Sitting for both sections?

[Ashley03]

Hi all, I've been considering sitting for the FRM and had a few questions as to how best set up a schedule. Is it possible/sane to sit for both Part I and II in the same day. I am currently sitting for the L1 CFA exam in June and would have late June - November to study.

Thanks,
Ashley

 

[qin841121]

Just my 2 cents.

I passed CFA L1,2,3 in one try easily and I am now struggling with this FRM part 1 and 2 (It tough).

 

[Aleksander Hansen]

Just my 2 cents.

I passed CFA L1,2,3 in one try easily and I am now struggling with this FRM part 1 and 2 (It tough).

Regarding the CFA: can you take all the exams in one day, or within one year, or is it a 3 year long ordeal?
I'm too lazy to bother if it takes three years but if I can do it all in one year, like the FRM, I would consider it.

 

[qin841121]

no u need 3 sittings

 

[Dmitrij]

Dear Ashley,

I took both parts of the FRM last november and passed. I started in August. However, very important is how much background knowledge in statistics/econometrics/finance you have. If you did some courses in college or have previous experience, I would say it's possible. If you pick up concepts quickly, it's possible. The day itself is going to be hell - if you are going to take both parts during the same day, make sure you have a hotel really nearby and a starbucks for a large amount of coffee in the mornings and during the breaks. Your brain will probably be dead for the rest of the day once you're done

 

[qin841121]

Hi Dmitrij, did you find difficulty with the questions? I did the sample exam and can only manage 70%. I heard the passing score is 75% and I really don't believe it is true (I was guessing the passing score was 60% as every questions are so hard and detailed). Especially the passing rate for each paper is about 50%

 

[Dmitrij]

I'd say the passing rate is roughly 55%? A bit higher for part II. I didn't do any official garp practice exams, I only did bionicturtle questions and videos. BT Questions do prepare you well for the final exam, but it's not 'easy'. I'd say 90% of the questions simply take time to understand the mechanics; once you understand the mechanics, you can answer any similar question. However, getting to that "AHA" moment may take a while, depending on the person. For me, I just finished 2 years of introduction to stats/econometrics and had 2 finance courses, so it was pretty fresh in my mind. I would say that the videos of BT are the most valuable thing to learn.

 

[Aleksander Hansen]

no u need 3 sittings

Thanks,
Yeah, that's what I thought... Just makes it into such a prolonged process. I keep hearing it's easier than FRM though, so maybe I'll just sit part 1 after I finish the FRM without studying/preparing for it to see whether I can just cruise through.

 

[Dmitrij]

Thanks,
Yeah, that's what I thought... Just makes it into such a prolonged process. I keep hearing it's easier than FRM though, so maybe I'll just sit part 1 after I finish the FRM without studying/preparing for it to see whether I can just cruise through.

Do prepare the ethics part though. I hear many people underestimate it

 

[qin841121]

the level 1 of cfa is dumb compared to frm 1&2. They ask questions like time value of money

 

[qin841121]

Do prepare the ethics part though. I hear many people underestimate it

Yes, this part is where common sense wun work

 

[Aleksander Hansen]

David,

Please don't rush to answer this one as I know you have your hands full right now:

There seems to be a lot of contradicting info on percentage needed to pass FRM Part 1.
From what I understand it is curved so that would make it hard to make an inference.
I see passing rate among those who take it is roughly 50% but can you shed any light on what has historically constituted a passing score, or probable range?
Those 50% [who pass] might have made gotten 40% or 90% correct for all I know.

 

[Hend Abuenein]

About the 3 sittings for CFA, I read on their site they could be done in as short as 18 months (the minimum), provided you pass all first time. The last two parts are a year apart, first and second only six months apart.

 

[Hend Abuenein]

After all the confessions i read on the web from CFAs struggling with FRM, it infuriates me when I come across risk and investment job postings that ask for CFA part 1 passers, but not FRMs! uuurrrggghhh

 

[Aleksander Hansen]

Maybe because they themselves did the CFA and don't want to be overshadowed by a more knowledgable FRM holder

 

[qin841121]

Imagine level 3 is the hardest and last year (the year I took the exam), I remember 2 questions.
1) Theory question. What is snake bite effect and which of the following is snake bite effect.
2) Calculate sharpe and sortino ratio (full questions on this) and compare.

Seriously, these questions are considered the "easy" one in FRM.

 

[Ashley03]

Thanks all for your insight!

 

[RK17]

A little off topic here. But i was surprised at how much less quantitative the FRM questions are in comparison to actuarial exams. In my opinion this makes the actuarial exams several times more difficult. No complaints though...

 

[Jas]

Correct - L1 in Dec, L2 in next Jun and then L3 in the following Jun
(Not counting the preparation time for L1 and assuming first time clearance)

About the 3 sittings for CFA, I read on their site they could be done in as short as 18 months (the minimum), provided you pass all first time. The last two parts are a year apart, first and second only six months apart.

 

[Suzanne Evans]

Those taking CFA L1 might find this article helpful. This was recently written and published by one of our writers Manish.

Thanks,
Suzanne