Exact Wording of Answers

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Dwalker12

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How important is the exact wording of answers in order to get credit for them? What I mean is that on an extended response if you describe what they’re talking about but don’t list the exact wording they have in the answer sheet would you still get any credit? I’m doing question 3 in the 2013 essay and for Part A, instead of stating she had a convex utility function for gains and a concave one for losses (what’s in the answer sheet) I said she had higher risk averseness for the losses and less for the gains. Is it critical to get the specific wording that they’re looking for, or the idea of what they’re aiming for?
 
I would like some input on this too. Instead of concave and convex I wrote “losses are more important that gains. Investors don’t equal a dollar gained to a dollar loss. (Also mentioned prospect theory).”
 
From what I gather, I think it’s more about the general idea rather than the exact wording. Schweser’s Secret Sauce Essential Exam Stratgies section has some useful insights, including:
  • “The published guideline answers on past essay exams are more complete and better written than actual exam answers that receive full credit
  • The published guideline answers may not reflect all alternative approaches to the question that received full or partial credit”
That indicates that both of your answers would probably be fine, in my opnion.
 
Your answer has to tell them the important point of the answer; exactly how you say that isn’t critical.
For example, if the important point is that the client needs a higher return, then saying that they need a higher return is fine, saying that their return requirement must increase is fine, saying that they need to generate greater profits from their portfolio is fine.
Saying that they need to relax their risk tolerance is not fine.
 
Full credit answers are obvious.
Partial credits, well, just hope the guy is in a good mood.
 
Im just going with the mentality that as long as you have a general idea of the answer to the question, along with some key words to convey to the grader what they are asking (long with relatign it to the case facts0, you should be golden
 
The question comes when they say “discuss”
I’m assuming that’s not a five word answer. But how much of the answer needs to be there?
 
@gad4, I agree with you. The Discuss questions throw me off. CFA defined Discuss as “to examine critically and in detail”, but then they also assigned 4min to a two-part question in the 2014 paper. “In detail” and 4min seem contradicting to me. If anyone has any light to shed on this that would be appreciated.
 
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