Many people reported that they passed Level I at first try Some other people reported that they took twice the exam to pass Several friends (and friends’ friends) told me they didn’t have enough time and they took the exam three times to pass The maximum number I heard is 4 times. This guy took the morning session in the first time, both sessions in the 2nd time but too bad, the 3rd session he was close to pass but failed by a narrow step (he get 4 sessions 50-70, an 4 sectors > 70 including FSA). Then he passed at his 4th try with only one in 50-70, which is economics I admire him because I know he’s a busy guy. Usually people give up after 2-3 tries.
It’s an interesting question…I think I read about a guy who took Level 2 five times… As for Level 1… If you need 3-4 or more tries while trying hard, maybe consider something different. If you need 3-4 or more tries without trying hard, perhaps you could better spend your money and schedule your time better. Especially just for Level 1, which means nothing really, except as a foundation for the other levels…if you need 3-4 or more tries for each of the other levels…that’s like 9-12 years for the exams?! I think persistence is important, but up to a certain point…
sounds like many people pass Level I if they try
pass rate is < 40% for all 3, so this is not the CFP or even the CPA we are dealing with. this is a monster and with only 88,000 CFA holders in the WORLD, it is an elite club
if only 40% pass at all exams. then if you start with 100 applications, the people who are successful in ccompleteion of the program is 100 x .4 x .4 x .4 = 6.4, round down to 6. wow, so you are saying if there are 88000 cfa, then applicants are 88k/.06 = 1.466 mln. oh well i’d make a conjecture that there are about 1.466 mln who have about the same knowledge that of a cfa or are better, but just dont take the exam. how’s that? I know they work at hedge funds.
> if only 40% pass at all exams. then if you start > with 100 applications, the people who are > successful in ccompleteion of the program > > is 100 x .4 x .4 x .4 = 6.4, round down to 6. > wow, so you are saying if there are 88000 cfa, then applicants are > 88k/.06 = 1.466 mln. This analysis is seriously flawed since it is assuming so much, for example: 1. That 0.4 for each level may include people who take it 1, 2, …, n times. 2. Furthermore, those really mean nothing on an individual level and/or are not independent…for some people it’ll be ~1 x ~1 x ~1 = ~1 whereas for others it would be 0.2 x 0.2 x 0.2 = ~0.01. 3. I bet there are some issues with “before-the-fact” probabilities and “after-the-fact” statistics, and what you can infer from one given the other…I don’t know much about the formalism here in logic or stats. > oh well i’d make a conjecture that there are about > 1.466 mln who have about the same knowledge that > of a cfa or are better, but just dont take the > exam. how’s that? > I know they work at hedge funds. First, LOL, you are in violation (assuming you are a candidate, I bet you aren’t a member) of Standard VII(B): “Reference to CFA Institute, the CFA Designation, and the CFA program.” For example, refer to the first example on page 106 in CFAI 2008 Level 1, Volume 1, Exhibit 2. Second, assuming that 1.466 million figure is not totally meaningless…by your reasoning, perhaps you really meant to say: 1. 88k or 2. 1.466 million / 0.064 = 22,906,250? Either way, what does working at a hedge fund have anything to do with it? Writing this post was very entertaining for me.
pepp Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > if only 40% pass at all exams. then if you start > with 100 applications, the people who are > successful in ccompleteion of the program > > is 100 x .4 x .4 x .4 = 6.4, round down to 6. > > wow, so you are saying if there are 88000 cfa, > then applicants are > 88k/.06 = 1.466 mln. > > > oh well i’d make a conjecture that there are about > 1.466 mln who have about the same knowledge that > of a cfa or are better, but just dont take the > exam. how’s that? > I know they work at hedge funds. Well I’ve worked at hedge funds my whole finance life and that is not close to true, despite the hedge fund mystique. Being a CFA charterholder is about being a generalist and knowing something about everything (my particular strength in life). Being a hedge fund is about being able to find obscure or difficult to assume risks that might be useful for your clients. That rewards specialized knowledge lots more than generalist knowledge. Edit: That is not to saay that there aren’t plenty of smart people at hedge funds who could study for and pass the exams with much less trouble than the average test-taker.
JoeyDVivre Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > pepp Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > if only 40% pass at all exams. then if you > start > > with 100 applications, the people who are > > successful in ccompleteion of the program > > > > is 100 x .4 x .4 x .4 = 6.4, round down to 6. > > > > wow, so you are saying if there are 88000 cfa, > > then applicants are > > 88k/.06 = 1.466 mln. > > > > > > oh well i’d make a conjecture that there are > about > > 1.466 mln who have about the same knowledge > that > > of a cfa or are better, but just dont take the > > exam. how’s that? > > I know they work at hedge funds. > > > Well I’ve worked at hedge funds my whole finance > life and that is not close to true, despite the > hedge fund mystique. Being a CFA charterholder is > about being a generalist and knowing something > about everything (my particular strength in life). > Being a hedge fund is about being able to find > obscure or difficult to assume risks that might be > useful for your clients. That rewards specialized > knowledge lots more than generalist knowledge. > > Edit: That is not to saay that there aren’t plenty > of smart people at hedge funds who could study for > and pass the exams with much less trouble than the > average test-taker. Joey, Just to point out “what do you mean for smart people”? In my opinion, the fact that people have an MBA to Warton or Harvard doesn’t necessary mean they are smart. But unfortunately, if you are poor and you cannot afford such schools, it will be very hard to get in a hedge fund or top Investment bank. Proof me, if I am wrong. Note: I am not challeging anyone, I am just stating my point of view.
bosto, I am fully aware statement violates the standard. that’s why I said its conjecture. also i was throwing in some humor, i am having a heart attack trying to study for this exam but i know people who dont want to do this exam cuz they already think they know more than this, or better yet in their specialist finance field.