Full Steam Ahead

This is always an interesting time during the preparation. I have 9 days to go. I will quickly forget the last bit of preparation before the exam 6 months from now, but this is the time that determines whether I pass or fail. This week I have reviewed derivatives and portfolio mgmt. Today and tomorrow is fixed income securities. I think derivatives may be the most important of the 3, but that's more of a feeling based on what I know about myself and my history. Anyway, next week is just reviewing the major concepts and all of the formulas.

Last weekend I took a practice exam just like the last post. Both exams are administered by the CFA Institute and are supposed to mirror the difficulty of the real exam. In reality, CFAI is jst really stingy about releasing past exams, so the practice exam is just a potpurri of past exam questions (including several I remember from last year). Anyway, out of a 60 question test I don't know the odds of receiving the exact same score two weeks in a row but I did it. At first, i was disappointed about my failure to improve, but the 2nd exam since it was actual past questions, tested me on past subjects. There were 2 questions on calculating a franchise PE. This year they changed calculate to analyze. There were 3 questions on levered Beta. This year levered Beta is not in the cirriculum.

Anyway, there isn't much going on with me right now at home other than studying. This weekend is a full length exam (120 questions), and review on Sunday. Then next week is the final sprint to the finish. I like my odds for this weekend's practice exam.

Equity Valuation

I took a practice exam this past weekend. I will go more into passing scores after the exam, but for right now I’ll say that I probably didn’t pass but I’m pleased with my performance. I am reviewing a part of the curriculum every weekday. On the areas I have reviewed thus far, I did well. On the areas I have not yet reviewed I didn’t do as well. Since I am on schedule for the milestones I have set, I am satisfied with that. The idea is for me to spend the rest of this week reviewing equity valuation before taking another practice exam this Saturday. Next week I review fixed income and derivatives and the following Saturday, I’ll take my last practice exam. That means I’ll be done with reviewing the curriculum in about a week and a half.

This week is really special though. If Level 2 was a seven course dinner party, equity valuation would be the main course. Without going into to much detail I’ll say the fundamentals of equity valuation reach throughout the rest of the curriculum so this is by far the most important stuff I have left to review. It is also an area I felt really comfortable in when I learned it 2 months ago. If I can just refresh myself on what I have already learned, equity will be a fun part of the exam for me. This past week I missed passing by 4 questions, and I missed 2 of the equity valuation questions. I am well on my way to where I want to be, but I’m not there yet.

This is Where I Pass or Fail

I have finished reviewing portfolio management. That was the last area I had to learn before the exam. For once, I am not entirely satisfied with my performance. I spent a great deal of time working on the material and have enjoyed PM in past exams. However, this year they added a really long reading which I am certain this will ask some questions on. Mentally, I was prepared to review PM, not learn it. My schedule beyond PM was written in stone and I won't push it back. That means that I feel somewhat prepared for PM, but this is the one area of the exam where I didn't feel 100% test ready at the end. I will make some time to review and learn what I can, but I'll have to go to war with the weapons I have, not the weapons I want.

Now I have 31 days before the test. I have spent the last 5 months learning material, and at the end of learning the matrial, I felt really confident. However, some of that material is stuff I learned in January. I have certainly forgotten some of it. Now is the time to review. It took me a week and a half to learn economics. I have given myself today to review it. The next two days are ethics (more important part of the exam). If I give myself a weekday to review each study session I will need 18 weekdays - the exact number left in May. Each Saturday I will take a practice exam, and on Sunday I will review the parts of the exam I missed. That should take me through the 1st of June. Then that week I will focus on individual concepts that I have trouble with. I will be taking the test in Chicago (visiting in-laws) so I will arrive a couple of days early. If I remember everything that I knew when I finished learning the material, I should be in a solid position to perform well. I will keep updating on my review. The review for the rest of May will determine whether I pass or fail the Level 2 exam.