CFA Level 1 - Debrief

When I say I have been plain "lucky", I mean it.......I had many people around me, who have already cleared all the three levels of the exam, to take counseling from.......But not all who decide to take the exam have someone, who is been there, to guide them and help them from going astray......

Since knowledge is best used when shared.......I want to share here the debrief of the entire studying process, from skipping lunches to sleepless december nights, everything required to take you there.....

a) First things First - Have a plethora of studying material around you. From schweser notes to CFA Institute curriculum books. Get hold of random videos, ppts etc if you can (they are generally not helpful but keep giving you scholarly feeling).

b) Make a study schedule - Plan, segregate, divide, ponder. Planning is of utmost importance. Some concepts require a longer spree and some are just passe'. I have seen and have rather been a victim of non-adherence at times, and it may drag you back so badly that recovery will seem inconceivable. I kept procrastinating Alternative Investments and suffered in the final exam ( I have 50% - 70% band in this section ).

In my opinion, start with an easy topic like Quant. and jump onto a longer (when I say longer it means absolute Brute force) section like FSA (Book 3).

My week wise distribution (also in the order I did them) (when I say Book 3 etc., I mean books of Schweser) -

1) Quant. - 2 Weeks
2) FSA (Book 3) - 1 Month (at least)
3) Corporate Finance - 1 Week
4) Economics - 3 Weeks
5) Fixed Income (Bonds and all) - 3 Weeks
6) Equity Investments (Last Part of Book 4) - 1 Week (Easiest of all, bonus round)
7) Portfolio Management (Middle Part of Book 4) - 1 Week (Maximum)
8) Derivatives (Book 5, All the Options, Swaps etc.) - 2 weeks (has some complex theories, need to redo them time & again)
9) Ethics - 2 Weeks (I did only Schweser, but this is STRICTLY not suggested, CFAI Book is a must)
10) Alternative Investments - 1 week

(The above schedule is both squeezable as well as expandable, depending upon the time you can devote. Though I consider mysely as a Quick Learner, yet I spent 1-2 hours in the initial months and 3-4 hours in the later months everyday studying).

People say that it's enough to study from Schweser, but truly speaking I had to read the whole bunch of CFA Institute books to get clarity. Considering the bulkiness of the CFAI books, it may seem that reading CFAI Books may take long, but there are many things which just require a vision are not important (you'll yourself realise it while you'll study from CFAI books).

Do not leave a single word (rest aside any topic) from the Schweser books. These books are divine and should be consummated. Do every test at the end of the chapters. They are easy and will motivate you (getting 70-80% accuracy in these tests will certainly take you there).


c) Taste the Tests - I tried finishing the curriculum by 1st November, but as it turned out, the entire Ethics and Alternative Investment thing was still pending till 10th November. Eventually I finished both of the topics simultaneously in 2 weeks.

I gave a super-quick revision to the topics in the last week of November and that certainly is a scary experience when you go through each topic and half of the things appear to you as if being read for the first time.

Finally started the last week before the exam and I took an off from the office. No mock exam, no full length exam, no Sample Test till now. No nothing that could judge the preparation level.

Gave a Sample test on Monday and failed by 1 mark ( I assume so as my friend who had a mark more than me passed). 5 days to exam. Spent 20-22 hours per day in last 4 days. Not feeling confident at all. Wish could postpone the exam. Thus came the Saturday, flown to the test center location.Had print-outs of the Mock exams and their solutions, so kept studying the questions rather than solving them. Stayed at friend's company's guest house. I thought that I'll push off to sleep around 11 but "just one last topic" revision syndrome didn't let me sleep till 3 in the morning. Got up at 6 and rushed to the test center. Reached the center at 8 AM. Not at all feeling drowsy. First exam finished. Simpler than I expected it to be. Conducted at the HIGHEST possible level of professionalism. wowwwww..... had a quick meal, off to second exam. It was a bit tougher than the first exam but was still doable.

Out I came. It's been less than 15 hours of sleep in the entire week. Yet not at all exhausted. The next few days are gonna be fun.

Almost 45 days hence, Outcome - "Pass".
Ecstacy and Jubiliance.


d) In a Nutshell -

- It's tough to study if you're working.

- Once the time will pass, You may have to look out for small-small patches of time to cover the things up. Like skipping lunches, not cashing upon a lucrative dinner offer, missing a relative's retirement party, missing the most exciting cricket match India has ever played etc.

- Do make a circle or a group with whom you can discuss your doubts with and can keep a track of your progress vis-a-vis other group members.

- Things will not be so clear in the first reading, second reading will reveal many new secrets, third reading will take you there. So don't worry if after first reading you end up feeling if it's Chinese written over there.

- Lastly, have faith in your abilities.
There are many who have done it earlier as well so its not something absolutely divine.

I wish you all the best and expect the same from you guys as even my story is unfinished yet......