When I’m studying Quant/FSA/PM/Bonds I use my calculator on practically every question. I just read that someday said they only used their calculator 10 times for the exam! Is this possible? If is possible, then truly it is a concepts exam. All feedback welcome. Thanks.
Is ‘someday’ the pen name of Chuck Norris?
Sorry, it was a spelling error. I read that somebody wrote that they only used their calculator 10 times for the exam. Could that be possible? If you have taken the exam, I’d sure like to know (approximately) how many times you remember using your calculator. Thanks.
Different ppl use calculators different amounts. Joey DV, for example, just uses his cell phone and a sundial – no calculator at all.
I heard that calculators actually use Joey D on exams.
I believe Code of Conduct allows you to put on your resume phrasing to the effect “Level III candidate; passed Levels I and II without use of calculator.”
I’m glad guys like DarienHacker and Bodymore think this is fun and games. Sadly, they have nothing more intelligent to do than grafitti an honest question posed to someone who has taken the L1 exam. Actually, my question is a real question. I read from a number of different threads that they USED THEIR CALCULATORS SPARINGLY. If that is so, and I’d like to hear it from a couple different people, then I will alter my studying in the next 7 weeks to a lot more concept oriented thought. Thank and blessings, yw
DarienHacker Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I believe Code of Conduct allows you to put on > your resume phrasing to the effect “Level III > candidate; passed Levels I and II without use of > calculator.” Lol, beast! Imagine applying for a job w/ that on your resume, what a d’bag; although I would love to do that if I passed w/out a calc.
Sorry yancey. Take this: 10yr bond, annual coupon 8%, YTM 7.894%. Price is closest to what? A. 101 B. 99 C. 98 D. 97 Some people need a calculator for this question, some don’t. Regardless of whether you need a calculator to do this you should not ignore quantitative topics.
I’d say E none of the above. I get -100.7 on my calculator.
good example, darienhacker!
remember that 100.7 is closest to 101. Bond is a premium bond. so only answer above 100 would be the right one. Now you would definitely end up finding a lot of close answers and not so cut and dry as the above example shows up. But tend to agree with everyone who has posted before – that the exam is a little more concept oriented, and a lot of choices can be eliminated by thinking thro’. So a better approach (at least after my failure the first time round) is eliminate to get to a 2/4 situation, then use the calculator to “dismiss” the wrong choice. Also CFAI puts a lot of thought in to the questions and answer choices - by making sure only those who have got the concept right and arrived at the right solution approach get the answer right. If there are a few ways to solve a problem - be assured that the answer choices will reflect each of the ways to get at the answer – some of those paths to the solution would be wrong, hence the answer too would be wrong. CP
Haha, I was just joking around, I thought the negative sign would show that.
Actually most practice exams will give you a good idea what the real exams will look like. Search AF for practice exams posts and people will tell you which are closest to the real thing.
yancey Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > Actually, my question is a real question. > > I read from a number of different threads that > they USED THEIR CALCULATORS SPARINGLY. Not to be mean, but if you’ve already read this in a ‘number of different threads’, why do you need to create this particular thread to find out something you already know? I’m confused.