Mock exam scores vs Real exam scores?

ph00bb Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> mona_porsche_targa4s Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > CFAI mock 54%
> > And schweser mocks ( book 1 only ) never
> exceeded
> > 68%
> > And I passed
> > I felt the real exam was more straight forward
> > plus no tricky questions
>
>
> Totally agree with you
>
> I only used CFAI textbooks for my preparation.
> Just reading the text and taking notes but it took
> me a lot of time and I finished all the text about
> 3 days before the exam :(
>
> I did CFA sample exam on 2 days before the exam,
> got 55%
>
> I did CFA mock exam the day just before the exam,
> got 59% for AM and 62% for PM
>
> But I passed :D, as the real exam was way straight
> forward


Be careful with this. Just because the exam was more straightforward in 2009 doesn't mean it will be in 2010. I took L1 in 2008 and the exam was just as, if not less straightforward then the mock exams. I thought the ambiguity of the 2008 exam was somewhat extreme until I took L2 in 2009. It's extremely difficult to determine what you're going to get with the CFAI.

The best advice I can give you is just to know the information. That's it. Just know it and you'll be fine.
 
My first Schweser mock in April yielded a score just shy of 70% although I was split 50-50 between >70 and the other two scoring ranges. On subsequent Schweser mocks (I took all six half-tests in Volume I), I raised my scores to the mid 70s. I took two CFA mocks (half-tests) and scored exactly 70% on each one.

None of these results made me especially confident about passing but since I had never done worse than a 68%, I figured I would be close. I passed Level I with all >70% except a 50-70 in Derivatives, which means I was one or two questions away from >70.

In my opinion, the CFA mocks were more realistic and a bit more difficult than the Schweser mocks. I thought the Schweser mocks were better for learning than for actually predicting exam success.
 
Mine CFA Mock 1 - 78%
CFA Mock 2 - 74%
In Schweser my max was 72%
Passed CFA L1
 
I scored a 64% on the am two days before the test. I started freaking out and I re-read a lot of the alternative, derivates, and fixed income schweser notes just to refresh my memory. I also took a lot of time in the last day to really understand ethics and the parts of FRA that were giving me troubles.

I am definitely a crammer. I didn't have time to take the PM and I luckily passed the exam.

Looking back, I AM SO GLAD I READ THE SCHWESER sections right before the test. There seemed to be a lot of specific questions that I would not have known otherwise. That is what put me over the top.

Good luck to all in December.
 
Back
Top