The Taste of Failing

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Well I failed after managing to pass level 1 and level 2 in December and June. I felt really good after level 2 and so proud that everything was on track and started preparing for Level 3 very early that I was done with the material the first round by Mid March. I toke two weeks off to travel while lightly doing some readings via Bookshelf. I came back and put my head into it, I put in all the hours that were needed. Level 3 was beautiful and a relief in comparison to the horrid level 2. Every topic you read was enforcing the portfolio management concept I had fun studying level 3. I was so into studying for level 3, I was listening to lectures during the daily drives, they were nonsense in the start and by the end i began to anticipate what comes next. One month into the exam I toke the time off to prepare for the exam. I did the EOC questions, i practiced with friends, we challenged concepts we did past papers, i made up my own past paper I knew it all
But i always wondered why are there those who failed? Where is the challenge in Level 3.
Its a simple answer
You will be gobsmacked with how little time there is in the exam.
I was told many times over and over and over about time management. Even if you knew it all unless you have been in such conditions you may not be ready for the written part unless you are truly honest to yourself and test your time management skills. If you are going to practice past papers exams make sure your put your self in very similar conditions.
I did very well in the afternoon paper but my morning paper was an embarrassment, i walked out of the exam thinking maybe quantity will override quality but no, answering all the questions bit me hard. Many walked out saying they failed to do the last two item set due to time, but i think they may have passed because they could have answered the first 8 questions better than i did.
There was a huge relief after finding out I failed not instant but gradual. I finally tasted failing, and it is actually a good feeling there is this weird satisfaction to experience failing after hard work after hours and hours of hard work. It definitely didn’t go in vain.
For those who passed congratulations, you know very well you have some much time to dedicate to your next life goal.
For those who will retake the test, sign up for the next exam, pack them aside, brain storm a plan, reload and lets meet again in June 2017.
For the new comers, dude you passed level 2, the novelty of passing it stays there for a goooood time and enjoy it :) prepare well and good luck
 
I think the important thing is not just ”time-management” as such, but being able to succinctly answer the question in a few short bullet points. That’s what I trained, and I answered all the questions, had ca. 20 minutes to spare and scored >70% on all but 3 of the AM questions.
 
Yes. Realize that the guideline answers go wayyyy beyond what will get you full marks. If you can hit a couple of the key words in there, then you’re golden. When you mark your exams, see if you can underline or highlight those words and review these often. Trying to recreate the guideline answers will just bog you down on exam day. Short and sweet… if you don’t know it, write your best guess and move on.
AND BRING A WATCH
 
The real mock exam from Schweser was a great help for me. The question’s quality itself was not the best but you can put yourself into the time pressured environment and practice writting. For level 3 AM portion, it’s not so much about knowing the material but rather being able to deliver your knowledge onto the paper during those 3 hours.
 
ltj wrote:
Yes. Realize that the guideline answers go wayyyy beyond what will get you full marks. If you can hit a couple of the key words in there, then you’re golden. When you mark your exams, see if you can underline or highlight those words and review these often. Trying to recreate the guideline answers will just bog you down on exam day. Short and sweet… if you don’t know it, write your best guess and move on.
AND BRING A WATCH
Click to expand...
Thanks LTJ
 
I second LTJ….without the watch that I bought the night before, I most likely would have failed.
 
Mace wrote:
I think the important thing is not just ”time-management” as such, but being able to succinctly answer the question in a few short bullet points. That’s what I trained, and I answered all the questions, had ca. 20 minutes to spare and scored >70% on all but 3 of the AM questions.
Click to expand...
Agreed. In my opinion, if you complete ~10 AM mocks with appropriate revisions post mock, you will know the material well enough to immediately put pen to paper after reading a question. I finished a first draft of the AM with an hour to spare, and finished the second draft with 15 minutes to go, enabling me to correct a few errors. PM was similar, finishing the first pass with 90 minutes left, and finishing the second pass with 30 minutes left. I think it just boils down to superior memory recall and no wasted words.
This is speaking as someone who never timed myself during mocks and didn’t bring a watch.
 
I had 20+ minutes to spare at the end. I had some answers that were one or two sentences. Do not overthink and overwrite.
 
I barely passed L3 on my first attempt but I will say that I was diligent about taking mock exams under same time pressure as the real exam. I believe it is best to scroll quickly through all the questions and begin working on the ones you know best. There are two reasons for this
1) you want to spend the most time on the questions you know best, and the least time on the hardest subjects. The goal is to score 65-70 not 100. One minute spent on a question you know well is more valuable than one spent on a subject you don’t know well.
2) if you work on the questions you know well, you will stay on pace or ahead of the recommended time. This gives you a psychological advantage because you won’t get stressed and rush
 
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