I was helpful that they provided a *few* formulas or didn’t make you do the entire set of calculations from scratch (e.g. the binomials) in several instances…
Feedback is helpful guys. Enrollment starts from today for March 11 exam so I am going to do it before 15th Nov last date. How about curriculum? Official curriculum just has 2 books. Has anyone studied just from there? Do these books have any practice problems?
When I took level one it was a mirror of the test bank. When I took level two as one poster commented, CAIA took the smallest item and blew it up into a full 10 point essay question. The randomness of the exam makes it extremely difficult to learn every single aspect in detail. I will def have to resit this one in March.
Just wanted to add my two cents worth. I too thought it was quite a tricky exam. But I don’t think it’s a Schweser vs. Uppermark vs. Official curriculum thing. We’ve got people on this forum using all three saying they found it difficult. Personally I primarily used uppermark but I had also read the core topics curriculum book. I think where I tripped up is thinking that some points were major when they were minor and vice versa, a sentiment shared by others on this topic. ----------------- Official curriculum: Advantages: The Real Thing. Is offered at the same time as the study guide is published. Disadvantages: Lack of practice questions. ----------------- 3rd Party prep guides: Advantages: Consolidated notes. Lectures and flashcards (optional). Loads of practice questions (end of chapter, QBank and sample exams). Support from lecturer. Disadvantages: Can’t read examiners’ minds (who can?), lag time between release of curriculum and publishing of new materials
Well how were your results. What worked? What did you wish you did differently?
I’ve always thought that if you simply try to master the material in the actual curriculum (as opposed to a prep course) you’ll get the double benefit of giving yourself a very good shot at passing the exam and also learning the subject.
results will be out in November
Captain Windjammer Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I’ve always thought that if you simply try to > master the material in the actual curriculum (as > opposed to a prep course) you’ll get the double > benefit of giving yourself a very good shot at > passing the exam and also learning the subject. I’m not so sure about that. I use the prep material since I learn though application. If I read it, I’ll forget it. I need the variety of questions to challenge me. The variety of questions through the Qbank helps me drill into weak areas and review where I need to. If the official curriculum had something similar, I would be all over it. Until then, I’ll stick with some of the 3rd party materials.
Practice questions certainly can be useful; I was referring more to using prep materials to get the substance in place of the actual curriculum materials, which seems like a silly idea to me absent extenuating circumstances.
I feel you pain friend… I took level 2 in March 2020 (waived for level 1 under the CFA designation) and failed. I passed CFA , FRM, CMT and CFP easily and am employed in a profession that covers multiple CAIA topics. I used Schwesers top of the line package and had 325 hours invested in prep for the exam. The exam was more difficult than the test bank schweser provided. There was not enough time to finish the essay portion of the exam. I am retaking for the spring of 2020 but will not be using schweser as i feel for all the exams shweser provides prep material for the CAIA exam is the weakest. I will be using uppermark based on the comments on this site and others I will emphasize more prep for current and integrated topics as i think that was the difference maker. The exam was not necessarily more difficult than other types of exams but was more cryptic in design and what they were looking for as far as answers. Just Knowing the learning outcomes will not guarantee you passing the exam in my opinion. It was somwhat humerous getting the phone call from CAIA person trying to console me on failing the exam and encouraging me to spend more money to retake the exam. My favorite comment was " you are not alone ,many people fail the exam" LOL 
did you re-sit in September 2019 SeekingAlpha? If you did, how did you find it?
I sat in September for L2 and I think comparing this to level II CFA is irrelevant at best. You have to play the player, not the game on these exams. CFA Level II requires mountains of calculation recollection and ability to apply those in various situations you may come across. CAIA states that level 2 should be roughly 30% calculate questions, and the rest conceptual, mainly centered around your ability to understand lists of “pros/cons” to various topic areas. IMO, understanding these lists are useful if a client communicates something like “why should I invest in private equity secondaries” or “I am low risk, looking for stable cash flows in real estate in real estate” so I get why CAIA formats it likes this (I’ve been overseeing and implementing an alternative platform for RIAs for the past 3 years and most of your time is spent trying to communicate the pros/cons to clients because that is the biggest bottleneck in the alternatives space - a lack of education, fear of the unknown, and unwillingness to change (they are used to stocks/bonds). By knowing the underlying “lists” the curriculum teaches, you are able to understand basic differences between the various alternatives available in the market, which is required to form suitable portfolios and form the right networks for what your tasks are.
Here is a rough take on how I approached the exam: Take a list of 5 things, and remember 3 of them. Take a list of 8 things (like 8 benefits of CTAs) and remember 4. Print out the formulas at the end of the two books, and go through them over and over until you can look at the title of the formula, and write it out (after you have gone through material). If you create a study plan where you read the section, work the questions in the CAIA workbook, work the questions in the q-bank, watch the online videos (I did this while doing cardio before lifting for 30-40 minutes 4-5x per week) and make notes/notecards when reading to remember these “lists” by making it more manageable, then hit practice exams hard the last month and review areas you got wrong, this test is more than manageable if you have 150-200 hours to put into it. Also review the Current topics toward the end/closer to the exam so they are fresh. Good luck on L2.
Disclosure: past study habits applied to this exam do not guarantee future passing results. Study habits may vary by person and you should develop a study plan that works for you given your time constraints and learning style.
First, congrats to everyone who passed level two.
I have a question about level 2. Both levels have multiple choice questions on areas such as hedge funds, real assets, and private equity. How do the questions differ between levels. I guess I am asking this. Could you pass in those areas just using level one study materials, or do the questions explore different areas of the topic.
Agreed. I thought the CAIA II test available on the web site was a miserable representation of the questions asked last month. The amount of time necessary to answer the questions, especially since you needed to show your work, was far too great.