Debate: Is 10+ AM mocks that important?

CFA Level III
#21

it’s easier to pick points up on IPS than on PM. And the curriculum BB/EOC doesn’t prepare you well for IPC… so you need mocks.

30 hours more study of GIPS will bag you 3-6 points. 30hours drilling IPS AM mocks will bag you 30points.

ask me in august…

https://www.300hours.com/articles/how-many-cfa-practice-exams-every-candidate-should-be-doing

#22

I am a big advocate of watching output (scores), rather than input (number of hours or mocks). I did 7 am mocks. Would have done another couple if I had more time or really thought I was having trouble. My scores rose consistently, and all would have been passing. I can’t fathom retaking the same exams. I understand people who redo only questions they missed.

Some of my problems on early mocks just wouldn’t have turned up in regular studying. Answering only part of a question. Realizing I was using the wrong version of a formula. Switching back and forth on beginning and end of period annuity payments.

i watched total scores and scores by topic closely. I went back to Schweser and or CFAI text on a few answers for each exam. I had also tracked closely my end of chapter questions as I studied. Assuming I pass, I’ll detail the process for our local CFA society’s study program. I find a solid idea of how well you are doing in general and seeing where your weak points are makes for very good use of time.

I was well prepped for handling even the first mock. If you have the Schweser materials, watch the video how to do the AM exams. If you are doing CFA prior year AM exams and want more background on a question you missed, they also have good videos on each of the recent ones. Don’t watch every solution video unless you have immense amounts of time. I think I watched 4, where I wasn’t satisfied with the CFAI answer key.

I personally found the CFAI old AM exams both harder to get the same score on, but also much better written than Schweser.

#23

For L3, again wasn’t able to do any mocks (i’m in IB so I really don’t get much study time) -

I’m sure your mom and boyfriend are proud of you

#24

Hope you pass too! :slight_smile:

#25

my opinion - yes, doing as many mocks as possible is crucial to passing. last year I thought that reading the curriculum cover to cover and doing eoc questions, with a few mocks (if there’s time left), will work. It did with Levels I and II.

so I’d been reading till perhaps 3 days before the exam, and then took official AM and FM mocks by CFAI, which are both structured as multiple choice item sets. Had no time to do past AM actual exams or mocks from side providers in essay-type form. And that was the biggest mistake I think. On exam day got ruined by the very first question in AM and left 2 full questions unanswered. When results came, only 2 topics were 50-70, rest below 50 in AM. At the same time, did well in PM - 4 sections were 50-70, 5 above 70, none below 50.

so not taking enough mocks last year was the main reason I failed.

this year focused on doing as many mocks as possible. what I’ve learnt by doing mocks and then going through guideline answers - you need to answer clearly, in black or white - and not try to fit 2 answers into 1. better to take a side, risking that it will be the wrong one, than to answer vaguely in gray. this I’d never have learnt just by reading the curriculum.

let’s see in August if it worked ) at least this year managed to answer all questions in AM.

#26

Doing the mocks is important to get a feel for the timing and format BUT… don’t expect to pass just by memorizing old AM questions

#27

I did not go through any timed tests…but I did look at a few of the older papers and tried to scribble the answers and then check how far away my answers were from the actual answers…I think I did ok in AM, PM. I think it is a good idea of trying to time your tests, you may discover how to speed up, how much to speed up and to get a sense of where your timing lies…and may be be briefer or more indepth in your responses… as far as I am concerned I think I try to do these as quickly as possible any ways… so couldn’t probably have done any quicker… I try to be to the point and thought about being more elaborate if I had more time in the end…I did not have that extra time… so, I think the point of how many mocks to do and how many are required is really relative… some of us may learn more from it than others…but looking and verifying the answers is important though to just increase your understanding and the expectations.

#28

No, not by memorizing, but there were two patterns:

  • Most of the IPS and behavioral questions were best studied from past AMs. I think you just get better with more of them.
  • In the “Asset Allocation to Performance Evaluation” topics, there were about 15 equations or similar problems that were asked more than once in the past 10 years (I just kept detailed notes as I did past AMs). Only 2-3 of them would be asked in any year, but if you learned all 15 well, you were almost guaranteed 2-3 question parts.

But, agree that that only helps you go in knowing you can earn a certain minimum score – like assuming a score of 33% in the PM with no study. Above that min, it’s just a crap shoot where you have to know everything but ethics/gips, and to some depth.

#29

Well said… The pattern emerges as i did AM since 2007. You also know how exam focus has changed over the years. From broad based to prescriptive in terms of where and how to answer. Some concepts like loss aversion, risk aversion, momentum effect and in general different traps and biases are best learnt through mocks. Btw, i’m drawing blank on them already!