How are you guys doing in practice exams from Schweser and CFA (old)?
I am scoring in 50s% in AM and 65-70% in PM. I have done all 3 tests from Practice book 2 of Schweser.
Low 40s% in AM and high 50s% in PM. Schweser book 1, first 3 tests. Have to really work hard now and a bit worried too.
the same with you
took 1 full timed test and just under 60 on both am and pm. A lot of simple mistakes with formulas b/c its been awhile since ive seen them but I feel im on pace…on level 2 I never tested above 70 on the practice exam and passed but you never know…way too much material that can be tested to ever feel confortable…just have to keep pushing forward and hope the questions are in your zone.
Keep in mind the possibility of a marker going to town on your AM paper and having to catch up on the PM. Prepare for the worst and mark yourself conservatively on the practices.
How do you get scores on the AM if it is essay?
You guess.
So if we assume that PM is a good indication of AM, then what would be a target score on the PM mock exams?
Do you think 80% on PM mock’s would equate to 60% on AM and thus give us an average of 70%??
Or is there really no correlation between PM and AM scores?
Thanks
I wouldn’t make any assumptions about the correlation between morning and afternoon. The morning works from a completely different part of your brain.
You have to be knowledgable about the material and highly practiced in applying it under serious pressure. You have to know both the right answer (which is often quite easy), and why it’s the right answer (much harder). It’s the “why” I think, that trips people up.
A year ago, I was exactly where you are today – trying to find some way to guage preparedness for the morning. There is no way to do that because nobody who has actually graded an exam will share information about scoring.
Pick a scoring methodology (I used Schweser’s approach, even though I hated their AM exams). Take all the CFA AMs that are out there, and score each test consistently. Look for improvement in your own scores as you go. But don’t pay any attention to whatever anybody says they got on their tests.
Since you asked, my personal theory is that 60% in the morning is the same as 70% in the afternoon. But that’s just my theory.
Still probably three weeks til I complete the curriculum…
for me when grading I only give myself credit if my answer is 100% correct. So hopefully all my scores for practice test will be at the low end of my range but no way of knowing.
Does anyone know if a question asks for 1 answer for example 1 liquidity need for an investor and you put down 2 (b/c your not 100% on either) and 1 is correct and the other is incorrect if they will give you credit or not? Hopefully that example was clear enough for a response.
Thanks
If they ask for 1 correct example of XYZ and you write down 2 examples of XYZ, only the first XYZ you write down will be graded. The second will be ignored. It’d be wasting your time to write down more that what is requested (same goes for any question).
Not seeing much progress
AM AM PM PM PM CFAI 2011 Schweser #1 (2013) CFAI 2011 Mock CFAI 2012 Mock Schweser #1 (2013) 69% 64% 70% 77% 67%
Averaged 81% on 14 Mocks taken last year for LII. LIII is ridiculously more brutal in comparison.
What does your average on L2 mocks have to do with your average on L3 mocks?
Just goes to show how much more difficult L3 is/can be for some. Before studying for L3 I was curious how it compares to L2 and I remember some people on this forum suggesting that L3 is actually easier in terms of curriculum (supposedly, about as broad, but not as deep as L2), but my results so far suggest otherwise.
But you’re assuming you know something about the MPS for L2 and L3 and that you also know how you did on the L2 exam relative to your practice exams. Do you know any of that?
I believe the conventional wisdom holds that the MPS for all levels is ~65% and 70% is always a guaranteed pass (judging from the way the exam results are reported). Not sure about L3 though. Is there any evidence that it’s different for L3? And, yes, I am fairly certain my performance on the actual L2 exam wasn’t significantly different from my Mocks (judging from how they compared in terms of difficulty and the results reported).
You can’t even know your score from the actual exam.
The point is this:
The ONLY thing that matters is your score on the L3 exam in June, and working on maximizing THAT score.
It doesn’t matter what your score was on L2.
It doesn’t matter how well other people do.
It doesn’t matter what the passing rate is.
It doesn’t matter what the MPS is.
None of that crap matters. Only one test matters. YOUR actual test on JUNE 1. Until then, you should just do whatever you can to maximize your score on that exam.
Pretty certain the MPS is lower for Level III. Check the 40/60/80 results compiled by AF.