The FinQuiz Benefit

During my journey to the CFA Program, I have experienced a lot in terms of time management, resource accumulation and utilization, questions, mocks, the marathon routine to complete the course etc. One important thing which not only I but a lot of candidates experience is the decision to choose the exam preparation material provider. Throughout in all these levels I have been using FinQuiz as the primary exam preparation material provider and at this point in time I feel confident that its worth giving a try!

To reciprocate the benefit which FinQuiz has provided in this program, I have decided to share with you the samples of their study material for all three levels.

Curriculum Notes (Simply Awesome!)

http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_1_december_2013_curriculum_notes
http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_1_june_2014_curriculum_notes
http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_2_june_2014_curriculum_notes
http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_3_june_2014_curriculum_notes

Smart Summaries (What?? Only 1 month left and you haven't revised the syllabus? GO FOR IT!)

http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_1_december_2013_smart_summaries
http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_1_june_2014_smart_summaries

http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_2_june_2014_smart_summaries
http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_3_june_2014_smart_summaries

Mock Exams (Score > 70 in them and consider yourself PASS, unless something really bad has happened!)

http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_1_december_2013_mock_exams
http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_1_june_2014_mock_exams
http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_2_june_2014_mock_exams

http://www.finquiz.com/cfa_level_3_june_2014_mock_exams

CFA Level II Curriculum Changes 2013 - 2014

• Ethics, Quantitative Methods, Economics and Corporate Finance are pretty much exactly the same.
• Three of the Financial Reporting and Analysis Readings, “Inter-Corporate Investments”, “Multinational Operations” and “The Lessons we Learned”, have been revised.
• Two new Readings have been added in the Equity section named“Your Strategy Needs a Strategy” and “Industry and Company Analysis"
• One new Reading, “A Primer on Commodity Investing”, has been added to the Alternative Investments Section.
• One Fixed Income Reading, “General Principles of Credit Analysis”, has been deleted. A new Reading, “Credit Analysis Models”, has been introduced.
• One Derivatives Reading, “Credit Derivatives” has been deleted. A new Reading, “Credit Default Swaps”, has been introduced.
• One Portfolio Management Reading, ‘The Theory of Active Portfolio Management’has been d eleted. Two new Readings, ‘Residual Risk and Return: The Information Ratio’ and ‘The Fundamental Law of Active Management’ has been introduced. 

Changes in CFA Level I Curriculum from 2013 to 2014

1. 4 new readings have been incorporated, only Fundamentals of Credit Analysis has been retained in Fixed Income.
2. Derivatives Markets & Instruments has been revised under the Derivatives section.
3. Alternative Investments Reading, Investing in Commodities has been deleted.
4. Remaining areas including Ethics, QM, Economics, FRA, Corporate Finance, Equity, Portfolio are almost the same in 2014..

Who said time isn't an issue in Level III morning?

Congratulations folks you are normal beings if you were unable to complete your morning exam (level III). You are perfect humans if you have left the last 20 or 30 mins. For geeks who completed their exam in time, well wait for the result if you were able to pass through, consider completing it in time THE BIG REASON!

On a serious note, time has never been an issue in LI, LII or Evening III but it is certainly the biggest constraint in morning session. May be it is so we haven't practiced well or we don't organize ourselves according to the minutes allocated to each question. Sometimes its our 'factory setting' that once we see a question we know more off we keep on writing despite knowing the fact that, and ignoring it, question only requires 2 reasons or 1 reason to support it and the time advised is 3 or 4 mins. We should remain focused on one thing: To allocate each question the mentioned time so that one may complete it in time. If I happen to appear again, which certainly I'm not thinking of right away, I will pay particular attention in completing the exam in time and with desired level of details. It, who must not be named right away, is set in a way to require adequate information, not to check all the info we have got. I can link it with the psychometric stuff which CFAI utilizes while setting questions. Certainly they aren't about knowledge only but also about skills.

I may be not confident this time that i'll pass but considering my experience I am quite sure that the next time, if unfortunately I appear, I'll nail it.

After the exam...

Ok we can't speak about the contents of the exam... But yea.. we can share our feelings. It was one hell of a day. Certainly I'm feeling quite low as the morning session had a lot of questions and they all required some input unlike mcqs on which you are 33% sure but in structured writing... you dont know much about what you are writing as its more of a subjective stuff. Even after the evening section I wasn't having the same feeling which I had last year in June 2012. Fingers crossed lets hope for the best and be ready for appearing again... I hope I'll nail it down but if I couldn't I'm not gonna give up and appear again and again unless I nail it down. Though I am not thinking in that way but if I couldn't, I have identified several areas which I know to give more importance off. But again... hoping to nail it down...

How my broker account is helping me?

Last month I opened my broker account and started trading in Karachi Stock Exchange. A part from trading what I was able to do was to connect the topics of reading 39, Execution of Portfolio Decisions. Although there is fair detail regarding order types in Level I but the way I am able to understand the importance of market orders, limit orders and the types of markets is really something worthwhile. As the exam approaches and I am revising the whole stuff, while going through reading on Execution of Portfolio Decisions, I did not find that much difficulty which I used to find while initially I was going through the reading. The primary reason which I can spot is access to the stock trading. Right away its just one example but I can assure you there are multiple instances where I really found the trading exposure I got, helping me immensely in making my concepts more clear and enabling me for true understanding of key areas of the Level III curriculum. I, therefore recommend all of you who are the candidates or potential candidates of the CFA program to open your brokerage account and start trading. It will dramatically improve your ability to understand what's actually is going around.

Good Luck for the exam.

My Plan for 1st June, 2013 - Level III Exam

Revision Kick Start

I may have mentioned it earlier but I am using FinQuiz notes, as I used them in Level II, along with Schweser study notes to prepare for LIII. The whole week I spent on revising Fixed Income (reading 23,24,25,26) and IPS for individual investors. As I have been discussing it earlier the simple way to check our retention level is to note the time one takes to revise the stuff. If we are taking the same time as it was taken during the first reading again then the situation is a bit worst. If we are taking less time while revising the same area then we are progressing in terms of retention. It is very important to follow the same study material which was used to cover the topics at first place. Like I used the FQCN for reading 10 to on wards till 14, I was able to revise the stuff in quite less time and more efficiently. Similarly the areas which I've covered through Schweser, I will revise from there to save my time & increase their effectiveness.

The next week I'll be doing readings on making IPS for institutions along with the section covering Equity (Reading 27 to 30).

Bond Portfolio Management Strategies - Fixed Income (Level III)

Done with 2/3 of IPS Section

I have completed 66% of IPS section and the area related to Institutional Investors is left. First reading has been done and I've come across the examples of curriculum. Properly going through the examples and chapter end questions can help me in making the difference. Now a days I am in the process of developing a case study for myself and after that I will make my IPS considering all the stuff. The RRTTLLU, Risk Objectives, Return Objectives, Tax Considerations, Time Horizon, Liquidity Needs, Legal Requirements, & Unique Circumstances. First I'll make a complete vignette, a kind of case study which will have information which I can share publically and after that I'll analyse it. I think going through this strategy can help effectively in understanding the stuff while evaluating ourselves.

IPS - First Tip

Asset Allocation has been intense in terms of calculations, reminded off Level II... Study Session 4 is entirely different. The first thing I've faced that the material isn't questionable directly. I mean I've looked across some questions and unfortunately they aren't straight forward. The material provided in Reading 10 is more or less a background of what could be tested indirectly through a case study... The temperament of going trough these readings is not exactly as the way it was related to other areas. 

Apple Inc's. Income Statement Extracts 2012 (Form 8K, Unaudited)

These results are unaudited and taken from Form 8K filled by Apple Inc on 23rd January, 2013. So we have Operating Margins dropping, Net margins dropping, Cost of Sales increasing, Other Income increasing. The share price of AAPL has significantly fallen on 24th (10.5% so far by 12 EST). I cannot say whether its after the SEC fillings but definitely these numbers does count. For a Technology stock Net margins reducing by 4.2% has strong impact.

Facebook Call Options expiring Jan 19, 2013

Graph Search is what Facebook is building?

So its not the facebook phone but the graph search which facebook had to show at its headquarters. It was a 'much anticipated' event which hiked FB above 6%. After Zuckerberg; wearing the hood, announced the graph search, the stock fell a bit... Dont know how the new search tool is a different experience than GOOGS but FB claims that it answers - not provide links to answers! Had it been facebook phone, it would have created an impact... I dont know they may unveil it someday but for now its the graph search and how it truly represents the much anticipated call will be reflected in the stock price soon..

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Preparing for Level II - A different perspective

Since I've been preparing for LIII I've realized that there is a reason why Level II is considered to be the most difficult among three. It is because mechanics have been covered in Level II to an extent which can act as bridge to an amazing skill set. A very strong feeling of it developed when I went through Risk Management and Equity of Level III. A paradigm shift is required while studying for LIII. So those who are preparing for LII, I would like to ask them not to study only for passing the exam but to achieve excellence. The technicalities, mechanics, details, practice etc can lead you to something amazing. It all can help you out in making yourself something out of.. something less. Consider it a rare opportunity and do not prepare for the exam just to pass it but to develop yourself up. Go through examples, chapter end questions, exhibits, illustrations to know what's going on. Once you are done with the stuff following this approach, you'll end up passing the exam. The exam is after 6 months. A lot of you would be planning for LII. Start it this way especially the areas which require calculations. It will add greatly to your skill set.

Good Luck.

A must read post before the Level I exam

I was about to create a post comprising of some points to ponder before the level I exam, I came across this post which was received through an email.

here goes the link

http://www.finquiz.com/blog/2012/11/25/exam-day-prep-dos-and-donts-for-the-cfa-exam/

This is a must read post with a lot of things you must be thinking of doing or have been already practising.. Don't forget about your passport, exam ticket, working calculator (with functioning batteries) and of course stationary.

Good Luck and all the best for the exam.

Level I Exam - Some important tips (Part 1)

I heard somewhere that if you rank, the most powerful strength is the strength of faith followed by mental strength and then comes the physical strength. Reminds me of Batman Begins, the first episode of an epic series by Christopher Nolan, a classic example of the power of soul and belief over physical strength. Believing in yourself is very important for passing the exam and the ability to overcome the fear of failing the exam can really make the difference. Referring to an excellent dialogue of the movie that we fall in order to learn how to stand up, if we start thinking about failing the fear ruin the whole situation. The first and foremost thing in this regard is to overcome this fear and remained focused.

I believe a lot of you have appeared in several mocks and you'd have identified your strongest areas. Starting the exam from the strongest area can boost up the confidence and can give you a winning sense.

For me time was never an issue in both level I exam and level II exam. Same is the case for most of  the students but does that mean we should not bother about time management? I certainly doubt that. The exam is balanced in terms of difficulty level so try spending less time on questions which are straight away and try spending more questions which you find tricky.

Starting the exam from the area which you find difficult and think that with fresh mind you may cover that easily could be a winning strategy for a few but it can result drastically as if questions are left undone then while doing the other areas you could have 'evil thoughts' coming about that area.

Stay tuned for other tips they are on their way...

What I was doing in last week before Level I exam?

The perspective is entirely different for those who are appearing first time compared to those who are re taking the exam. Since I appeared only once in the LI exam, the feelings which I had were a mixture of somewhat fear and curiosity. Though I had overcome my fear to a reasonable extent by giving CFAI, Schweser and Finquiz mocks but the curiosity to know the actual exam's difficulty level and the experience of having it was residing. The CFAI text EOC questions were my target in the last week along with going through chapter end summaries from the curriculum. I had already gone through the schweser volumes thrice, once before each mock I gave and the smart summaries provided by finquiz were of great help to me in those 6 days. The confidence which revising gave me was immense and that really made the difference. Candidates should go through end of chapter questions a long with chapter end summaries of the curriculum now and if possible try purchasing the smart summaries of finquiz in order to go through the whole syllabus before the exam. Schweser Secret sauce can also serve the cause and make the difference. If you are planning to go through mocks in these days then try solving them in a 'simulated exam environment' by solving the whole morning section then taking a two hours break and then going through the afternoon session. Level I isn't only about knowing the stuff but also about retaining and recalling it in the exam. Stamina along with accuracy and effectiveness counts and 90 seconds are there for one MCQ.

Good Luck

Getting Enrolled

Let me recall when I had seriously started studying for Level II? This year January I guess... but I was supposed to start in September last year? Of course I did but the element of seriousness was missing! What happened in Jan that made me 'serious'.... well I got enrolled for Level II program in Jan! Does it have any connection? Hell Yeah! For me it is the only connection so far...

Theoretically, according to the schedule which finquiz guys provided me, I should have done by fixed income and equity by now and start with alternative investments but I am way behind the theory. As I have got enrolled in the exam and my books are in the process of being shipped, based upon the analogy I drew, I think I'll start studying now. Particularly it is important in this case as I am not preparing from Schweser, but using the curriculum notes and the CFAI text, for examples and chapter end questions. I would say those who are planning to appear in 2013 and have started their preparations for level III they should get enrolled and not wait for the deadline to come close as CFAI text is necessary for preparations, I think, & biology of belief that since enrolment is done lets start preparing... that inner drive is necessary. It works for me really well.  

How did I use FinQuiz Curriculum Notes?

Particularly I am writing this in response to a recent comment on a post previously published. I used FinQuiz notes as an alternate to the CFAI text. It helped me in multiple ways as the material was much more organized and consisted of highlighted point in the form of bullets. Moreover the structure was more or less of the CFAI text unlike other notes providers as they focus on LOS in spite of covering the whole area. I was able to revise the syllabus multiple times due to the notes due to their comprehensiveness. Another approach in this regard could be to first go through the CFAI text and then utilize the notes. It could be counter productive. Using primarily the curriculum notes and then approaching CFAI text for the areas which Curriculum Notes fail to provide adequate details could be a productive approach.

Doing CFAI text examples along with chapter end questions is a must. Following a schedule while preparing for CFA Exams is inevitable in passing and I can certainly say FinQuiz curriculum notes provide you with an opportunity to follow a schedule, complete studies in time, be organized, consistent and can revise the syllabus multiple times before the exam.