CFA Curriculum readings really necessary?

Is it really necessary to read all of the CFA Institute’s curriculum material if you plan on doing Stalla or Schweser or is this just reference material? I used Becker (owner of Stalla) for the CPA and was more than prepared. I know they are different exams but I would imagine the reviews are sufficient to pass Level I. Does anyone have any expirience with this?

From what I’ve read on the forums so far, it seems that before the 2008 exams it would’ve been possible to pass using just Schweser study notes. However, that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. I’m sitting for next June and I’m planning on reading through the curriculum as well Schweser.

i have both original and schweser, sitting in for december exam. I started by going through original material, then would read through corresponding schweser guide but realized theres just not enough time to do that before the exam. So I’m only going through schweser now and if i have time, I’ll go over original cfai books later. original material is much more thorough, provides better examples but theres lot of additional info that doesn’t pertain to answering the los, schweser is just summarized version, straight to the point in answering the los statements, no unnecessary info. i’m also taking the online course and the prof made it clear the purpose of schweser material is to help you pass the exam, not make you an analyst. nothing more nothing less. if i had more time, i wouldn’t bother with schweser

This is like asking if it is necessary to learn everything, or just enough to pass. Why not just always be second best. When you have a Charter, and interview against other’s with a Charter, they will find out who know’s more.

malnoll Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > This is like asking if it is necessary to learn > everything, or just enough to pass. Why not just > always be second best. When you have a Charter, > and interview against other’s with a Charter, they > will find out who know’s more. This is too generalized. Learning via the curriculum may increase your depth of knowledge, but you can’t just make blanket conclusions to this end, and I wouldn’t accuse those who rely on notes to be aiming for second best. Moreover, passing these exams using the CFAI volumes hardly makes one an expert in any of these fields. The CBOK covers numerous academic disciplines with light to moderate depth: not adequate for outright expertise. People will always be able to pass these exams using only third-party solutions. Others will have (or simply prefer) to rely on the CFAI curriculum. I intend to use both to varying degrees. I’ve had mixed experiences with both the CFAI curriculum and Schweser. whodely, you’ll find a lot of good commentary if you use the search function. Your question is tied for the most FAQ along with “Stalla vs. Schweser” and “Why does it take so long to grade the exams?”. Good luck on your exam.

good point. Wasn’t trying to be genralizing, just my view

eric23 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > From what I’ve read on the forums so far, it seems > that before the 2008 exams it would’ve been > possible to pass using just Schweser study notes. > However, that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. > I’m sitting for next June and I’m planning on > reading through the curriculum as well Schweser. just wondering, why is this the case? (i am planning on reading every single page of assigned readings)

hi guys, im new to the forum, am planning to take the CFA level 1 in Jun. '08 i am planning to get the Schweser and also the CFA Institute’s curriculum material just one question though, what exactly is the CFA Institute’s curriculum material? is it the 4 big textbooks that has the exact curriculum to study for? how many pages? from where would you be able to purchase those? how much are they? thanks for the inputs

it’s 6 books in the form of 18lbs of material. I haven’t counted all the pages, but its over 3000.

SomewhatDamaged Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > it’s 6 books in the form of 18lbs of material. I > haven’t counted all the pages, but its over 3000. do you know where i can purchase the books? or does CFAI send you the materials after registration? Thanks

LOL, it’s been a while since someone has measured the CFAI volumes in lbs. # of pages is the usual way to do it :wink: ForumJP, yes, they’ll send you the books when you regiser.

Thanks. Just a question, i am at the Schweser site. They have a couple different packages. which one is everyone using and refering to? the packages? Premium? Essential? or individual products - Study Notes Pack ? thanks again!

The notes (6 books) and the Schweser Pro Question bank are essential. Everything else is icing on the cake. A lot of people also find the Secret Sauce very helpful.

back to the original question… stalla and just stalla is more than enough to pass level I. just know it inside and out.

misslee Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > back to the original question… > > stalla and just stalla is more than enough to pass > level I. > just know it inside and out. Thanks, that’s what I wanted to know. Anyone else have exprience with Stalla?