CFA exam

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jmuc85
Posts: 59
Joined: Sat Aug 04, 2007 5:53 pm
Location: Texas

CFA exam

Post by jmuc85 »

Hello everbody,

I am still a student in college and have begun thinking about starting to study for the CFA exam with the intention of taking the level 1 exam next June. I feel like this would give me an edge up to many other people looking for finance/investment jobs after graduation. I recently sat down and looked at some sample questions and got 30 out of 50, or 60%. Not great but it was also just an out of the blue moon type thing without touching up on any concepts. Are there any CFAs here that would be able to comment on this path?

Justin
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ddb
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Post by ddb »

If you think you'll want a job in the finance field after college, then I'd definitely encourage you to sit for Level I. I would bet that this would give you a HUGE leg-up compared to other job applicants, even if the potential job isn't specifically related to financial analysis.

- DDB
Scott Reinhardt
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CFA exam

Post by Scott Reinhardt »

Justin-
If you're pretty confident that you want to be in the finance/investment advisory industry then I would definitely sit for the exam as early as possible, especially if you've recently taken some accounting classes (levels 1 & 2 are heavy on ethics and accounting). If you intend to get your MBA then there will be a fair amount of redundancy with the CFA program but the CFA exams are self-study and the process costs a lot less than an MBA. On the other hand, the relationships you can develop during an MBA program might prove to be tremendously helpful. Relationships aside, the CFA program is terrific and it's best to take the exams as early as possible as it should certainly differentiate you from other job applicants.
Good luck.
sprmario2k3
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Post by sprmario2k3 »

isn't job experience required for the CFA? I forget, but i've looked at it several times and I believe it is.

My understanding is that it is a fairly difficult exam.
Scott Reinhardt
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Post by Scott Reinhardt »

Good point. Yes, job experience is required but you can accumulate the necessary years (3 years of relevant experience I think) along the way. If you don't have enough work experience by the time you pass Level 3 then they will hold the designation until you've satisfied this experience.
Topic Author
jmuc85
Posts: 59
Joined: Sat Aug 04, 2007 5:53 pm
Location: Texas

Post by jmuc85 »

thank you for the replies. I knew about the work experience but like Scott said I figured I would just work as I go along. I'm a little confused by the following though, mainly just the 50% part...

This is from the CFA Institute website...
Amount

Four years of acceptable professional work experience are required for regular membership. An individual must be a regular member to be eligible for the award of the CFA Charter. This experience may be accrued while the candidate is in the CFA Program, after the candidate has passed all three levels of exams, or from previous positions.



You are required to spend at least 50 percent of your time in these activities to accrue the required professional work experience. Summer, part-time, and internship positions do not qualify.
Justin
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Walleye
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Post by Walleye »

Four years is the current amount of work experience. I few years back all that you needed was three years but since then they have upped the number of years by one and also narrowed down the job functions that qualify as "work experience."

I graduated in 2006 and took L1 in December of 2006. There were definitely sections on the exam that were fresh in my head, specifically, international finance related concepts. L1 is about a mile wide and an inch deep as it covers a lot of ground.

I took L2 this June and should find out tomorrow morning how that one went (pray for me tonight). L2 was more in-depth accounting principles including pension accounting and currency translation for companies with subsidiaries in foreign countries.

L3 has a lot to do with contructing investment policy statements and providing advice, recommendations given a certain situation(e.g. Betty is 65 years old and has $500k, etc.)

My advice is to take L1 as soon as you can. I would rather do it now when I am free of further complications in my like (e.g. marriage, kids, etc.) so I am acting accordingly.

Also, pay heavy attention to ethics, accounting, and equity valuation as stated earlier. Yes, it can be tough at times studying some of the topics if you are a Diehard and believe in efficient markets, but nonetheless, it can't hurt you getting this feather in your cap from a career perspective.

Walleye
grok87
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Update

Post by grok87 »

Walleye,
I said a prayer for you. Good news I hope?

cheers
grok
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Walleye
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Post by Walleye »

Grok,

The CFA Gods listened to you! L2 pass rate was second lowest in 45 years but I passed. I did L1 last December and will be going for the sweep next year on June 7, 2008 with Level 3! Wahoo! Thanks for the prayers!

Walleye
grok87
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Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 8:00 pm

Great News!

Post by grok87 »

Great News!

I also took Exam 2 in June and found out I passed today. I passed Exam 1 last December, so looks like we're on the same schedule.

I registered for Exam 3 today- there's some weird discount codes that nobody seems able to figure out...

Also you may be aware of this, but when you register for Exam 3, they are now packaging the Exam fee and the study material together. I guess they got tired of people skipping the actual readings and substituting Schweiser. I confess I did that myself for the second exam...:-)

Congrats again!
cheers
grok
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