My question is in regard to the extent of formula memorization needed for the Lvl 1 exam. As an example, I’ve been working on the formula for sample kurtosis and its fairly complex to remember if I have to remember 100+ other formulas as well. Am I wasting time memorizing these formulas extensively? Or will I likely need them all?
You really have to use selective judgement. Pay attention to which formulas are used heavily in the EOC questions. When I did L1 I used a combination of how complicated the formula was plus how many time it was mentioned in the EOC questions and whether or not it is specifically mentioned in any of the LOS. Extremely complex formulas are unlikely to be on the exam, as the exam tests more concept than execution (although there is a lot of execution). It’s more important to know what it means for distribution to have a kurtosis of 3.5 then it is to know how exactly to calculate kurtosis. There are 240 questions over 360 minutes of the exam, leaving you about 1.5 minutes per question. Keep this in mind when you think about which formulas to memorize. Is the formula so long and complex that you couldn’t be able to write and calculate it in 90 seconds? This is not a perfect litmus test, but it is a starting point. For something like kurtosis you’re talking about summing, cubing, and dividing the differences of several pairs of numbers. These are things to keep in mind.
EOC questions call for calculating kurtosis and skewness. I nearly got sick to my stomach thinking I might have to remember this for the exam. I decided that if confronted with something that detailed, I’d punt and guess. I wouldn’t allocate the time for something that incredibly difficult. Fortunately, as others will tell you, you need to understand the concepts more than the math.
Thanks for the input.
You do not need to calculate skewness and Kurtosis. LOS says Define and interpret skewness and kurtosis
i looked up the PDF of all the LOS’s online and copied and pasted all the ones that said “calculate”, “compute”, “estimate”, “determine” etc. into one MS Word document and then wrote out and learned those formula. I didn’t need to calc Kurtosis or Skewness on the exam for L1 and the LOS backs that up. On the other hand, variance of a two stock portfolio formula is a bit of a bear and i learned it and on the CFA mock test they asked me to calculate it but gave me the formula in the question which was odd.
It is my understanding that even when a question is asked that requires the use of a formula
It is my understanding that even when a question is asked that requires the use of a formula on the level 1 exam, that you may be able to look at it and determine an answer that “looks” wrong without even knowing the formula or without even calculating it. It is more of a concept exam. Also, I have heard from some people that there are so few calcs to be performed on level 1 that you might be better of just guessing on them and instead focusing on other question.
When the difference between a pass or fail is a few marks, why take the risk? However, I know where you’re coming from, NYLS - I wouldn’t plead complete ignorance.
Always look at LO at beginning of the reading - it clearly states if you need to know how to compute it or not - for kurtosis, level 1 dec. exam isnt required 
good luck
the skewness and kurtosis formulas can be simplified as follows, and Im sure they produce the same values (or very close) as the ones in the curriculum, but way easier to memorize skewness sum (Yi - y bar)^3 / [(n-1)^3 * s^3] where s is the standard deviation kurtosis sum (Yi - y bar)^4 / [(n-1)^4 * s^4] for excess kurtosis just subtract 3. all you have to remember is skewness has a 3 for exponents and kurtosis a 4, which makes sense when you consider what skewness measures. you can only see skewness (+ or -) with an odd exponent. http://www.itl.nist.gov/div898/handbook/eda/section3/eda35b.htm
You need to know how a change in certain #'s will affect the formula. Will it go up, go down or stay unchanged. That is HUGE!