How difficult is L2 compared to L1

riyaz Wrote:
——————————————————-
> come on guys, can you be more specific instead of
> cracking jokes and comparisons with massage and
> movies.
>
> in terms of studies, how much harder, and why?
> was it more material, less clarity,
> un-interesting? too much FSA? what is it?
>
> BTW, I am L1 candidate, and I tried mock exam L2
> Ethics section. Got all 6 of them correct in under
> 8 minutes. Given time was 18 minutes. This one was
> the chinese student example who worked for her
> employer for free while studying for L3 and MBA
> together question.
>
> I felt like L2 ethics was easier than L1, no
> wonders L1 passing rate is only 33% compared to
> like 50% or so for L2
wow- nice logic.
But you’ve got a shot bc the 10 minute surplus you gained in ethics will be helpful for the free cash flow to equity derivation they might throw at you :)
look- the exam is doable or ppl wouldn’t pass it. Most feel it is more difficult than level one, unless possibly those who came in to level 1 with 0 background whatsoever. I thought it was more difficult because it was so granular, but if you are good at taking details and extending them logically in practice you might find it better than the more rote level one.
 
boston21 Wrote:
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> man i would love to see this brilliant mind
> attempt the ethics on the real exam this year…..
> congrats on getting all 6 of them correct on the
> practice exam….that’s like feeling good about
> counting to 10
oh ya, passing ethics vignette is like counting to 10? i just mentioned that i took it to see how I do. I never said, L2 must be easy or anything. You seem to just take offense and then have decided to ridicule and insult in response.
 
level 2 goes much deeper on similar concepts from level 1, it requires a lot more comprehension of the material as the questions are groups to cases. If you passed Level 1 with no problem and a high score, level 2 won’t be TOO difficult, but if you barely passed level 1, you’d have to study 10 times harder for level 2.
 
Or if you come in with the mindset that L1 was easy, maybe L2 will only be a little harder, as riyaz seems to be coming across as thinking, then this is a mistake. You need to work HARD at all levels to pass. Maybe those who had a lot of undergrad training or whatever can pass L1 without much effort, but it won’t be like that at L2/L3.
 
riyaz Wrote:
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“Because actual CFAs have told me”
You would get at least one Ethics problem wrong here..
 
riyaz Wrote:
——————————————————-
> CFAdreams Wrote:
> ————————————————–
> —–
> > ryiaz.. watch your mouth on level 2 ethics.. it
> > will do that cheese grater thing mentioned
> > earlier.. there is a reason it was a practice
> exam
> > you did
>
> It was a mock exam, and they had provided mock
> exams for L1 and L2. I thought actual exam for L1
> was similar in difficulty to L1.
>
> And many people have told me, mock exams are
> similar in difficulty to actual exams. Infact, I
> have also been told and I agree for L1, that
> schewser practice exams are a bit more challenging
> than actual CFA L1 exam.
>
> Having said that, I also know that Ethics is not
> actual representation of the L2 curriculum’s
> difficulty. Because actual CFAs have told me, that
> Ethics doesnt get any more difficult in L2 and L3.
>
>
> I found item set format easier because once you
> have read and understood the story or exhibits,
> you have to answer the questions. However, the
> risk as someone mentioned is, they could get you
> in the details or what-if the item set they picked
> was from one of your least favorite topics, then
> you are screwed.
>
> Overall, I conclude that L2 could be a bit more
> work than L1
The Ethics material doesnt get any more difficult. The vignettes certainly do, to the point that they cause several day debates.
 
programmer Wrote:
——————————————————-
> riyaz Wrote:
> ————————————————–
> —–
> “Because actual CFAs have told me”
>
> You would get at least one Ethics problem wrong
> here..
programmer, are you trying to pick on me on this board? its not helping anyone.
In any case, I thank most here who made valuable contribution and helped me guage to some level how hard the L2 is. I knew its a tough level, but I wanted to get a perspective from you guys, who have made it through L1 and into L2. Hats off for that! and good luck to all except to the following candidates:
programmer and CFADreams.
 
JensensalphaMale Wrote:
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> L2 had a similar amount of material (probably just
> under 3,000 pages each) but the depth of the
> material was much greater. Also, many of the
> concepts are probably more foreign to the
> candidate (not really covered in your basic
> finance/econ undergrad courses). As a result,
> more time would probably need to go into the
> preparation.
>
> I thought the item-set format was more difficult
> than stand-alone questions as well. Due to there
> only being 120 questions (as opposed to 240), it
> is more difficult for the CFAI to test the body of
> knowledge. As a result, major topics seemed to be
> missed on the exam while the nuances of the
> obscure topics could kill you if you aren’t
> completely prepared. As a result, you need to
> know everything to a greater extent (1 question
> out of 240 won’t kill you but 6 out of 120 might).
>
>
> All in all, the two really weren’t very
> comparable.
+10
But the movie/massage cracks are true too. You’ve been warned.
 
riyaz Wrote:
——————————————————-
>
> BTW, I am L1 candidate, and I tried mock exam L2
> Ethics section. Got all 6 of them correct in under
> 8 minutes. Given time was 18 minutes. This one was
> the chinese student example who worked for her
> employer for free while studying for L3 and MBA
> together question.
>
> I felt like L2 ethics was easier than L1, no
> wonders L1 passing rate is only 33% compared to
> like 50% or so for L2
I did the same exact thing when I first got my study material for L2…do not underestimate any part of the exam. I thought L1 ethics was a breeze, L2 ethics was much more complicated. I did not see 1 ethics vignette or question that came close to what I saw on the exam. I went through all of the CFAI ethics questions in the book, and missed hardly any.
I found studying for L2 more frustrating than I did L1. Going over practice tests towards the end, seeing some obscure question or formula, or missing some minute detail in a vignette can really just piss you off.
But I would not try to make a comparison between the pass rates, I think L3 has the highest pass rate, but I would imagine it is the hardest one.
 
riyaz Wrote:
——————————————————-
> BTW, I am L1 candidate, and I tried mock exam L2
> Ethics section. Got all 6 of them correct in under
> 8 minutes. Given time was 18 minutes. This one was
> the chinese student example who worked for her
> employer for free while studying for L3 and MBA
> together question.
>
When you’re evaluating defined benefit pension plan, FCFF/FCFE, or time series vignettes your ability to cut through an ambiguous ethics vignette will serve you nicely I’m certain.
 
not trying to be mean but I’m just saying that level 2 Ethics is no joke. 6/6 on one vignette does not tell you anything. Try a few more and see how you do. But the point I was making on that one about “CFAs” is that you can’t refer to CFA Charterholders as “CFAs” and this is actual material that either CFAI, Schweser, or Stalla has asked before.
At least if you see this question, you’ll know the answer now.
 
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