I am a CAIA and an FRM and I want to take the CFA Level 1 exam in December 2010. I’m currently working and I’m planning to start my studying in late August or early Sep. Do you think I still have enough time? Given that CAIA, FRM and CFA have overlaps I assume that 3 months would be enough for me. Another concern is where to take the exam in the US. I’m nearest to NY but I think NY would be the busiest exam site so I’m considering Miami or Boston. Please let me know your thoughts guys!
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I agree with Mobius Striptease. And if you live in nearest to NY then it only makes sense that you take the test in Miami. Best of luck to you.
it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to take the exam so far away… just take it in NY. Even though it may have the most amount of candidates, the CFAI takes the exam very seriously and has the event well planned and staffed so that everything runs smoothly. The average candidate needs to dedicate about 250 to 300 hours of studying for each level. Most people do that in 18 to 20 weeks. If you start in early August you should have enough time to complete the entire curriculum with 4 weeks left for a thorough review. Good luck.
I agree with above. first, you didn’t give anyone any idea of your background. (Are you fresh out of an MBA program or do you have a strong accounting background?) And don’t kid yourself - there is very little overlap between FRM and CFA Level 1, I know this because I also have the FRM. For example the CFA exam has a lot of accounting, economics, corporate and equity valuation, ethics and so on that the FRM lacks. It makes no sense that because the NY test center would potentially be busy to conclude that you should take the exam someplace else. WTF?! Ridiculous. Not as many people take it in December, and even if there potentially hundreds if not thousands taking the exams, potentially, people have been taking CFA exams in NY for years and I think the test centers can handle one more person. Finally, while you may have left yourself enough time to TAKE the exam, you have not left yourself enough time to PASS. Why would you go through this unless you are determined to pass? Put in the time required, there are no shortcuts, you should start today especially if you are also working.
These are all reasonable questions. Personally, given your background, I wouldn’t start studying until mid-October at the earliest. You are obviously very intelligent and should crush the CFA exams with minimal effort. There is huge overlap between the CFA and FRM, so you’re pretty much good to go. You are smart to think about taking the exam outside of New York. The extra travel and disruption to your schedule will help you focus mentally and should give you an edge on the exam. However, there is one flaw in your reasoning: If you are in New York, it actually makes more sense to take the exam in Seattle rather than Miami or Boston. Miami will no doubt still be plagued by Lebron haters, which could be a huge distraction, and Boston is too close to be practical for your purposes (just think how many other people from NY will also be trying to get an edge on the exam by registering in Boston). The intelligent, contrarian play is to register in Seattle, which is as far away as possible from New York (unless you’re really committed and can figure out how to register in Hong Kong). I can guarantee you that no one else from New York will be smart enough to think of taking the exam in the smaller test center offered by Seattle. It will be a real competitive advantage for you – shorter lines for the bathroom, easier parking, more rain, etc.
I find that studying at the last minute adds something special to the experience.
Thanks for your inputs guys. To give you an idea of my background: I have a strong accounting background (a licensed CPA btw) and passed all my three designations with flying colors (CPA, CAIA and recently FRM- with 3 months or even less preparation while working in the hedge fund industry as an accountant). I’m not really sure what advantage will CFA give me but nevertheless i want to give it a try as becoming a CFA has been a dream of mine ever since. Will probably start studying in August. Seattle is not an option for me. It’s too far. I can only take a day off or two before the exam and I don’t want to be stressed with the long flight. I think I will go for Miami (just an extra hour flight when compared to NY from where I am). Appreciate really your replies guys.
As i posted my reply at the Level I foum before you moved to General Discussion, I do not repeat what I said there. But I still think you should start ASAP, but since you have good background may be you can go in a more relaxing pace. As for where, one more input. If you think by taking the exam away from your comfy zone can boost your performance and competitive advantage, you don’t need to go to Miami from NYC. I would suggest you to consider the Toronto site. First of all, Toronto is much closer to NYC (about 90 minutes flight) than from Miami to NYC, or even Seattle. Secondly, despite the number of candidates usually in December (2000+), the site is well-organized and the check-in line and the washroom line are quite short and move pretty fast and smooth. Thirdly, US Citizens do not need visa to Canada, and rarely encounter problem at customs (though the opposite direction is not quite true). Finally, as a tourist you can bring back US$200 of duty-free goods and liquors/beers as you re-enter the US. For the June exam at the Toronto site, I ran into 2 random backpacking guys who one was from UK and another was from Belgium. I wonder why they would wrote the exam across the Atlantic, and they said they wanted to travel away from home exam site, and visited friends in US and Canada during the summer, while studied for the June exam.
It seems you’ve missed the subtle, brilliant sarcasm in Bromion’s post, which is complete genius, by the way, bro. HAHA ^ duty free liquors, love this!
I love when people lead with “I work for a hedge fund, in ______.” and it’s completely unrelated to how that firm makes money. For example I was at a dinner with some friends and they brought some girl who works in HR for a hedge fund. She would not shut up about the hedge fund industry and how awesome she is by association, blabbering on with opinions on things like FX that were just ridiculous. I mean, what type of investment firm you work in is irrelevant if you’re not related to the trading, it’s just an auxiliary job, that’s so commoditized it’s often outsourced. Like saying, I’m a janitor at a hedge fund, it’s just irrelevant.
Bromion that was genuis. Seriously though - You’ll be fine in NY and if you put in ~223 hours between now and December 1.
Bromion, Bchad, DoubleDip nice comments. On a serious note - where are you located? CFAI has exam centers at Westchester county NY, Hartford, CT, few in New Jersey etc BTW why are you so obsessed in gathering all these designations. I don’t see any value addition in terms of you moving out of accounting in near future.
this is the first time i seen someone do FRM and CAIA before CFA. what value will it add? for starters, FRM and CAIA are inferior to the CFA so I recommend the CFA over both those set of letters. I too did the FRM and stopped the CAIA after level 1 as i think it is basically a waste of time. I stopped collecting designations as soon as I got a half decent job.
Also, once you read the first book on ethics, you’ll become aware that there are no ‘Future CFA’ charterholders, and your name is in fact a violation of the CFAI code and standards.
FRM and CAIA are for those who couldn’t pass CFA exams. I would recommend to look for a job where you have interest. You have CPA, CAIA and FRM but don’t have a job in the field you want to make your career in so better look for a job first
future cfa frm caia Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I am a CAIA and an FRM and I want to take the CFA > Level 1 exam in December 2010. I’m currently > working and I’m planning to start my studying in > late August or early Sep. Do you think I still > have enough time? Given that CAIA, FRM and CFA > have overlaps I assume that 3 months would be > enough for me. > > Another concern is where to take the exam in the > US. I’m nearest to NY but I think NY would be the > busiest exam site so I’m considering Miami or > Boston. Please let me know your thoughts guys! nm
bromion Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > You are smart to think about taking the exam > outside of New York. > > The intelligent, contrarian play is to register in > Seattle, which is as far away as possible from New > York … > DoubleDip Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Bromion’s post, which is complete > genius… HAHA ^ duty free > liquors, love this! +1 to Bromion, genius thoughts +1 to DD LOL … I still suggest an added benefit for flying/driving to Toronto is the US$200 worth of duty-free liquor to celebrate after exam on your way home, even after 1 minute outside the US soil; or upgrade to US$400 limit after 48 hours abroad. Cheers. Also, as oppose to the poker face from the US Customs, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police will ride on their horses and warmly welcome you and fellow Americans to the country, just like Eric Cartman and his buddies all the way from South Park, Colorado years ago, except now you need a passport while Eric and his buddies didn’t. These are added benefits you won’t get in Seattle, or even in Fairbanks, Alaska, which is cool and dark enough in December to keep you sharp and focus on exam and stay away from distractions.
The original post was painful for me to read (almost eye-gouging so, if only I weren’t so protective of my vision)…thankfully, all of the follow-up posts have filled my day with utter delight. Monday has been good so far.
I think Bromion and Reggie’s responses made my day as well.