In the almost certain event that some of us here don’t pass L2 on our first try… When did y’all start re-reviewing? Did you wait longer since you’d already covered it? Or did you start sooner because you wanted to make sure you passed? Etc… Basically how did you prepare in a nutshell? (I wanted to ask this before the board blows up with results and gloating etc…) Hopefully this won’t be a problem for any of us!
I began my 2nd attempt preparation at around Nov. last year. But the delay was mainly due to the news of Lehman’s collapse and Schweser’s delay of the L2 notes. If I am to repeat my 2nd attempt, I would use the 2008 SchweserNotes and start in August. The tricky business is that you can’t really tell what exactly CFAI has changed in their curriculum. The LOS could be the same but the answers could be different. e.g. auction house as price vs order driven market. So to be safe, treat everything as new.
This is really sad eltia. I was hoping that if any of us had to do it again, we/I would at least not have to start all over again and maybe just put in a 3-4 months to refresh everything but you are right, the material changing and considering having to re-read all the CFAI text again would be very time consuming and dreadfully painful, requiring much more time, even for retakers. I would start in Dec, should the 18th be very unfortunate, that would be twice the time I had before. Thinking about it makes me pewk.
Look at the bright side. L2 is the “kitchen sink” in the CFA curriculum. Once you move on to L3, you won’t get sandwich again (you will be sandwiching the poor L2 souls). Stress is also another challenge. Intuitively, one would expect repeating an exam would be easier. Consequentially, failing on second attempt could be more painful than failing on first try. L2 is a b*tch. I will be happier to get rid of L2 than when I get rid of L3.
LOL… so you are saying being in L2 means you are getting “compromised” by L1 and L3 with top down and bottom up pressure? Fair to say, this is a very bad position to be in…hahaha L2 is a massive pain in the ass, brain, abdomen and especially your back . L3 would be a so sweet.
I am just saying that when CFAI needs to make adjustment to L1 and L3 exams, L2 often become the logical candidate as a buffer to hold the transitional materials. It has nothing to do with pressure. It’s just the way the CFA curriculum is being setup. One level has to be in the middle (which is L2). If you have a better idea on how to arrange the CFA curriculum, I am sure CFAI would be interested to hear about it.
eltia Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I am just saying that when CFAI needs to make > adjustment to L1 and L3 exams, L2 often become the > logical candidate as a buffer to hold the > transitional materials. > > It has nothing to do with pressure. It’s just the > way the CFA curriculum is being setup. One level > has to be in the middle (which is L2). > > If you have a better idea on how to arrange the > CFA curriculum, I am sure CFAI would be interested > to hear about it. I was just kidding with the “pressure” stuff =) the whole notion of being sandwich is kind of funny. If I could I would get rid of L2 all together and make L1 and L3 much harder and we all can be done in two years which is more like a masters degree anyway.
I put in almost as much time the second time around as the first but it was also a little more relaxed.
Surprised myself somewhat, but I have already started up again, going through some CFAI equity chapters today at work and some Secret Sauce last evening. I have found that dipping back into the material - even just lightly - has helped put the disappointment of not having passed L2 behind me. I’ll feel even better once I re-register for June 2011…maybe I’ll do that this weekend. Although for some this may seem too early to be resuming preparation, I do not want to forget any more of the material. Unfortunately I can tell that a good amount has already leaked out of my brain over the past two months… One thing I can say for sure is that it’s nice to be able to go through the books and already be familiar with the material. Such a big difference from the first read, which had plenty of WTF moments of incomprehension. I also know where I probably went wrong in my studying and on the exam, so this should help me focus on quality instead of quantity. Also a very nice feeling knowing that I have ten more months to nail down this stuff and REALLY be prepared for the exam.
dapoopa: Great post…I am considering starting this month as well. Good luck to all of us L2 2nd-year-sandwiches!
Started too, at work, there is almost nobody, so it’s ok. Love my ebook. And I take it easy
For me, I am no genius but I am one of the most hardworking people you will ever come a across. I am resitting Level 2 again. Last outing I did not deserve to pass because I did not put in the hours required. So, this is my stategy: >Ensure I put in at least two hours every week day & eight hours on the weekend. >Read,make short notes & do EOC questions from September to end of March. >For this month I am going through Schwesser Level 1 notes to refresh myself. >Will also employ audio notes for use when I am in transitting from home to work and back and when I am working out. >Will not read in order but rather alternate among all subjects. That is one study session per subject then move to the next subject and do one study session and move to the next subject. I will do this so I can get a feel of all materials. Will also always do a refresher with audio notes once I return to do the next study session in the specific subject. >From April to D-day I will read schwesser summarized notes, ran through the audio notes, do EOC questions again, schwesser practise exams , & MOCKS exams. >Plan to get at least 15 days of my work leave to maximize the last days to D-day. With this I should be able to cover close to 500 hours of study between September and March. My only concern is, BURNOUT & INFROMATION OVERLOAD!!! Your thoughts?
To reduce the risk of burnout, forget about revising Level 1. It is a useless exercise. I also think that it might be wise to read the subjects in order (I did not do it that way though and I almost regretted it). You need to read and understand Quant and Econs before hitting Derivatives or PM…