^I don’t know about that. I know that’s sound advice, but I have always studied the most the last few days.
Every test I’ve ever taken in my life, I’ve studied until I step in to the exam room.
Being able to relax the day before the exam has been a lifelong dream!
A few hours of less sleep will not take away the hundreds of hour spent studying
Hopefully this post could help future candidates that have trouble sleeping before the exam day. Maybe you are reading this post in the middle of the night trying to get asleep the day before the exam lol I did it too.
I passed Level II and III with 1 and 2 hours of sleep, respectively, as my anxiety got the best of me. I am not the smartest, yet I believe - as @DPBass88 said, “a few hours of less sleep will not take away hundreds of hour spent studying.” Well said by the way.
Knowing that I would not be able to fall asleep the day before the exam, I tried to have 6-7 hours of good sleep 1-2 weeks before. I also consumed healthier and protein-rich food, such as fish, chicken, etc and no junk food. One day of no sleep will not crush weeks of quality sleeps.
Eat breakfast! I ate oatmeal, fresh milk, and banana, while during the PM break, I ate whole-grain bread, tuna fish, and plain yogurt (to give a little bit of glucose for my brain). My point is that daily dietary intake is the integral part that should not be overlooked.
I also did 1-2 mock exams lacking sleep. It helped as it gave me a glimpse of doing the exam under exhaustive condition. Also, it will give you confidence boost, in case you weren’t able to sleep a night before, as you have done it previously.
Lastly, you have to trust your months of hard work. Not being asleep is not something I would recommend, but if you do, it is very possible to pass the exam. Trust yourself, you can do it!
P.S.: It is only based on my experience. Each of you may have different strategies and circumstances.
THIS. and also keep in mind, this journey is a marathon. getting yourself physically and mentally prepared is essential for exam day. Though, I went thru Ethics and GIPS very lightly on the day before, but nothing too extreme.
Yes. I struggle to fall asleep normally, even more so with any stress.
I got about a combined 80 min of sleep between levels I and II the past two years. About 35-45 min each time. It SUCKS. Both times I downed a couple cups of coffee at home, drank a giant Monster Energy on the way to the test, and re-upped on caffeine during the lunch break. I know consuming that much caffeine isn’t ideal. But desperate times call for desperate measures.
Levels II and III, sorry. Passed both
I couldn’t fall asleep at all before L2, felt like I were hangover towards the end of the exam, and passed. For L3, slept like a baby with no care in the world and passed.
The max sleeping time was 6 hours, the min was 5 hours I guess?
One of my buddies passed level 2 after smoking a blunt (he though smoking up would help him sleep, I also hit it but I got proper sleep) and not sleeping the entire night before (I’m not even joking) I know him very well and he is not gifted but prepared really hardcore ( we both failed level 2 and this was our second time around). Also if you can’t sleep, and even if you can sleep the night before, I always strongly advise a really strong sleeping aid (i.e. Nyquil double dose is what I do around 8 pm) and you pass out calmly and roll in FRESH.
The problem with sleeping aids is that even though you sleep, your brain and body doesn’t get the same kind of rest as in a normal state of rest. Those things affect the REM cycle and stuff.
I’d rather throw off the cycle for a night or two vs coming to exam with trash sleep tho - its one night I don’t play any games personally and Nyquil is not Ambien or serious sleeping drugs but it gives you that perfect warm feeling to forget about anxiousness and stress. Also I’m a very calm guy for the exam somehow just gotta not care cause you’ve been getting ready for that day so no point in stressing anymore
I slept 5-6 hours the whole week before Level 3 and 3-4 the night before exam. I need 8 hours of sleep to function. I feel a huge difference in brain power on 8 hours vs. a week of no sleep relative to what I need.
somehow my results are like my mock exam results, (good not great) and I passed.
adrenaline does weird things
I also took sleeping pills but it didn’t work at all. I even took a walk for about half an hour at 2 AM, hoping that I would get tired and fell asleep but no. These stressful conditions have taken a toll on me lol.
I basically did not sleep the night before…I took sleeping pills and still did not work… It was weird cause I felt so ready and was ready to write the exam a week earlier, relaxed most of the week with minimal studying… I was so disillusioned , spaced out and tired in the morning of exam, thought of not showing up to exam crossed my mind but I showed up and went for it and glad I did because finally PASSED.
As long as I got at least 4 hours of sleep, I think I would’ve been ok to go.
The adrenaline would’ve carried me through the test.
Passed with very sleep into the run up to the exam. Don’t know but why but cramming all this information just keeps my head spinning. That is one of the main reasons I am happy not to have to do this anymore
Coulndt sleep at 4am at the night before exam…passed but definaly dont wanna expirence it again.
For level 1, I didn’t sleep the whole last week properly because it was my first time giving the CFA exams and I was very stressed and tensed. Did not sleep even a single second before the exam day and on the day of the exam, I was dead. I couldn’t even sit properly, as my back was killing me and all I wanted was to go to bed but the adrenaline and stress kept me going and I managed to pass. For level 2, I could not sleep the day before but the prior weeks, I kept my sleep and diet in check and I felt much better on exam day. I guess it varies from person to person. I can function on low sleep and I learned this through university. Will I want to do this again? probably not but desperate times, desperate measures.
almost had zero quality sleep day before level 2 and level 3 due to anxiety, had surprising similar results for both levels and passed. level 3 was particularly bad, was falling asleep reading the questions at the beginning of PM session. guess unable to sleep well day before the exam happens to a lot of people. key is to get enough rest daily leading up to the exam. missing some just the day before doesn’t do much harm, at least for me.