Before talking about questions from past mock exams which are still relevant, I want to acknowledge the fact that there have been debates on this forum as to whether or not it is ethical to use past-year mock exams published by the CFA Institute for exam preparation. My opinion is that it is okay because:
- The CFA Institute has been making this material available to candidate over the years at no extra charge.
- Some candidates will have taken the exam in the past and so will have past mock exams; it is only fair that other candidates also have an opportunity to practice from these mock exams.
- The terms of use say that “… mock exam is provided to currently registered CFA candidates…” My interpretation is that currently registered candidates can use current and past mock exams.
If you are convinced that it unethical to practice from past mock exams then please read no further.
If you are still reading, I presume you agree with the opinion I expressed above. Now it is time for my second opinion: The CFA Institute’s questions are an excellent source of practice. This is particularly true for the Level III essay exam. You will notice that sample answers provided by the CFA Institute are short, crisp and to the point. This is how you need to write on the actual exam. Learn this technique now… and not in the last few days before the exam. By then it might be too late.
I do have a word of caution, though. The curriculum changes every year and hence some questions might not be relevant. The table below is my attempt at identifying questions from the 2006 to 2011 Level III essay exams which are still relevant for 2014 Level III candidates. I cannot guarantee that the information presented here is 100% accurate. If you spot any errors please write to me at arif@irfanullah.co. Next month I’ll try to update this post to identify relevant questions from the 2012 and 2013 exams.
Study hard. Practice harder.
Regards,
Arif Irfanullah
| Year | Question | Relevant | SS | Comment |
| 2006 | 1 | Yes | 4 | Individual IPS (return calculation, risks, constraints). Part D is irrelevant/obsolete |
| 2006 | 2 | Yes | 8 | ALM, Monte Carlo, Choosing appropriate asset allocation |
| 2006 | 3 | Yes | 9 | Pure bond indexing, active investing strategies |
| 2006 | 4 | Yes | 5 | DB Pension fund IPS, constraints, risk factors |
| 2006 | 5 | Yes | 8 | Strategic asset allocation, whether investments are suitable |
| 2006 | 6 | Yes | 5 | Differences between pension fund IPS and foundation IPS |
| 2006 | 7 | Yes | 8 | Corner portfolios |
| 2006 | 8 | Yes | 18 | GIPS |
| 2006 | 9 | No | | - |
| 2006 | 10 | Yes | 13 | Characteristics of hedge fund benchmarks (only part A is relevant) |
| 2006 | 11 | Yes | 16 | Components of trading costs (only part A is relevant) |
| 2006 | 12 | No | | - |
| 2007 | 1 | Yes | 3 and 4 | Individual IPS, Investor personality type |
| 2007 | 2 | Yes | 4 and 8 | Part A and B: Outright sale, Exchange funds, Completion Portfolios. Part C: Asset allocation |
| 2007 | 3 | Yes | 3 | Behavioral biases |
| 2007 | 4 | Yes | 8 | Asset classes, Black Litterman |
| 2007 | 5 | Yes | 5 | Endowment IPS, constraints, risk |
| 2007 | 6 | Yes | 5 | Life insurance company IPS, constraints, risks |
| 2007 | 7 | Yes | 16 | Corridor widths, rebalancing strategies |
| 2007 | 8 | Yes | 11 | Active management, style drift, core satellite |
| 2007 | 9 | Yes | 17 | Currency, security, market allocation return |
| 2007 | 10 | Yes | 6 | Grinold-Kroner Model (only part B and C are relevant) |
| 2008 | 1 | Yes | 4 | Individual IPS, constraints, risk ability |
| 2008 | 2 | Yes | 3 | Behavioral biases |
| 2008 | 3 | Yes | 5 | Pension fund IPS, constraints, risk factors |
| 2008 | 4 | Yes | 8 | Corner portfolios, Sharpe Ratio, Asset allocation, ALM approach |
| 2008 | 5 | Yes | 9 and 10 | Sector rotation trades, interest rate convexity, spread duration |
| 2008 | 6 | Yes | 13 | Cash and carry arbitrage |
| 2008 | 7 | Yes | 14 | Types of risk, stress testing methods |
| 2008 | 8 | Yes | 16 | Trading tactics, VWAP |
| 2008 | 9 | Yes | 16 | CPPI, Constant Mix, Buy and hold strategies |
| 2008 | 10 | Yes | 17 | Performance attribution analysis |
| 2008 | 11 | No | 17 | Obsolete |
| 2009 | 1 | Yes | 4 | Individual IPS, constraints, risk ability |
| 2009 | 2 | Yes | 4 | Life cycle investing |
| 2009 | 3 | Yes | 5 | Pension fund IPS, constraints, risk factors, Spending rule |
| 2009 | 4 | Yes | 5 | WACC, Pension assets in WACC calculations, Equity Beta |
| 2009 | 5 | Yes | 6 | Grinold-Kroner, Taylor Rule |
| 2009 | 6 | Yes | 8 | Strategic asset allocation, whether investments are suitable |
| 2009 | 7 | Yes | 11 | Active and passive equity investments, portfolio construction methods, investment styles |
| 2009 | 8 | Yes | 13 | Commodities, swaps |
| 2009 | 9 | Yes | 14 and 15 | Options, Counterparty risk, Credit risk in a swap |
| 2009 | 10 | Yes | 16 | Corridor widths, rebalancing strategies |
| 2009 | 11 | Yes | 17 | Benchmark selection, Performance measures (sharpe, m2, treynor, etc) |
| 2010 | 1 | Yes | 4 | Individual investor portfolios, TDA and Taxable accounts |
| 2010 | 2 | Yes | 3 and 5 | Insurance company IPS, behavioral biases |
| 2010 | 3 | Yes | 5 | Pension funds |
| 2010 | 4 | Yes | 6 and 7 | Only Part C is relevant |
| 2010 | 5 | Yes | 8 | Corner portfolios, Sharpe Ratio, Currency return and risk |
| 2010 | 6 | Yes | 9 | Immunization portfolio, Dollar Safety margin |
| 2010 | 7 | Yes | 15 | Option strategies (butterfly, straddle etc.) Target beta using futures |
| 2010 | 8 | Yes | 16 | VWAP, Implementation shortfall, corridor widths |
| 2010 | 9 | Yes | 17 | Benchmark selection, Performance Attribution |
| 2011 | 1 | Yes | 3 and 4 | Behavioral biases, Estate planning |
| 2011 | 2 | Yes | 4 | Individual investor portfolios |
| 2011 | 3 | Yes | 5 | Institutional investor portfolios |
| 2011 | 4 | Yes | 7 | Cobb douglas, H Model, Fed Model, Yardeni Model |
| 2011 | 5 | Yes | 8 | ALM, Black Litterman, Resampled frontier, Monte carlo |
| 2011 | 6 | Yes | 9 | Dollar duration, rebalancing, trade types, |
| 2011 | 7 | Yes | 12 | ADRs (Only Part E is revelant) |
| 2011 | 8 | Yes | 14 | Historical and Analytical VAR, Hedge currency risk using futures (Part A + B used in quiz) |
| 2011 | 9 | Yes | 17 | Performance attribution, sector allocation returns |