LEVEL 2 MPS ordeal (re-taker or level 3 candidates)

love_lord’s wrote:
Was just going through historical pass rates on CFAI website.
http://www.cfainstitute.org/programs/cfaprogram/Documents/1963_current_c...
For the last 4 years since 2011, Level 2 Pass Rate has always been atleast 4-5 percentage points higher than Level 1. And the December Level 1 Pass Rate has mostly been touching the June Level 1 Pass Rate curve or above it.
For 2014, Dec Level 1 pass rate was as high as 44%. June 2014 Level 2 was also very high at 46%.
Guess, the pass rate for L-2 this June can be as high as 47-48% which may push the MPS down.
Click to expand...
So you’re saying the pass rate determines the MPS? I don’t think this is the case (based on their grading process PDF)…
 
tickersu wrote:
love_lord’s wrote:
Was just going through historical pass rates on CFAI website.
http://www.cfainstitute.org/programs/cfaprogram/Documents/1963_current_c...
For the last 4 years since 2011, Level 2 Pass Rate has always been atleast 4-5 percentage points higher than Level 1. And the December Level 1 Pass Rate has mostly been touching the June Level 1 Pass Rate curve or above it.
For 2014, Dec Level 1 pass rate was as high as 44%. June 2014 Level 2 was also very high at 46%.
Guess, the pass rate for L-2 this June can be as high as 47-48% which may push the MPS down.
Click to expand...
So you’re saying the pass rate determines the MPS? I don’t think this is the case (based on their grading process PDF)…
Click to expand...
I guess the pass rate does play a role given that the CFAI would have a business interest in how many people are eventually able to pass the exam.
Obviously, they won’t disclose this factor, but then I guess board members have a final word over it as per their grading process as well. They take the final call.
There is definitely a pattern in the manner pass rates are adjusted if you look at the entire table. Look at the pass rates a decade ago.
 
lindsay99 wrote:
tickersu wrote:
love_lord’s wrote:
Was just going through historical pass rates on CFAI website.
http://www.cfainstitute.org/programs/cfaprogram/Documents/1963_current_c...
For the last 4 years since 2011, Level 2 Pass Rate has always been atleast 4-5 percentage points higher than Level 1. And the December Level 1 Pass Rate has mostly been touching the June Level 1 Pass Rate curve or above it.
For 2014, Dec Level 1 pass rate was as high as 44%. June 2014 Level 2 was also very high at 46%.
Guess, the pass rate for L-2 this June can be as high as 47-48% which may push the MPS down.
Click to expand...
So you’re saying the pass rate determines the MPS? I don’t think this is the case (based on their grading process PDF)…
Click to expand...
I guess the pass rate does play a role given that the CFAI would have a business interest in how many people are eventually able to pass the exam.
Obviously, they won’t disclose this factor, but then I guess board members have a final word over it as per their grading process as well. They take the final call.
There is definitely a pattern in the manner pass rates are adjusted if you look at the entire table. Look at the pass rates a decade ago.
Click to expand...
The difference here is that you’re speculating, and I’m going by the material presented to us as factual and relevant.If you read their literature on the grading process, they don’t mention a target pass rate (unless I missed it). If they determine a minimum passing score based on competency (which is more or less what the procedure says), then they’re not touching the pass rate. I don’t think there is any mumbo jumbo going on in secret meetings of the board members. The business interest argument doesn’t really do it for me; sure, that’s a good idea, but it’s almost assuming that the CFA Institute is pushing competent candidates aside in the program by failing them, just so the candidates stay in the program.
I’m sure many people perceive themselves as competent in the material, but the raw exam score “ranges” show otherwise (whatever people estimate from score matrices or even mock exams). Keep in mind, most exams count <70% as a failing or poor grade–supposedly, people have passed the CFA exams with less.
My point is that I don’t think the Institute messes with the pass rate (as a regular practice), because they don’t have to—the number of qualified candidates doesn’t likely increase directly with the total number of candidates. Also, if they are setting a minimum passing score based on competency using the method they describe, it wouldn’t be following the disclosed procedure to meddle with the pass rate.

Using the historical pass rates doesn’t provide good evidence, either. The test has been changing over the last few decades, the program is changing, and more people are taking the exams. These factors make it pretty impossible for you to look only at the pass rates and say that changes reflect the CFAI adjusting pass rates to what they target. It just also seems likely that the exam or program has become more rigorous to raise the standard, the proportion of competent candidates has decreased as more candidates join the program, or some combination of these.
 
danv0330 wrote:I was band 8 last year and I don’t think I scored more than 55%.. Last year I guessed on nearly every other question. My scoring matrix was in the middle for every category expect < 50 for derivatives. This year I felt the AM section was brutally hard but the PM was easy. But overall the same difficulty, i think last year am/pm was more balanced.This year I guessed on about 25% of the exam. I think I scored around 65% so it will be close if I pass or fail.. I think most candidates that fail, score over 50% .. the hurdle into 70% is very difficult in my opinion.. My guess is that everyones “raw” score is adjusted up a few % and the ” adjusted score” MPS is 65% so if you score above 60% raw you have a chance
Click to expand...
You think you would’ve passed if you scored >70 on Equity and Ethics holding all else constant?
 
I think I was about 8 correct answers from passing last year..So any combination of that between the 20 item sets would have done it.
Band 10 ( 1-3) questions from MPS
Band 9 (4-6)
Band 8 (7-9)
 
It is like that homes…
from my experience you will pass if you score 65%, based on my score estimates it came to 72% and I saw results threads averaging 63%.
 
[/quote]
I guess the pass rate does play a role given that the CFAI would have a business interest in how many people are eventually able to pass the exam.
Obviously, they won’t disclose this factor, but then I guess board members have a final word over it as per their grading process as well. They take the final call.
[/quote]
I agree, e.g. if L1 pass rates are high in one year, I think CFAI normalizes the pass rate for L2 the next year, to adjust for the larger candidate pool > by a small amount, maybe 1-2%, to clear the logjam, keep people in the program, and maintain revenue base. Of course it’s not disclosed.
 
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