Whether for the good reasons or bad reasons… Everyone talks about Schweser on this forum. Thats a good indication to me that Schweser is way popular among CFA Candidates than Stalla and peers. I am one of those who believe that a combination of study prep and CFAI Materials is the best way to approach the exam. So my questions for you guys in LEVEL 2, WOULD YOU ADVISE Going Stalla/Schweser + CFAI. I know some of you will say " use the search" option because this has been discussed earlier in the forum , however I believe that its still a valid issue… I would appreciate your comments/advice
35 to 40% pass rate, most people use Schweser or at least admit to using their material. You do the math, maybe Stalla or another firm is not a bad choice after all. Which ever you choose you need to learn the material and concepts cold. Without those it doesn’t matter which materials you purchased. Goodluck!
I just sat for Level 1 and used Stalla. I liked the lectures with Peter Olinto and there are over 3000 multiple choice questions to through. I would recommend it. From what I have seen Stalla and Schweser are the two best providers. If I pass Level 1 I will definetely go with Stalla for Level 2.
Let me give you some advice I wish someone gave me: Stella and Schweser may be good (I used Schweser exclusively) BUT…Elan guides replicate the *real* test so much it’s scary. The short questions that pack 1-3 LOS’s into one is exactly what you get on the real exam.
nickfaulkner Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Let me give you some advice I wish someone gave > me: > > Stella and Schweser may be good (I used Schweser > exclusively) > > BUT…Elan guides replicate the *real* test so > much it’s scary. The short questions that pack 1-3 > LOS’s into one is exactly what you get on the real > exam. Nick, how did you do on the Elan mock exams?
They are hard as as they come…but they prep you to pass the exam. I scored in the mid to low 60s…which is where you are supposed to score for you to be considered “prep’d enough” for lvl 1. I can’t say anything about their quality on lvl 2 though…but lvl 1 was a direct hit as to the exam format. One bad thing- they are a little on the quantitative side but it makes you learn the formulas because on the actual test you get quized on how the different variables effect the outcome. You have very few questions like- here are the numbers, give me x. It’s more like, if y goes up, and x goes down, what happens to z.
I used Elan too, they are simply OUTSTANDING( Mock Exams). Unfortunately they dont have a QBank type of questions, they will come with bunch of 2000 questions very soon for level 1. As for as Study notes are concerned I think Scheweser/Stalla or Elan are similar with the only difference that Elan is WAY cheaper. Elan is still very new, they dont have a comprehensive approach like Schweser. Having said that I was REALLY IMPRESSED with what they offer for level 1 especially for the price they are charging. For Level 2, I still have not made up my mind as to which way to go (Scheweser/Stalla…) but one thing I am sure, the CFAI books will be uses as my core materials/references.
Agreed with Rehix. I think Dec L1 takers should buy Elan material soon coz they gonna increase the price soon, as most of ppl in AF who used their mock and 11th hour guide praise them so much.haha. But frankly, they r awesome. I’m gonna stick with Elan from now on, forget Schweser.
i posted this to another tread so sorry for cut & paste. My advise based on my experience use whatever (Elan, STella) but avoid Schweser. I wonder if pass rate would have been higher if there were not Schweser time wasting… ======= I used Secret sauce,video, notes and Schweser QBank. Video was ok-ish but I have not seen video cources by other providers (i.e. Stella). Notes were shorter then CFAI books but I can´t say they were clearer. Sometimes opposite. Schweser QBank - money waste(!). If I failed exam then this would have been purely due to the time I had wasted with Schweser QBank. I gave up Schweser 2 weeks before the exam and purchased Elan mocks which were closest match (i tried mocks from CFAI, Schweser and Stalla as well) to the actual exam. I now wish I could buy 11th Hour guide and dump Secret Sauce. the latter one is hugely overpriced and I strogly recommend everyone to avoid it. If I am to go for december exam, I will stick to CFAI EOC, Elan and mocks. Kaplan no longer a good choice. It also sends false confidence signals… I don´t know what were previous exams look like, but june 2010 was more conceptual (i.e. Elan approach) rather than get the formula and plug numbers (i.e. Schweser).