Question about exam marking/importance of different sections

S

snakesnake

New member
Joined
Jun 18, 2026
Messages
0
Reaction score
0
I have a question about how the marking system on the Level 1 exam works.
I know that the actual pass criteria is a closely guarded secret and so forth so this might not get me an true answer at all.
Generally the consensus seems to be that you should get over 70%, however:
Does it matter how far over the 70% threshold I get? As in is there any difference between getting a 75% and a 95%? Obviously the 95% would push the overall average higher but I’m wondering whether the CFAI looks at that when passing/failing you or if they are more concerned about getting a minimum % on the different sections?
Currently based on question practice I feel like I could get 70% or above in Ethics, FRA and Alternatives so the two biggest ones and the smallest one. Statistics I suck at and fixed income isn’t too great either, the rest of the areas are somewhere in between. Assuming I can get over 70% in those 3 sections, I’m wondering what’s the worst I could do in the rest of them and still pass the exam?
 
How far above 70% matters. Just like how far below 50% matters too.
If you get below 70% overall, you are not guranteed to fail. The CFAI states they have never failed anoyone scoring below 70%.
 
I don’t know how true this is, but i’ve heard that if you are right on the cusp of the passing score but your score on Ethics is subpar, you have a high likelihood on being put on band-10
 
james_y_cuadrado wrote:
I don’t know how true this is, but i’ve heard that if you are right on the cusp of the passing score but your score on Ethics is subpar, you have a high likelihood on being put on band-10
Click to expand...
My issue is quite the contrary: it is ethics that I’ve been doing the best on in questions/mocks so far and stuff like statistics and fixed income that I’m not that strong in.
Can a strong ethics score help me if some of the other sections aren’t that great?
 
Your Ethics score is the deciding factor only if you’re on the brink of pass/fail.
Other than that, a point in Ethics is the same as a point in Quantitative Methods, which is the same as a point in Economics, which is the same as a point in FRA, which is the same as a point in … .
 
Better swing for the fences.
It seems to me that it’s graded on some sort of curve. If that’s the case, “I don’t have to outrun the bear, I just have to outrun you.”
 
S2000magician wrote:
Your Ethics score is the deciding factor only if you’re on the brink of pass/fail.
Other than that, a point in Ethics is the same as a point in Quantitative Methods, which is the same as a point in Economics, which is the same as a point in FRA, which is the same as a point in … .
Click to expand...
While points may be equal, ethics special status does seem to make it ‘more equal than the rest’ .
In any case, I’m still aiming to get as high as possible on all sections.
 
You have two weeks. You can still make sure you score 70% minimum on every section, and you will not have to calculate those statistics. The fact is, no one knows anything.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top