only used schweser....................

CFA Level II
#21

Believe it, baby!

#22

I used Schweser for my main reading in Level II and used CFAI books for clarification and EOC/blue box problems. Passed Level II on 2nd try in 2011.

Schwes gets you 80% of the way there, but you need to go through the LOS and EOC questions repeatedly in the CFAI books after that.

I had NO background in finance. Just CFA Level 1.

Did same thing for Level III and keeping my fingers crossed. SCHWES RULES.

#23

they sent an email saying that these topics mentioned as optional in the CFAI text is actually a testable material.

#24

2nd on Scheweser Rules! Master Schwesers and you got yourself a very very good chance to pass.

#25

exactly… *PEACE*

#26

schwesr DOES not include a chunk of CFAI official curriculm syllabus… thats wut ive seen. *PEACE*

#27

Passed L2 with only FI <50, and Alt Inv and Ethics in 50-70.

Used Schweser note, Elan Videos, CFAI EOC + a few blue boxes. Didn’t bother much with QBank.

I’m glad I didn’t waste my time with reading CFAI. Seems a massive overkill.

Background: engineering degree + 10 years working various roles in derivatives.

And yeah, sure, Schweser had a few holes in it, but those were covered by CFAI EOCs and Elan videos.

#28

Also did Level 1 Dec 2012 and Passed Level 2 in June 2013

Only used Schweser Notes with Econ/PM < 50%, Ethics 50-70, rest 70+

Did 5 mocks total, first 4 Schweser mocks and the official CFAI mock, got around 75% in all the mocks

Highly recommend getting schwesser, studied around 250 hours. Started studying in Feb and finished Schweser notes by the 2nd week in April, 2 weeks of review of all the materials, and then a mock every weekend until the exam

#29

i also did 6 practice exams + 1 cfa mock… *PEACE*

#30

I passed all three levels using only Schweser and attending three 3-day reviews: one for each level.

That was a while ago.

#31

Did schweser online class, would skim chapters and do a couple questions from either schweser or the CFAI stuff. Probably studied 2 hours per week plus three hour class for all sections except Accounting where i put in more time bc it’s all new to me. I read the secret sauce book leading up to the test. Did 1.5 Schweser exams and the Mock. I did study a lot the final two weeks doing most of the end of chapter readings in schweser and also doing questions from CFAI books for equity and FRA. Passed with >70 in FRA, Equity, Ethics and PM. 50-70 in the rest. I think you’re fine just using schweser. Yes, a couple things weren’t covered but 4 or 5 questions out of 120 shouldn’t kill you. FWIW I do macro economic analysis. Not really exposed to a lot of the material on the test regularly.

#32
#33

Having failed it in the past using only Schweser and being pleasantly surprised at the ease of this year’s test (and passing), I think this is a year where you COULD only pass using Schweser. The topics they covered were all well done by Schweser where in years past that wasn’t the case.

#34

many of my frnds from previous years have used schweser and passed comfortably…

BTW .here in india almost 90% guys use schweser… *PEACE*

#35

I think I have passed CFA level 2 especially because I used Elan at the end. The mock exams came out late, but they where absolute comparable to the original exam and helped my to discover weaknesses. Without Elan I probably would not have got the results I finally got. I really can recommend the mock exams. I only used the Elan summary at the end. Did not even look into the Schweser books again. I memorized thew Elan Summary. It really helped me. I saw a lot of people who failed the exam writing there own summaries until 4 weeks before the exam. I did not even wrote a single page. I used Elan summary and added some comments. This was really helpful.

Problem is that at the moment Elan does not exist for Level 3, so I really need to find a different way of studying

#36

Only schweser is enough

I recommend reading schweser 3 times at least

Please solve questions from the past 5 years CFAI mocks and schweser practice exam

I did both level 1 & level 2 from shweser

level 1 9 sections over > 70%

level 2 8 sections over >70%

#37

many people were saying that this year level 2 was easier compared to previous years. is it true??? *PEACE*

#38

I only, and will only take it once. But the pass rate was about the same as normal (1% higher) so I’d have to imagine it was about normal.

#39

Hey kids–do not try this at home.

I used only Schweser at Level 2. It was more than enough to pass.

#40

Used only Schweser, never laid eyes on the CFA book or Elan, never watched video, nor went to CFA camp. Passed 1st try, everything over 70 except for Ethics (between 50 and 70). Took L1 in Dec, used only Schweser, everything over 70. Newish to the finance industry.

This is not meant to be an advertisement of Schweser, only to show that really understanding the material is wayyyyy more important than the quantity of the material.

I get frustrated reading some of the comments because it seems that ppl just want to fall on going through as much material as possible. That’s such an uphill battle that you probably will lose. But if you understand the fundamental mechanics behind cash-carry, interest rate parity, whatever, you don’t need a ton of information to derive the answers.