Sample 1 - 53% This is much different than my average score on Schweser exams which is 82% and my CFAI mock scores of 83% AM and 80% PM. I guess I should not have taken Thursday off to relax 
I have the option to buy 2010 sample exams, do you guys have this option?
Just wasted another $40…does anyone else feel like the samples are on a completely different level than any other practice test? Just completed the 2010 mock with 80% and in the low 70’s on all of Kaplan and 2011 mock but the samples I am in the mid 50s. Also I can’t stand taking the test on the computer…I do better having the print out so I can underline things plus skip and go back if needed.
I guess I shouldn’t bother turning up Jun 4th. A wtf 44 on the 1st sample. A week before the exam?!? And a retaker?!? Can’t bear to try the 2nd sample. I really thought I had a better grasp of the material this time around. Mocks are somewhat better, but I can’t seem to break 63 - 65% on any new full mock either. I don’t get it, I really don’t know what else I can do.
You can study more! 1. Definitely show up. Worst case, it’s practice. Best case, you pass and on to Level III. 2. See what stuff just killed you, and relearn it quickly. Do all EOCs this week, and anything you don’t get work through with notes. Then take mock exams until your eyes fall off.
@grumble thanks for the pep talk - will try 
what kills me is all the stupid mistakes I make and stuff I miss at 1st sitting
Well, after a thousand hours of studing this stuff since November 1, I took the Mock AM exam this morning and got a 36%. After looking at the right answer, I realize that I simply cannot remember all these formulae. Nothing in the answer was new to me. I just cannot do them. I also missed lots of questions because I did not understand what they were asking. After looking at the answer, I was surprised to see the point they were making. I understood it, but did not see if by simplying reading the question. I simply cannot remember this much material. So, I have decided to quit and skip the exam. I do not need it for my job and spending one more week of this 14 hour a day grind will not get me anywhere. I feel so bad about this because I can fly through the Schweser questions and get close to 90% right. Then, two weeks later, I cannot remember a thing.
I am no expert on preparing for this but here are my thoughts about it. If you are getting 90% on Schweser… you should be fine. If its Q-Bank you are scoring 90s on, then you know the topics but just need more mock tests prep to figure out how to apply your knowledge. Maybe mock just hit your weak areas. I have found on taking several mocks, my score was dependent on if it was a topic I was comfortable with . It took 3-4 mocks where I had a major gap in knowledge that I had to go back and research at least one major area each time. Mock 1 for sure was residual income and eva. Later is was those Forward rate agreements. I need to do a forward rate agreement problem every couple days or I forget it. I do not think memorizing forumula’s is effective. Understanding where the heck they come from goes a long way to remembering them on the exam. If you are having trouble with arbs and derivative formulas, search these forums for much easier ways to do both topics without all the complicated formula memorization. CFA does alot of this. We all know A=L+E But then they feel they need to tell us: L=E-A and E=A-L and then A=L+Rev-Exp+RE+CommonStock Where if you understand it, there is alot less formulas to memorize. Most of equity is based in DDM. So know DDM inside and out (single period, multiple period, h-model, etc) then just know how residual income, justified p/e’s, EVA, FCFF, FCFE all relate to DDM. There is much less to memorize then.
SF Candidate - if you made it to this point, you should definitely sit the exam next week. Think of it as if you’re long a European call option (purchased when you registered for the exam). No matter how out of the money you think passing is, the option is still yours. Given the variational difficulty of questions, vega seems quite large, thereby only increasing the NPV of the option you hold. Why let your option expire worthless? Give it your best shot. At worst you’ll get some key practice for taking it next year, at best you’ll be sitting L3 next year.
Thanks for the encouragment, but this program is something I cannot do. I understand the material and the answers to the questions once I read them, but there is some game here that I do not understand. Some disconnect between knowing the Schweser material and even understanding the EOC questions, but substantially failing the CFAI mock exams. I do not understand what point the institute is trying to make with all these tricks and twists.
It definitely is something you can do, but you will require extreme amounts of practice. I recommend you sit for this exam, get a feel for it, and then if you don’t pass (and you might pass), then you should start from square one in the fall with the CFA textbooks. Read them through, solve all EOCs. While reading the books, go back randomly to resolve EOCs from previous study sessions. Once you’ve read the CFAI books once, read Schweser three times. Reread sections you don’t get again and again. Do all questions, including all EOCs again. Do the Schweser questions, both in order and out of order. Then take 6 Schweser exams, 3-4 CFAI exams and both samples. If you don’t do okay after that, THEN think about ‘I cannot do it’.
SFCandidate I felt the same too, such a blow to your confidence, especially when you think you know the material (as you seem to if you score in the 90s on the Schweser Qs) but get tripped up due to the exam question style. Hang in there, I will too. It’s just 1 more week
tbh, you cannot possibly know the material, get 90% on schweser mocks, and then get a 36% on the CFAI mock. it’s not possible. 50%+ of this test is formulas and calculations. there is no subjective answer. it’s math and you either calculate it right or you don’t. there are no tricks or twists to calculating a fixed vs. floating swap denominated in 2 currencies. if you understand all the formulas and financial instruments, then you should be getting at least 50%.
Yeah, no offense but I DO NOT believe someone can get 90+ on schweser questions then fail miserably on CFAI mock…?? makes no sense Unless you’re idea of getting 90% is doing the questions right after reading the material on the topic so it’s fresh in your head, and mixed with a horrible memory (i.e., can’t remember anything beyond a few hours)…this is just garbage I actually find the CFAi mocks much easier than the schweser practice exams…but then again, their basically the same thing…just depends on what is being asked on the specific test sooo many points on CFAI mock are just theory based questions where john says this and that, and you have to know whether his statements are right or wrong…you must not understand anything from the curriculum to get 36%…but either way, there is NO WAY you are accurately getting 90% on schweser…just saying this pisses me off especially since you’ve been studing since November 1st, and you mentioned 14 hour days (wtf first of all)…i’m sure you understand the material really well if you truly dominate the schweser questions… you sure you didn’t just finish a bottle of whiskey or finish smokin a fatty right before the CFA mock?
u could have practiced translating a hyper inflationary subsidiary under IFRS in the time it took u to write that … give the guy a break!! lol MFIN— Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Yeah, no offense but I DO NOT believe someone can > get 90+ on schweser questions then fail miserably > on CFAI mock…?? makes no sense > > Unless you’re idea of getting 90% is doing the > questions right after reading the material on the > topic so it’s fresh in your head, and mixed with a > horrible memory (i.e., can’t remember anything > beyond a few hours)…this is just garbage > > I actually find the CFAi mocks much easier than > the schweser practice exams…but then again, > their basically the same thing…just depends on > what is being asked on the specific test > > sooo many points on CFAI mock are just theory > based questions where john says this and that, and > you have to know whether his statements are right > or wrong…you must not understand anything from > the curriculum to get 36%…but either way, there > is NO WAY you are accurately getting 90% on > schweser…just saying this pisses me off > especially since you’ve been studing since > November 1st, and you mentioned 14 hour days (wtf > first of all)…i’m sure you understand the > material really well if you truly dominate the > schweser questions… you sure you didn’t just > finish a bottle of whiskey or finish smokin a > fatty right before the CFA mock?
it killed me! if it’s an indication of how the real exam is like, i’m toast.
this has to be an error in the sample version #1 cfai exam, right? in getting FCFF the solution shows that they added depreciation to calculate change in FCinv. FCinv is just the change in long term assets, depreciation shouldn’t be factored in this part, right?
well, if the real exam is like this ill probably just pick my belongings and leave the hall.
theCFAway, If you are asking about q32, then you have to add depreciation to change in fixed assets, because fixed assets are given net of depr and you need gross change to get capex.
It is correct… As we all know, you adjust Net Income for depreciation because its a NCC in the Income Statement. But when they give you the balance sheet, you have to calc FCInv yourself. There are two ways: FCInv = Gross PPE (t) - Gross PPE (t - 1) FCInv = Net PPE (t) - Net PPE (t - 1) + Depreciation (t) The reason is simple - if you don’t adjust for depreciation, you are understating how much the company spent on PPE. Let’s say the company spends $100 on PPE during the year. And they recognize Depreciation of $50 during the year. So if you just calc net PPE as FCInv, you get $50. But they actually spent $100. Tricky! Also be careful when they bundle “Land” and “PPE” into “Net PPE” - I’ve seen it before. Land is never depreciated; so always get rid of it if they are carrying it through on the B/S. theCFAway Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > this has to be an error in the sample version #1 > cfai exam, right? in getting FCFF the solution > shows that they added depreciation to calculate > change in FCinv. > > FCinv is just the change in long term assets, > depreciation shouldn’t be factored in this part, > right?