Something I'd do if I had to study for CFAL2 again

What I underestimated about L2 is how many different models there would be to memorize in every subject area in the curriculum. It seems to be CFAI’s acknowledgement of all of the academic research that is going on in the different subject areas of the test, and wanting to make sure candidates are aware of the heavy lifters who have made prominent discoveries in economic/financial research.

If I were starting L2 study again, I’d make a running list of models (and then a couple bullet points with the key tenets / ways it is differentiated from other models with a similar purpose). I feel like besides calculation and conceptual questions, model questions are certainly an area provide CFAI a good opportunity to test how well candidates internalized and synthesized the readings.

Besides the memorization aid that this would obviously provide, I felt like ultimately knowing the models helped give me a better sense of the underlying concepts they described, especially when those concepts were unfamiliar to me.

Sharing this in case it’s helpful to someone who hadn’t previously considered the curriculum this way.

I passed the exam this year, and feel like I would have saved a lot of time on the back end if I had flagged all of the models the first time I read anything.

Thank you for sharing this!

Thank you! Marking down models is a good strategy.

Thanks for sharing! I will definitely give this a try!

glad it was helpful all!

Good post.

Can you be more specific about what you mean by models? Or give some examples of models from the cirriculum. Just so we have a better idea of what to watch out for.

In general, a big theory whose name has a bunch of people’s names in the name is a good place to start if you’re wondering what I mean by models. If the material goes into detail explaining that theory / there are practice questions on it, it’s worth putting on your review sheet. Not all big models or theories will be named after someone, but that’s a good place to start – even if there’s no specific test question about that model, understanding how that model or theory works will help you gain a deeper understanding of the material, which is what is really critical in getting from a fail to a pass on Level II.