I registered for the 2nd deadline on 13th Feb and got my Schweser books today. I’m a second year MBA student majoring in Finance so I am aware of some of the topics covered in Level 1 curriculum. I wanna know whether 105 days will be enough time to be fully prepared. Currently I have time to study for 5-6 hrs every day.
105 days... can I do it if I start today?
- Thread starter Ace_28
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If you have 5-6 hours to study every day, you can absolutely do it. You have to be incredibly dilligent, because it’s a LOT of material and you can burn out going at that sort of pace. Once you get going, after a couple of weeks it becomes easy.
The Schweser material is what you want as an MBA finance student. That will help cut the time needed considerably and cover exactly what you need to know in a very efficient manner.
In my opinion, you will have no problem if you can devote 5 hours a day to studying.
The Schweser material is what you want as an MBA finance student. That will help cut the time needed considerably and cover exactly what you need to know in a very efficient manner.
In my opinion, you will have no problem if you can devote 5 hours a day to studying.
In the same situation. Have an MSc. Finance. For some reason, i just get nervous about that material, and I think that is my biggest challenge. Other than Economics, I am fairly familiar with everything else. Got this anxiety thing going on that I definitely have to overcome. What makes me even more anxious is that 2 classmates of mine passed level Dec Level 1 after studying for approximately 2.5 months. This gives me hope but my hectic work schedule induces the anxiety.
Let’s get it done guys!!!
Let’s get it done guys!!!
Honestly, I don’t think you need 5-6 hours a day. I’m devoting about 1-2 hours a day but at least 16 hours on the weekend. If you have a finance background a lot of this will be review. I started studying in January and plan to take in June. The only area that I can see giving you a problem is the ethics part. I’m still reviewing as I go along. Get the Schweser notes and ditch the CFA books.
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Thanks rayankh, I’ll definitley give it my best shot. As Yoda said “Do or do not, there is no try.”
It actually depends on the person studying. For e.g., I grasp the concepts very quickly but am also equally quick in forgetting them if I do not practise regularly. Which is why I’ll be devoting almost over a month in revising everything.
Greenman72
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- Jun 18, 2026
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This is very true. I know one guy who had a BBA in finance, and the only prep he did for Level 1–he read the Code and Standards and answered the EOC questions. He said he put in about 8 hours–the day before the exam. He passed. (Try this on Level 2 and you are guaranteed to fail.)
Even if you don’t have a finance background, you should still have plenty of time if you put in 3 hours a day, every day. That’s the “required” 300 hours.
Greenman72
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- Jun 18, 2026
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By the way–I wouldn’t try doing the CFA and the MBA at the same time. I tried that, and the workload was too much. And remember that your GPA is more likely to follow you around than your CFA failures. (When was the last time a recruiter asked to look at your CFA scores?)
bsmith2371
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- Jun 18, 2026
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@Greenman72
How detailed were your reading notes from Level I? I’m worried I may be being too detailed, and in turn wasting time on things that probably won’t be tested.
Did you try and differentiate between big picture/important info and excess, or the more detailed the better?
How detailed were your reading notes from Level I? I’m worried I may be being too detailed, and in turn wasting time on things that probably won’t be tested.
Did you try and differentiate between big picture/important info and excess, or the more detailed the better?
I believe you will have no problem, 105 days is plenty of time. If you look at it this way - an average candidate that passes learns for 313 hours, that means that 3h per day are more than enough. But, although you will find that the curriculum is not demanding, you have to be very careful with your time management. Definitely create a weekly routine that will help you organize yourself, and track your progress. If you fail a session during the week, try to make up for it on the weekend, do not leave it for next week or for some other time.
And yes, practice problems - the really important stuff. QBank is a great tool so use it
My suggestion would be to do practice problems after each volume during the reading for that volume, and then in the review phase from all the volumes of course. And do not solve just the basic problems, take all practice problems into account from the start. If you need helpful advice for your prep you can check the blog where I write at www.timeprep.me/blog/
Good luck!
And yes, practice problems - the really important stuff. QBank is a great tool so use it
My suggestion would be to do practice problems after each volume during the reading for that volume, and then in the review phase from all the volumes of course. And do not solve just the basic problems, take all practice problems into account from the start. If you need helpful advice for your prep you can check the blog where I write at www.timeprep.me/blog/Good luck!