I see that some CAIA posts have been deleted, so I’m not looking for any details. Just some high level feel… I have skimmed the material and will spend the next 2 days answering questions. I have my CFA charter and have solid basic knowledge of the concepts involved but remain clueless and will not be able to nail down the numerous study results, formulas, etc. Can I pass this test in 2 days with a decent grasp on the general concepts or should I just avoid the 20+ hours of cramming over the next 2 days and wave the white flag?? For those that sat in Sep. or one of the recent Level 1 exams, what was your general feel on the exam and how much do you prepare???
The exam is quite easy. You should be ok…just review the material and stay away from questions.
Quant is tough and 80% is not covered in CFA. LBOs, PE and HF are not covered extensively in CFA too. Many questions were easy but still 70% is the passing score and one has to study a bit more than 2 days to score this big hurdle rate.
No–I probably spent 20hrs over past month skimming over all of the Schweser study guides and spent most of that on the quant topics. I think that I understand the high level concepts quite well but don’t have time to memorize / nail down the detailed equations, studies, theroies, names, etc. They do provide a formula sheet, correct??? Just reviewed my Ethics for an hour or 2 and I’m gonna give it a go!
They do provide formula sheet which is in code word. You have to know greeks in order to understand formulaes. I didnt even study ethics for CAIA as L2 ethics was fresh in my mind. Good luck! When is the exam?
I sit Friday at noon. Its been 3 years since I opened up the grey ethics book so def needed a refresher. I’ve always found that its more effective for me to go through questions / refer to answers to nail home concepts and try to steal a few more points, as opposed to skimming over the material again quickly, so thats my plan for the next 2 days. We’ll see what happens. I promise the CAIA test gods that I will dedicate more time to level II if they let me sneak by this time!
it is harder than you think. they asked a lot of things I did not focus on, so we will see. I would definitely memorize it all, and the formulas, because they dont supply em all
other thing, quant is like 40% of exam. so if you can crush that, you will be fine.
Daj, I saw formulaes given on exam. There is a button right on top of all questions.
hawkhill7, I am in the same boat as you are. I have spent about 25 hours going through the material. I am taking the exam on Friday morning and expect to spend another 20 hours. Until now I have finished half quant, CDS/CDOs, Real Estate. I have to finish PE, Hedge Funds, and the remaining part of Quant in 2 days. I am not goin to spend a lot of time on Ethics because I had studied Ethics in June when I had taken the CFA L2 exam. I am hoping to have a fair shot at the exam. So dont be bogged down and try to study as much as you can in the next few days. I am taking Thursday off from work so that I can study. Best!!
Good luck! Long day of reviewing quant and feel quite good about my grasp on the concepts but it can go one of two ways: 1.) If the test (especially quant) focuses primarily on the understanding on the concepts, I pass. 2.) If there’s a heavy reliance on the formulas, memorizing names, studies, etc - FAIL miserably. Hope its more of #1!
Does anyone know how long it takes to get the results back?
2-3 weeks
6 weeks for level II
good luck everyone; one more night to grind through practice questions
I just took the exam. The test was relatively simple. Only if I had atleast studied the entire syllabus once. I had left Hedge funds portion and half Quant. I feel I have a 50-50 shot.
you guys are taking it for the wrong reason. no one cares about the CAIA paper diploma. there is some excellent material to learn however, and you’ve just wasted it. enjoy the diploma, and see you in the markets.
rohufish Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > you guys are taking it for the wrong reason. no > one cares about the CAIA paper diploma. there is > some excellent material to learn however, and > you’ve just wasted it. > > enjoy the diploma, and see you in the markets. +1 The knowledge gained is worth WAY more than the designation. Who gives a sh!t about this/that formula or this/that isolated fact, the test is not too hard and chances are you will pass. it’s seeing a bigger picture or seeing things from a different perspective that you otherwise might not have seen, that’s where the value is.
See you in market dude 
rohufish Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > you guys are taking it for the wrong reason. no > one cares about the CAIA paper diploma. there is > some excellent material to learn however, and > you’ve just wasted it. > > enjoy the diploma, and see you in the markets. -1 I understand your need to make a post like that to make you feel good about yourself, but perhaps someone committed to the CAIA Level I (a test which u cannot reschedule) and had work/family committments that unexpectedly took study time away. You’re right, I should have said F the test, I’m gonna take an additional few months to really learn and appreciate the material and bomb this exam. Why not just order the books, read the readings and skip the test (and save a few $$$), if thats your view.