HELP S2000 Magician

A

AlexMo

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s2000magician,
I don’t know what to do anymore…I took the exam multiple times, really dedicated myself this time around to mastering every topic (besides Alt Inv. Ran low on time)
Went thru all the practice problems, made flash cards, went through as many EOC CFA questions as I could (although they seemed too simple) and still failed with a Band 5….Last year I got a Band 6…The year before I got a band 8
I just don’t get where I’m suppose to go from here. Any Advice?
I also felt that Deriv & F.I. was impossible on the exam. I couldnt even understand what they were asking. Yet I felt I masted those topics and did well on the wiley practice problems for those sections.
I didn’t read too much into Acctg or Equity as I felt strong on those topics & did not bother doing any Quant or Econ questions because i felt I should spend more time mastering other topics such as Corp Fin, PM, F.I. & Deriv.

To be honest, I did not read a single Wiley book…just studied with flash cards, class notes & did practice questions. I used the Wiley books only to cover the Blue box examples…

Any advice?

Alex
Alternative Investments
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Corporate Finance
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Derivatives
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Economics
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Equity Investments
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Ethical & Professional Standards
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Financial Reporting & Analysis
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Fixed Income Investments
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Portfolio Management
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Quantitative Methods
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Why not read the books? They are a core objective, the base for practicing exercises.
 
Read them (wiley) before. Doesnt’ help. Went thru all the wiley probems. avg 80-90% on them…went over the wrong ones to correct my mistakes…cfa eoc ones were very basic. The format of the questions(actual exam) is what makes the exam seem impossible.
 
maybe you have a bias that you know all of it, and that may be the source of the problem. If you started out with the presumption that you are learning something, and that the problems you were solving had some meaning - you might get some where. Saying CFAI questions on the EOC are too basic - and then not being able to pass the exam seems really a bit much.
 
cpk123 wrote:
maybe you have a bias that you know all of it, and that may be the source of the problem. If you started out with the presumption that you are learning something, and that the problems you were solving had some meaning - you might get some where. Saying CFAI questions on the EOC are too basic - and then not being able to pass the exam seems really a bit much.
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I agree with cpk, and I want to take it a little further. There’s obviously a disconnect with what you know and what you think you know, as well as a disconnect between how you’re practicing and how you’re answering exam questions.
Do you use the CFAI practice vignettes in your candidate portal and the official mock they release?
How are you answering practice questions? Is it closed notes and timed? Are you considering yourself correct for answers that are sort of right? When you average 80-90% on Wiley questions, is this at your first attempt, or do you make multiple passes to reach this? How are you performing on the CFAI EOCs?
I would agree that the EOC questions are pretty basic (intended to test your core knowledge), but if you actually know these concepts it should translate to different performance arenas.
You also mentioned that you haven’t read a single Wiley book, but you said you read the books already– are you referring to the official texts?
Answering some of these questions will make it easier for posters to help you.
 
I’ve read the books from another provider…front to back. I’ve also read all of the class notes from wiley as they are pretty detailed…when I wouldnt understand a concept, I’d revisit the wiley book for clarification.
tickersu,
What do you mean by CFA practice vignettes in the candidate portal?? The only practice questions available are the mock exams on the website, no?
 
He is referring to topic based practice Vignettes found in candidate resources. There are about 73 of them for L2. You dont want to skip that, think of it as three additional mock exams.
 
you are not studying enough man. you have to cover all the guides at least. it is best to cover everything in level 2.
 
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