GIPS: How to approach it?

CFA Level III
#1

What is the best way to read GIPS so that can remember the concepts?

Which points are important?

#2

Man, I don’t even think there is a good way to learn all that crap. Just make a bullet list of all the points and memorize, with emphasis on how GIPS differs from IFRS.

#3

is GIPS being confused with GAAP above?

#4

Hmm. Very possible that I confused one mind numbing list of unintuitive rules to memorize with the other mind numbing list of unintuitive rules to memorize…

#5

There’s no trick to GIPS - just got to rote learn it through repetition…

CPK: do yourself a favor and stay off AF until you’ve passed L3!

#6

No good way. Because it was so unintuitive, I avoided studying it until the last two weeks. Then just did a bunch of practice questions and got the main points down. IMO, its a low return on time to memorize every little GIPs trick.

Assuming it is a 6 question item set (which is not a garuntee, no idea how it will actually be tested), knowing the main points gets you 3/6 right & intelligent guessing gets you another 1 to 2. I’ll take a 4/6 or 5/6 on material like that any day of the week & just move on.

#7

Read the material and do the questions. No way around it. Do lots and lots of questions.

#8

The CFAI material skips around a lot on this topic. I am making my own notes, but reviewing the actual GIPS Handbook (available on the CFA Institute web site) is very helpful…everything is at least in order and explicitly bulleted.

And I don’t think it would be too difficult if not for those damn “on or after 1 Jan 20xx”, etc. Remembering a requirement vs. a recommendation is easy, but remembering which requirements apply to which dates is just brutal.

#9

I support what padniaki suggested, read the handbook, the GIPS are provided as a cleaner outline.

I suggest though try to understand why the standards are what they are (e.g. relate to other readings such as TWRR), it helps retention in some parts.

Work on the sample GIPS presentation in the handbook and it will help you practice on the checklist of rules.

@SFA

"CPK: do yourself a favor and stay off AF until you’ve passed L3! "

CPK politely implied that GIPS vs. IFRS is incorrect.

If he didn’t reply, some would have been confused.

Also, in fairness, I read a few of CPK’sresponses to questions and he has been giving straightforward explanation. On the contrary, the OPs and others just don’t get it and he keeps on responding. So kudos to his patience.

#10

Another padniaki endorsement here. I’m reading the handbook right now during my lunchbreak…quite possibly better than the CFAI text.

#11

indeed AllanC, after reading the handbook, test yourself with rapid quiz at rapidquizzer.com test site, awesome retention checker…

#12

Kill me now.

What is even the point of making us memorize all this shit? Do they think that printing presses and the Internet will explode and we won’t be able to access the rules in printed form or online?

Motherfuckers. Just tell us the intent behind each standard and a rough guideline for the standard. e.g. priority of valuations, special concerns for real estate and PE, etc. Just stop with the “on or before 1 Jan 2006” shit. Pointless.

#13

Well, for that matter, the same could be said about…the other 99% of the curriculum too.

They’re making it insanely hard just for the sake of making it insanely hard. It’s the same reason lawyers get all the glamour and notoreity of being a lawyer. Their job is not that hard–anybody can learn family law or how to form a corporation. The difficulty lies in the three years of law school.

And law professors (who are all former/current lawyers) have all the reason in the world to keep it hard (no homo)–because if you relax the standards, you get a lot of riff-raff in, and the prestige of the precious “JD” gets tarnished.

#14

I have not started reading GIPS, I am dreading to even start that after reading the comments here… Goodness me, again a lot of cramming to do :(((((((((((((

Is it good to just straight away take tests which help you memorize mates? I am dreading to even read it, I mean whats the point of reading it. I dont have that super brain to remember years or other nitty gritty in one reading anyway. So either I do multiple readings or take tests blindly which will help me remember more (I hope and think!)…

#15

memorize bullet points on GIPS website the last two weeks of May

#16

I don’t remember reading Ethics Professional Standards ever. From L1, I just practiced Questions in order to learn. I was thinking to use the same method for Gips.

#17

Some questions on using the GIPS Handbook available on the CFAI website.

  • Is the latest version Nov 2012 or updated version came later?

  • There is Q&A after most of the standards, would you suggest doing those?

  • The book is of 450 pages. I think it is detailed. Are you matching with the LOS and then picking points/ depth to go into? or using some other way?

#18

I would approach it from behind, quietly, with a blackjack in my hand.

#19

Let’s hope so. GIPS and IFRS/GAAP have nothing to do with each other.

#20

For what its worth, I took the exam in 2011 and studyied my tush off to be prepared for GIPS. I hade a 3 page word doc with notes. Dedicated an entire weekend in early May on GIPS. Felt pretty prepared.

Wasn’t tested.