Jehanzaib Zafar
New member
- Jun 18, 2026
- 0
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Hello everyone.
Its been a while since I last contributed to this forum but i am finally making a come back here; needless to say, it is good to be back.
Today was one of the happiest day of my life as I finally got a congratulations mail from CFAI after three years of disappointment. I realize that the task is only 66% complete and there is a small matter of clearing level 3 exam before I can truly look back over the journey and get some satisfaction out of it. However, I will still take liberty and share my difficult experience with level 2 exam anyway. I hope those who did not make it this time can get inspiration from my struggles.
After appearing and passing Level 1 exam on the first attempt in 2012, I promptly signed up for level 2 exam, all pumped up to clear it in the first attempt. However, lady luck had something else in the closet for me. After I cleared the Level 1 exam, i got an entry level job in one of the buy side houses (boutique asset management company) in karachi, a small firm with a staff strength of around 15 and AUMs of under USD500mn. Working hours there were pretty long and I was unable to concentrate on my studies. 6 months into the new job I took an ill-advised decision to leave the job and concentrate on my studies. The decision backfired and I flunked the exam band 4 or band 5 (dont remember exactly).
Undeterred by the failure, I registered again for the exam next term. Found a new job in one of the biggest sell-side houses in Karachi, had one whole year of preparation under my belt this time but right on the day of exam, law and order situation in my city deteriorated and the exam was rescheduled. The date they announced was the day i had to travel and my company was not willing to reschedule the event and so i had to skip the exam. Extremely frustrating.
However the following year was even more frustrating. After having 2 full years of preparation, when I appeared in the exam last year, I came out of the examination hall in the first half, knowing that I was going to ace it. However, 2nd half was altogether a different story. I looked at Ethics section in second half and I knew I was in big big trouble. However, i did ok in other sections and I was hoping that they might just get me over the line. They did not. My worst fears were realized two months later when I failed band 10. It was like end of the world for me. I was completely deflated. Down and out. I locked myself in my room and didnt come out for two days. I was on the brink. Suicidal thoughts were consuming me. I have had a good academic record and had never failed any exam all my life. Two successive failure got to me and I was unable to get myself up. My girl friend, my family, my friends, my colleagues at work, all did their best to cheer me up and eventually, after hours of counseling, I decided to give it another go. I registered for this year’s exam and this time I targeted the areas that brought me down, namely ethics and derivatives.
Over the next 6 months, I dedicated atleast 4 hours everyday to studies and did a lot of practice. Going into the exam I didnt know what else I could do to improve my odds. I had almost everything on my fingertips. However, a night before exam we had a long day at work. I got home around 1 in the night, I had just few hours of sleep and went for the exam. First half, as usual, went extremely well. Second half, I was absolutely knackered and was barely able to keep my eyes open. However, unlike last year, I aced the ethics section and derivatives too. Finished my exam with in 2 hours, and got out way before time.
This time I was pretty confident. I talked to people who appeared in the exam and I realized that I might just get it done this time. Sure as hell!
A congratulations mail today has done justice to 3 years of hard work. The madness, the sleepless nights, the anti-social behavior … all the sacrifices seem to be worth it now.
A lesson for all those who didnt make it this time. Do not give up on your dreams. All the sacrifices you have to make in order to achieve your dream will be more than worth it in the end. Thats a promise!!!
All the very best!
Its been a while since I last contributed to this forum but i am finally making a come back here; needless to say, it is good to be back.
Today was one of the happiest day of my life as I finally got a congratulations mail from CFAI after three years of disappointment. I realize that the task is only 66% complete and there is a small matter of clearing level 3 exam before I can truly look back over the journey and get some satisfaction out of it. However, I will still take liberty and share my difficult experience with level 2 exam anyway. I hope those who did not make it this time can get inspiration from my struggles.
After appearing and passing Level 1 exam on the first attempt in 2012, I promptly signed up for level 2 exam, all pumped up to clear it in the first attempt. However, lady luck had something else in the closet for me. After I cleared the Level 1 exam, i got an entry level job in one of the buy side houses (boutique asset management company) in karachi, a small firm with a staff strength of around 15 and AUMs of under USD500mn. Working hours there were pretty long and I was unable to concentrate on my studies. 6 months into the new job I took an ill-advised decision to leave the job and concentrate on my studies. The decision backfired and I flunked the exam band 4 or band 5 (dont remember exactly).
Undeterred by the failure, I registered again for the exam next term. Found a new job in one of the biggest sell-side houses in Karachi, had one whole year of preparation under my belt this time but right on the day of exam, law and order situation in my city deteriorated and the exam was rescheduled. The date they announced was the day i had to travel and my company was not willing to reschedule the event and so i had to skip the exam. Extremely frustrating.
However the following year was even more frustrating. After having 2 full years of preparation, when I appeared in the exam last year, I came out of the examination hall in the first half, knowing that I was going to ace it. However, 2nd half was altogether a different story. I looked at Ethics section in second half and I knew I was in big big trouble. However, i did ok in other sections and I was hoping that they might just get me over the line. They did not. My worst fears were realized two months later when I failed band 10. It was like end of the world for me. I was completely deflated. Down and out. I locked myself in my room and didnt come out for two days. I was on the brink. Suicidal thoughts were consuming me. I have had a good academic record and had never failed any exam all my life. Two successive failure got to me and I was unable to get myself up. My girl friend, my family, my friends, my colleagues at work, all did their best to cheer me up and eventually, after hours of counseling, I decided to give it another go. I registered for this year’s exam and this time I targeted the areas that brought me down, namely ethics and derivatives.
Over the next 6 months, I dedicated atleast 4 hours everyday to studies and did a lot of practice. Going into the exam I didnt know what else I could do to improve my odds. I had almost everything on my fingertips. However, a night before exam we had a long day at work. I got home around 1 in the night, I had just few hours of sleep and went for the exam. First half, as usual, went extremely well. Second half, I was absolutely knackered and was barely able to keep my eyes open. However, unlike last year, I aced the ethics section and derivatives too. Finished my exam with in 2 hours, and got out way before time.
This time I was pretty confident. I talked to people who appeared in the exam and I realized that I might just get it done this time. Sure as hell!
A congratulations mail today has done justice to 3 years of hard work. The madness, the sleepless nights, the anti-social behavior … all the sacrifices seem to be worth it now.
A lesson for all those who didnt make it this time. Do not give up on your dreams. All the sacrifices you have to make in order to achieve your dream will be more than worth it in the end. Thats a promise!!!
All the very best!