d be worth it for the motivation/networking part…
You don’t need these courses to pass. Out of the people I know who do these classes, it’s a way to force yourself to study by paying for it and attending it. You feel like you sunk a bunch of money into it and it gives you more motivation to beat the thing. Also, everyone learns differently, some people simply learn better with an instructor.
A friend of mine took a course that costs around $1600 and gives you a refund of $1200 if you fail.
If i were you i wud buy the package that includes video at elan or schweser like the ultimate or ultimate plus whic already gives u study notes, qbank, mock exams, secretsauce/11th hour review book
My friend last year took review course and he didnt pass(costing him 800 usd excluding notes) He studied with me for recent dec 1 exam using mix of Elan n Schweser and said it is better to buy package than review course as u can learn in your pace
Some of the courses are good I guess. I’ve never done any (I can’t do audible learning, I need a book). To me it’s just wasteful. It just seems silly to me to throw away thousands so people can basically read your book to you. You’re smart enough just suck it up and hit the books.
OK… Maybe not. I do still lack motivation but I also like studying by myself better, I think
Are the schweser video classes helpful? Or can I do without them?