Hey guys, Thus far I have read FSA and ethics in CFAI, Corp Finance in Schweser, and watched econ and quant with the videos. After I get done watching the rest of the vids, I am going to start going problem crazy. My question is this: I haven’t done much book to video comparison; the book and video subjects that I have covered have not overlapped. Have you used the videos, and if so, do you thing they adequately cover the written material in sufficient depth to actually use them as a substitute for you initial read prior to getting your hands really dirty? I may be a glutton for punishment but I kind of like the videos and even though there is like 40 hours of material, it seems like its easier to swallow to me. Did you feel that they inclusive enough to be considered complete relative to the readings?
I have seen the videos…and I think they do a decent but not perfect job. Example: I suck at Quant… well i’m not great at it… the videos… make it easier to understand but the book has the entire explanation of probability rules…etc (too wordy and complex…at least for me). The video briefly describes them and moves on… for quant neither the videos or book were helpful… i got a used prob. book from a friend which covered everything in the CFA…which was my savior. so… i guess for the most part the videos… do a decent job…but just refer to the schweser notes/books to get it all. without the videos… i wouldn’t have understood how to create a cash flow statement.
If you rely only on the videos, unless you’re a financial genius or have seen this stuff in some detail in a grad or undergrad program, you’ll fail. This goes for Stalla and Schweser, I have both. They hit the high points, but the nitty gritty detail you’ll need can only be found in either the CFAi text or the study guides for each provider. I actually prefer reading before I watch the videos. I have the basics down and the videos help tie everything together.
Thanks for the replies. I like the videos myself. I got the response I kind of expected. I am going to watch the videos and get the nitty gritty with the practice questions in the CFAI text, schweser books, practice exams and Qbank. I am devoting almost 10 weeks to question practice, so I hope it will help me really pull things together. Reading the books was just too painful to try to get the broad strokes given the short time frame before the exam.
ok…the videos are good…But, Economics video sucks…They are a good way to cover a lot of material in little time. Do read economics on your own and try to understand the concepts.