Irishfan wrote:
RG, I *almost* signed up in March to take it in June, but I didn't think I had enough time to learn/re-learn all the required material. I'm leaning pretty heavily toward a career in IM, and the CFA seems to be a necessity.
Given my background (BA in Acct, MS in Acct, CPA, public accounting/financial consulting), the course load at the GSB, and the relevant timeframes for internship/full time offers, when would you suggest I go ahead with Level 1? Is December a reasonable goal, or would you recommend pushing it back until next June? Also, how much more beneficial is passing Level 1 in terms of getting an internship/full time offer, as opposed to just being a "candidate?" In other words, of course passing the exam, as opposed to being in line to take the exam is preferable, but is it a deal-breaker?
Obviously, I'm not very familiar with any of the timing or hiring nuances associated with the CFA...any comments or advice would be greatly appreciated!
Your situation is very interesting. The main challenge that I see for your Level I prep is the logistical issues.
1) If I recall correctly, you're heading to GSB. If that's the case, the CFA exam in December will be taking place near final exams and during recruiting/schmoozing process. I really don't know if you want to tack the CFA on to your schedule.
2) Thinking ahead (as this is a challenge that I discuss with me mentees that sit for the December exam), Level II is offered only 1X per year, in June. I believe the CFA Institute has streamlined the results process a little bit since I took Level I, but the results are released in mid to late January. That means, if you pick up your study materials on February 1 (just to be conservative), you will only have ~3.5 months + 2 of weeks for review to prepare. While this may be enough given your background (see more below), again, with your school situation, I wouldn't recommend this. Level II separates the men and women from the boys and the girls. The pass rates are trending downwards and reaching historic lows. Once you pass Level II, it's just a matter of time until you become a Charterholder. But until you do pass Level II, it's still up in the air.
Speaking from personal experience, I took Level I in December 2004. I got the results around the Super Bowl, in late January. I intended to sit for the exam in June 2005, but once I saw the materials, I nearly **** a brick. I knew it wasn't going to happen for me. With the exams offered only once per year, I didn't want to put in 200+ hours and not have it work out for me. That would have been too painful. Just to finish my story real quickly, I started studying for Level II in December 2005, passed in June 2006, and passed Level III in June 2007.
3) At the end of the day, it is really important to be sure that you want to go the investment management route. That is really where the value and appreciation is (from a $$$ and hiring perspective). At GSB, I think that you will definitely have the opportunities to move directly into IM during your internships and full-time recruiting process. Once you get in the door, I think you can then start on the CFA. OK, I just checked your profile. You are 26. Let's say you are 28 when you finish GSB and then take Level I in June 2011 (we'll add a year just for some leeway). Assuming all goes well, you'll be finished with CFA, an MBA from GSB and three years of IM work experience at the ripe old age of 31. W-O-W
-ryguy
PS Not to put the cart before the horse, but you will do very well with the Level II exam. It is ~40%-50% financial statement analysis (CFA Institute lingo for accounting). That includes things such as foreign currency translation, purchases through equity/pool method, pension accounting, deferred tax liabilities, etc. As I understand, these are intermediate topics discussed in accounting courses. As someone averse to all things accounting, I had never heard of these things, so Level II was a major challenge for me (I put in ~300-350 hours, if I had to guess).