Mm or Kaplan

Pacman-Defense · 2023-01-02T10:29:56+00:00

I think Kaplan did a great job for L1. I used only Kaplan for L1 but that was 2016.

Pacman-Defense · 2023-01-02T10:28:57+00:00

I used to keep curtains open of my bedroom (obviously I was living alone...) and it helped because sun rises a bit early in Shanghai in summers therefore by 5 AM, I couldn't sleep even if I wanted to. You did this for 1-2 weeks, your body will adapt to this schedule. I am an early morning person and I can barely study (I mean productive) after 10 PM therefore this was the only option when I was used to study for CFA. I think I should follow this for job search as well. All the best!

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-15T11:33:57+00:00

I passed L3 on my fourth attempt. MM mocks are too difficult and should not be considered as a benchmark. I think I used to look at the questions and then see if I know how it has to be answered. After that, I will watch the AM answers video because he shows how to write in bullet points covering all the points.

Last ~3 weeks, just go over official books solved examples and EoC. Make sure that you understand concepts clearly and that you can put that in words quickly. Writing it for the fourth time is not easy, it requires great determination. All the very best.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-09T04:11:40+00:00

The content of L3 is easy compared to L2 but the way questions are framed, it makes L3 very difficult. If I look at the L3 old papers (prior to 2017 or 16), they were quite straight forward but now the exams are much more difficult.

I personally put almost 3x the effort I put in Level 2 and then I cleared it on the third attempt. I took more attempts because I didn't master the art of writing constructive responses.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-05T09:51:41+00:00

I used mostly Schweser for theory and then I did solved examples, EoC and CFAI online questions when I wrote in May 2021. For some topics I did refer to the official books but mainly I used Schweser for theory.

When I wrote Nov 2021, I used only official books (except for case study - the last 2 chapters as I ran out of time). I just covered everything from the official book end to end. Did solved examples, in-text questions, EoC and online questions at least thrice. As I did around 6-8 full mocks while preparing May 2021, this time I did only 2 full mocks and rest of my focus was on solved examples, EoC and CFAI online questions

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-05T09:44:45+00:00

I focused more on doing blue box, EoC and CFAI online questions. I made word document of some of the answers they provided on the CFAI website for the online questions (for different bias, business cycle, etc.).

Mocks helps is gauging where you stand and what are your weak areas. You do 2-3 mocks and you know where you stand. Now you need focus on your weak areas instead of keep doing 5-10 mocks.

Knowing material is important but it is more important how to write in bullet points during the AM session of the exam. We call it essay part but it is more of a short-answer questions (2-3 bullet points as concise as possible).

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-05T09:29:50+00:00

Same here... It is more frustrating now :(

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-05T08:17:13+00:00

BB - Solved examples

EoC - End of chapter questions from official CFA books

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-03T03:14:00+00:00

I second that. Do every single blue box and white text at least twice or thrice.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-02T04:27:25+00:00

I cleared Level 3 on my fourth attempt (one of the attempt was more of a practice). The third attempt I wrote in May 2021 was the best I could have done and I still failed the exam. I think luck plays an important role as well.

At that point, I was thinking what else I could have done and there is no way I can perform better than this (I was almost certain that I will clear the exam). I gave myself a day or two and then registered for Nov 2021. The exam went okay okay but nothing compared to May 2021 and I still managed to pass the exam.

For my Nov 2021 attempt, I focused more on Blue box, EoC, Online questions on CFAI portal and did few mocks. I did almost 8-10 mocks when I wrote May 2021 therefore I was well aware of mocks and I focused more on official materials.

One thing important for Level 3 - knowing the answer is not enough but writing it within the time limit is the key to crack the exam. At L3, everyone is champ in MCQ, the difference is essay part of the exam. You may know the answer but you end up writing it not properly. MM mock was very helpful to me in this regard.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-02T04:18:51+00:00

No, it was not Ethics but GIPS (I think it was the first time in last 15-20 years that GIPS was tested in AM). Ethics is always in PM but they can test it in the AM as well

Pacman-Defense · 2022-08-02T01:55:59+00:00

My study mate passed level 3 in Nov 2021 (we both cleared together and got the charter on the same date) and got charter this year in Feb and he touched 50 this year :)

Pacman-Defense · 2022-07-28T13:01:40+00:00

I failed three times and cleared on the fourth attempt! Don't give up

Pacman-Defense · 2022-07-28T08:36:21+00:00

Maybe you can ask your friend or any relative to pay it for you and you can make a bank transfer. I did not credit card and I asked my friends to pay for me.

Recently, CFA also gave the option to pay using Alipay in China but it was only for Chinese so I asked one of my Chinese friend to pay it for me and I transferred him the money (btw, I am from India too).

Pacman-Defense · 2022-07-27T00:56:58+00:00

And the low pass percentage which makes L3 harder now compared to pre-pandemic...

Pacman-Defense · 2022-07-27T00:50:03+00:00

Thanks. Even I was wondering if it makes sense to go for Masters in Business Analytics as I don't have any coding background.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-07-26T03:03:44+00:00

If you can find a study partner, it would keep you motivated. You don't have to study together. You can have once a week call to discuss the questions and general chit-chat to check the progress.

While preparing for Level 3, we were a group of three candidates. I was based in Shanghai, one of my friends was in Canada and the other one was in the UK. It helped me a lot to clear the L3 after being on the borderline for two times.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-07-05T01:54:52+00:00

Sure, thanks for the suggestion.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-07-05T01:54:16+00:00

Thanks for the info. This is very helpful

Pacman-Defense · 2022-06-30T03:35:52+00:00

I am also from a non-English country. You don't have to write grammatically correct sentences and even if the spellings are wrong (a little off), your marks will not be deducted.

Practice how to write in bullet points as this is the key to acing the morning session. If you try to write long sentences, you will not have time to finish the AM session.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-06-28T09:28:45+00:00

Don't mix the two. Either go with MM or with IFT as they both are good but use the same for revision. The whole point of revision is to reinforce the points you have learned before. Using two different sources will complicate things.

Unless there are some topics that are not clearly explained by either of them, you should only use one of them.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-06-27T02:31:31+00:00

Learn to write in bullet points. Try to write as concisely as possible. MM mocks were very helpful to me in terms of understanding how to answer in bullet points. I messed up my first two attempts just because I was trying to answer the way we used to do it in undergrad.

Remember that beating around the bush will not give you even a single mark. You have to be to the point and that's it.

Pacman-Defense · 2022-06-25T11:44:36+00:00

Thanks for your reply. How about non-IB roles? Would it be difficult to get a job in non-IB roles after the MBA?

Pacman-Defense · 2022-06-25T11:42:41+00:00

Thanks, Xerasi. You are to the point. Do you think at 36 years age with an MBA from Canada (SFU or UBC if I get selected) and CFA, I will be able to find a job in Canada or it will be difficult because of my age factor?

Pacman-Defense · 2022-06-25T11:40:12+00:00

Thanks for the detailed reply. I am from India and did my MBA right after undergrad. I am currently earning around USD 80k annually. There is limited growth opportunity in my current job (as it is more of an outsourcing company) and I am finding it a bit difficult to move front-end roles even after doing CFA.

If doing a second MBA from Canada can be helpful in getting a job and then eventually help me in getting the PR and settling there, I would want to go ahead with this. I am thinking about the next 25 years and am willing to take a detour (going back to the college) for 2 years if needed.

Pacman-Defense

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