I came across many posts mentioning that if someone did not do well in portfolio management in level 1 and 2 then he’ll end up having a rough time preparing for the exam and might actually find it real hard. I passed both level 1 and level 2 from first attempts. I did well in the portfolio management section in level 1 but sucked in level 2. However I did know the material well but still ended up scoring <50. I am going to start studying for level 3 in 3 weeks. I want an advice from those who did not work in portfolio management OR who faced difficulties in their specific area and ended up passing the exam. What is the best approach to study? I believe I can put +700 hours however I want to invest those 700 hours in the best way possible. I’ve also read that solving previous AM sessions and going back maybe 10 years back should help a lot. So mainly what I have to focus on is the following: -LOS Common Words -CFAI EOC exercises -CFAI/Schweser Material (I’m good at memorizing) -CFAI Mocks exams -Practicing time management (AM Session) -Look out for tricky questions in the PM session What can you guys add to this? I really appreciate it. Thanks
You have a very good schedule as it is. Saying that because you did not do well in PM in level 2 means Level 3 is going to be very difficult is just a myth with nothing to back it up. I failed in PM (despite the fact that I am a portfolio manager) and derivatives in Level 2 and passed at first sitting on Level 3. Just do your thing and don’t change your winning formula. Have a positive outlook and don’t joke with your ethics. It was ethics that saw me through Level 3, given my breakdown. One last thing, don’t bother memorizing for Level 3, you just need to understand the concepts and synthesize them. This goes deeper than cramming. You may need to manage a fixed income portfolio or a real estate portfolio for an individual client who manages an institutional portfolio that focuses on equity investments.