Exam 2 Volume 2 = rising panic

How did everyone find this exam? I was brutalized on the part where they ask to find the Returns, Beta, and Covariances of two countries. This drove me nuts because in 7 months of studying I have not seen anything like this. In addition, the questions about forecasting drove me nuts because it always seemed like something tucked in a sub folder, but then all of a sudden they asked a full blown question. Afternoon was tough too, thought I got 80%, only scored 68%. I suspect that there was a mistake because they said that one cannot create a Special Tax Vehicle but the Secret Sauce said you can. Anyways, it seems that no matter how hard one studies, the best one can do is write an exam and then plug in the gaps. How is everyone faring in the final days?

I didn’t find this one tough, but I guess it depends on what you were able to retain. I found 2008 morning very tough. I think I remember the SPV question, based on what was presented in the fact pattern it doesn’t make sense to create your own, although you can. What you wanted to do is find one to trade with to reduce credit risk.

The question about the two countries is what really demoralized me. After 7+ months of studying I was completely baffled on how to start it. I quess it is not a topic which has gotten much attention compared to other topics. Sometimes the testers dig into the curruculum and find stuff which has been neglected in the other study materials. I find that the average for most people posting is about high 60% to low 70%'s. There is one gentleman who has been studying about 25 hours a week since September and is pulling 80’s. Which makes me think, if a person has devoted over 700 hours and is getting 80%, it goes to show that getting a pitch perfect mark is next to impossible. Regarding people posting, how does this compare to the “silent masses” of writers. Many of the people on this board seem pretty passionate about passing. I have spoken to some people who are putting in a very general effort and don’t seem to have their hearts into it. The irony is that, the more I study, the less I seem to know and the more I understand the size of this exam. It is like exploring a cave which is dark with a small opening. As one walks inside the cavernous size becomes apparent and it looks more and more infinite. Studying has been a humbling experience. I can truely, honestly appreciate the sheer magnitude of care and knowledge which goes into this course. I have studied as much as I possibly could. I can only hope this will pay off on D-day.

we talking Schweser here?

Yup, the Volume 2 Exam 2 Schweser exam.

im not messing with Volume 2

I think this is a pattern that Schweser follows. The first 3 exams in book 1 are pretty standard. After that, they need to find material which they didn’t cover otherwise the exams would not be challenging. The second half covers stuff which is more obscure and people feel tossed around like a rag doll. However, now that I have mastered my weakness, the CFA exam is going to have to try extra hard to break me…bring it on…

Book 2 has always been stated by Schweser to be “Harder than real exam.” For the first two levels they didn’t quantify that but I have never gotten >70 on a book 2 exam and have only gotten <70% on one CFA section on the first two exams. Just looking over the book 2 exam 2 at lunch there was one question where the analyst made four different specific points and there was a second analyst making two points. The questions proceeded to ask, both correct, analyst a correct, analyst b correct. That makes 6 questions in a single question. Book 2 exams you need to know curriculum cold.

Paraguay. I saw your posts earlier. I recall that you are the person who mentioned that you have been doing 25 hours a week since September. If you are finding this tough, then it is a real challenge.