That was similar to my Band 9 matrix last year, passing 4 subjects, but failing FRA and Ethics… it underlines how important FRA is, and you have to make it a strong point so you can manage 80% in that section no matter what CFAI throws at you.
I agree… the L2 curriculum is really a multitude of finance formula’s surrounded by a bunch of text that talks about what they mean. Not only know the formula’s but know cause and effect, i.e. what happens when one parameter goes up and the other goes down. A lot of tricky questions come from those relationships.
@ scott wow i can’t imagine. To be so close twice. I think Bloomberg’s great - failed last year band 6, this year passed with 8/10 areas >70% (except for PM/derivatives). What was different? Bloomberg - they did not have Level 2 prep material for 2016 exam year… I credit Bloomberg with the pass and have a lot to say about it. I’ve actually done an interview with 300 hours about it. Can provide details if you or anyone would like
I used some IFT video material for L2 (Band 7) and think they did a good job for derivatives (50-70). Mocks are good to start out mocking, they are imho easier than CFAI mocks though.
Yeah im not having a go it’s just something ‘i tell myself’ because i have failed and it helped me deal with it
I’m sorry 10K - that sucks and I know - I’ve been there. I was band ten last year and crushed it this year w/ more focused studying. Sometimes it felt like a waste of a year but like you said, it is what it is and you simply have to push forward. Re your matrix, ethics and portfolio management are HUGE parts of the third exam so maybe look at it as if you’re refining your knowledge base in preparation for L3. Good luck and keep your head up!
whyisitsodifficult, would love to see details on that Bloomberg interview if you don’t mind sharing. This goes back to my previous comment and relates to a lot of threads I see on what/who/how to study. As mentioned, I recently failed level 2 band 10 for the second consecutive year. While I could complain and think retab, its not going to do much at the end of the day. I’ve decided to give it another go around, and the only thing I’m slightly pissed about is that Bloomberg wasn’t available sooner. Everyone studies in their own unique way, but based off the trial run I’m currently in, Bloomberg’s interactive platform is the best thing I’ve ever seen. It drills you with questions and presents the material in a very straightforward way. I’m excited to use it, and will complement it with CFAI EOC, Topic Tests, and tons of mocks. I’m also a big fan of Wiley 11th hour.
Hey CEO10K,
I’m sorry man… I know your pain trust me… This year was the 3rd time I took the lvl 2 exam and finally managed to pass by changing my approach.
2015: Failed band 5… I knew I failed after the exam since I hadn’t put enough time to do practice exams and problems
2016: Failed band 10… I felt confident after the exam and was sure I would pass this time around.
2017: Passed with nothing under 50%, 4 subjects 50% - 70% and 6 over 70%. What I did different was I put a lot of time (2 months before the exam) to do as much mocks and questions I could get my hands on. The best advise I can give you is to master FRA and Equity because they both account for 50% of the exam. This year I rocked both of them and knew I answered correctly to almost every single question. I put more time on those subject and it def paid off. Don’t quit man, next time is your time to shine.
If you want a quick review, the IFT summary videos might work well for you.
Sorry about this – it sounds like you were close. Ethics and FRA are big ones.
If FRA is an issue for you, I’d highly recommend John Harris’s live Accounting Workshops next spring. He explains things really well.
Also, make sure you do all of the CFAI TT/EOC and understand why you got questions wrong. As I said in another post on this forum, I had limited time this year for personal reasons but I made sure I did every CFAI TT / EOC question I could get my hands on, and I was very fortunate to pass – there was still a lot of the exam that was tough but I benefited from pattern recognition and trying to reason out – someone once told me that on L2, a well-reasoned guess can get you pretty far. It was an extremely stressful several weeks but anything is possible. You’re close – you got this.
Do the CFAI topical questions…the one you login after registering…those are gems!
No matter which band you are in, keep doing mock exams and reviewing them.
I went from Band 10 to passing. I studied even more. I focused on the four heaviest weighted sections. I did worse in derivatives and AI even in Ethics than when I got Band 10, but I passed because I got over 70% in FR&A and Equity and I assure you I struggled in FR&A.
clearly you need to study FRA & ethics better. especially FRA.
@scott apologies for late response did not see message until now… I did the interview for Level I but the same definitely applies to level II and for Level III I’m sure as well. Good luck - I found it much better than reading tons of text and watching videos. Even though Wiley’s videos are taught by good instructors - I personally felt it hard to replicate the concepts after watching the 15/20/sometimes 30+ min lectures…)
Here is the link -> https://www.300hours.com/articles/passing-cfa-level-i-with-bloomberg-cfa-prep
I’m taking 2018 exam as though it is my first attempt on the L2 exam. I’m studying using Schweser notes, ARIF videos, CFAI curriculum EOCs and blue boxes. I’ve registered and started studying already. Every attempt is a new start. What i’m doing differently this year is i’m going to do a lot of exam conditioned mocks starting 2 months before the test day. I hope this works well.
you will forget everything by March
That’s if I stop reading.
Hi folks,
I have made concerted efforts to prepare my hand-written notes while preparing for Level II. Inevitably, I believe this would be of much help to you all. It is strictly according to the curriculum. The notes contain very important points as in:
1. Mock appeared topics/lines
2. Lifeline (any sentence/formulae) which forms the foundation of any topic; the triggering part.
For brevity, it is the crux of curriculum, so don’t consider it to be a substitute of curriculum. For deep digging and best understanding, would recommend you to read curriculum or schweser whichever you want.
You can share your mail id over here. Will mail you the files thereon.
All the best.