@@dojimaryotaro6563 Look at this EXAM RESULT, every time I do it makes me CRY, How did our eyes get so red? And what the hell does the CAPM do. And this is where I grew up. In the headquarters of UBS. I never knew we'd ever go without, the BLOOMBERG terminal..................................
My personal experience was that after an entire year of exam deferrals, it became mentally exhausting to keep reviewing the same material and then going on brakes since exams were deferred and you tend to forget a lot of details. Plus life doesn't stay still and wait for the exam date to come. Things happen and you deviate sometimes from your studying. I felt like after each deferral my studying was back to square 1. I guess consistency was much harder to keep for an entire year than for a disciplined 6 months with 2-3 hours per day.
This is everything that I am feeling right now!! My original exam date was in Dec'20 and now after getting postponed twice, it is in Nov'21. And every time it felt like I am starting again and it gets harder to explain what you are going through to others, who feel that this is just an exam. :/
just wanna confirm regarding one more thing- This time there is no sectional cut off ( subject wise) and only overall cutoff will be considered. Is this true ? Like can I focus more on the subjects which I'm good at , rather than learning all 10 subjects completely! ? Is this True? Pls reply
@@albano2910 so It will be better if I focus more on subjects whuch I have studied well , rather tahn studying all the subjects and touching new topics as my CFA L1 exam is approaching near !
If they were planning for a change in strictness, how about setting that expectation before the candidates enrol as they could make an informed decision to sign up. Talking about 'transparency' lol
Great insight Mark. The timing of this dramatic increase in the MPS on the heels of the change to computer based testing and also the addition of annual L1 testing dates seems purposeful on the part of the CFAI rather than coincidental. As you say, only time will tell as we see more L1 and also L2 scores come in, but I wonder if this is a real paradigm shift we are seeing before our eyes.
No offence, but the majority of ppl who sit the CFA (especially those who fail, which includes me) are dummies for agreeing to be extorted for this ridiculous qualification. There are other ways to show your initiative to potential employers.
It really is about discipline and pushing your limits. I moved out to live on my own for 1.5 months to work and study for the May exam without distractions. Possibly a bit extreme but I left my revision a bit late. My approach was to continually review the topics and mix in QBank questions however, really focus on continually reviewing each topic. I would finish the 10 modules and start again. Each time adding in 30 mins of QBank Q's. So I agree with what Mark says. It is not about banging out 1000's of questions aimlessly, it is about ensuring that you understand the concepts to the extent that if unseen questions come up, you are able to intuitively apply your understanding to them.
Same here. I heavily underestimated the revision period and thought I could revise in less then a week. If I pass or fail, I know for next time how long I need to review.
I think that if their intention was just to raise the value of the charter, weed out candidates early, etc. Then at the very least, we should have been forewarned, the complete and utter lack of transparency means that candidates were passively misled about their chances of passing at level 1. You could be a kind of guy who was aiming for anything above 70 to secure a pass, who committed not only a lot of cash, but hundreds of hours of study to sit the exam, only to have the bar raised massively without you knowing it, after the fact. It just feels like we're being cheated. Even if there are good reasons for doing something like this, it should have been done in a more considered way, it feels like the CFAi is treating candidates like garbage.
I'm not a finance guy (different background), also I'm not a CFA candidate yet, but Interested in. I know it's a lot of hours, and I'm pretty sure I've never in my life studied that hard for an exam. But honestly every time I had a test/exam in any education level I was in I've never pointed to get 70%, I always went for the 100%, and I did it because I wanted to learn it really well. In my opinion, People who goes for 70% doesn't care about the knowledge, they only care about a paper that tells they're capable (but are they?). It's a matter of Attitude, if you get 70% but you went the for 100% and were genuinely interested in learning, I feel bad for you, and encourage you to try another time. Otherwise, the opposite.
@@ernestomorales6091 You can't compare exams which are built differently. It is by design not possible for the vast majority of candidates to get anywhere a 90%. If the CFA did allow that to happen, the mean passing score would go up to compensate, and we'd be back to square one with how many people passed. I'll give you an example from my university years. I was at a British university, the system here is that >70% is considered the top bracket (First Class). It does not matter if you get 71% or 99%, on your degree it will say First Class. Only around 25-30% of students are allowed to achieve that top bracket. A university that allows large chunks of students to achieve top marks has its reputation thrown into question, if they allow large numbers of students to get 80-100%, they'd not be taken seriously. We had a number of international and exchange students from countries where getting 90% or above was considered achievable. They'd be distraught when despite their effort, they'd only manage 70% or less. I remember listening to a veteran lecturer having to explain the system to those students in one of my classes. He said that they as professors are told to keep the average around 62-63% for the whole class, with standard deviations of about 6-8% being acceptable. Students are simply not meant to get much higher. I graduated top of my class of about 50 MSc students, what was my average? 78%... It's a similar deal here, we are told year after year that 70% is a very likely pass, anything above is almost a done deal. Even if you're a bit shy of that, a pass is possible. We have also seen a fairly consistent pattern of 42% of people passing every exam. This current pass rate really doesn't say much about the candidates, it's mostly some decision taken by the CFA which they failed to warn anyone about, and are now utterly failing to disclose properly in a transparent way.
Agree with you Ernesto. I have taken level 1 and just took level 2 waiting for results. For both, I was just learning finance and my goal is always to get in the 90th percentile. Not for the sake of it, just to assure myself that I know my stuff
I have been saying this a lot recently (worrying about my level 3 results) and this comment is the first I have seen someone else reiterate this sentiment….really surprised other people haven’t made the same connection on this
Your ending words hit hard, Mark: "Look at it the other way: you got 72% but missed 28%, and probably more, because you might have gotten lucky on the 72% and got the right answers for the wrong reason. Slow down. You need quality, not quantity. Do each question and truly know why the answer is the answer before moving on". Thank you for showing me this mindset. Guess I'll be more prepared next time with this approach.
I was so much frustrated right after I’d received my result was not passed, but I m so happy that u spoke out what I feel. Initially I was decided to give it up , but yes your suggestion is quite true and I will give a trial again on Nov.
@@chiccho6344 understood but if pass rate goes down dramatically, I don’t want to waste another who knows how long. If I fail, sure I will do it again, but only if I failed given the old standard. If the new standard is a much higher score on LIII, I will return later. Too tired now.
Seriously. I feel the same. It is so time consuming anyway because of the volume of the syllabus and with all these deferrals we stay behind in our career and personal life. I am tired.
@@Audience-Perspective scored around 85 with the mocks from Mark's site, 88 with the one provided by CFAI. I felt both were more challenging with longer questions than the actual exam
Same here. I felt fairly confident and was enjoying the beautiful summer before heading over to another imprisonment. Till this new blew away all thr good spirits
i don't get that its not for the money argument. you can't simply ignore the fact that 75% of the people will have to retake the exam. one can't just be oblivious to that, saying otherwise it's a bit bs, with all respect. I'm not saying it's all about money, but certainly money plays a part
Seems like institute is trying to cover the losses of 2020 by sending candidates to additional cycles of exams. This certification is now less about actualy practical knowledge, more about investing enormous unjustified amount of time into memorizing entire curriculum
@@MiguelOliveira-wz4ju I think Mark’s argument holds here. If you pass level one with 80% you are more likely to pass level 2 than if you passed level 1 with 65%. It doesn’t make a difference whether you repeat level 1 or level 2.
Sitting for L1 in November. Just gonna try to use these results as inspiration to buckle down more and hope that it means earning the charter will hold more weight because of its rigor than it already does.
Mark , Did you also take into account the fact the this year had the exam window for level 1 for almost all months - Feb , March , May , July ,Aug , Nov maybe i missed one more month here . What would you say about that . I feel the MPS might actually has gone down . Pls comment
I spent 60mn for 6 practice questions, from Mon-Fri. Full time study on weekend. That seems a waste of time but I'm happy as it's my learning process. Slowly but surely even it's not more efficient. It's okay. It's my learning style. As long as you can pass the exam it's fine and I did it.
I didn't even show up for my exam after being deferred twice. Just got too busy with work stuff. The first time I wrote level 1 in 2017 I failed miserably... just didn't know what I was doing or getting into. I just missed the pass mark in 2018 for my second attempt. Given I was so close I decided to try once more. I was surprised with my own decision to just not show up for the third exam attempt but I run my own business. While I felt more prepared in 2020 by the time I was to write in May 2021 I just felt like I lost momentum decided to focus on my busy season with work. Thinking of registering for another attempt... but not sure if I will.
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Will be interesting to see the level 2 results next week, fingers crossed!
I guess they just made the point, only the top does it. Done swallow pill, accepted i have not well prep and going May 2022 ( this time allowing 1yr to get foundation right). Realised the modules changes.
So demoralizing ... how are you supposed to want to write it again when the bar is set to 75% of failures... Plus... full price to register in november
Wondering how many level 1 candidates also sat for this May exam compared to other sessions. With covid happening, I suspect people had more time on their hands and decided to pursue the charter on a whim. So you have a larger population of individuals who aren't fully committed, coupled with a higher MPS. Recipe for disaster.
That was my thought as well; suppressed candidates from prior years, lots of amateur finance people, and don't forget the whole meme stonks thing that probably added a few additional "finance fans" to the mix.
I agree. I am from India and I had failed the l3 exam in 2019. It's July 2021 and the exam has been deferred thrice. I can totally relate to the rationale put forth by the cfai on Reddit. Reading the same content for so long has made my brain numb, and it's difficult to retain concepts.
I personally feel that they're trying to discourage the lot who register and aren't that serious about it. I Know a ton of people who didn't take the course seriously and expected to magically pass the level 1 exam. The 25% batch unfortunately might have just been collateral damage.
Have you heard any reports that the actual questions were more difficult - possibly people saying your/CFAI mocks were not on the same level as the exam? Studying for L2 in September (curious to know if I should be taking a few extra marks off any mocks to get a closer gauge)
Having written the paper-based and computer-based L2 exam I can confirm the exam questions are different. Idt they are more difficult but they flow differently than the learning ecosystem questions and mock exam. It kinda takes you out of your comfort zone and makes the exam questions seem more difficult than they are. From my experience, I felt like the exam questions focused on different details than the questions from learning material. Like if the learning material tried to drill some concepts or calculations with different versions of the same questions, in the exam it would probably only show up indirectly for some different type of question.
I took level 1 a week ago. I think November is out of the question for me. I think the deadline to sign up for Nov was 7/21. Not sure if there is an exemption for people who have failed a previous exam. I think I did well, thought I did at least 70%, but I am not sure about 80%. We will see in September.
Shit...I just took the Level 1 in July. I hope my score isn't this bad. Now I'm more worried. I had great scores on all the practice problems and several mock exams, and I thought the actual exam was significantly harder than any practice problem I did.
just wanna confirm regarding one thing- This time there is no sectional cut off ( subject wise) and only overall cutoff will be considered. Is this true ? Like can I focus more on the subjects which I'm good at , rather than learning all 10 subjects completely! ? Is this True? Pls reply
I wonder if they’re including people who chose not to sit. I was a L2 candidate but when the test was deferred I moved on to the GMAT instead and am now in an MBA program. I ended up not even sitting for L2.
I was due to do the exam just when COVID hit. Exam was first delayed by a few months, I just burned out and would have failed for sure had the exam not been delayed again. So there is something about burning out due to delayed exams. Other thing is more people bored at home, so more people signing up without taking the exam seriously?
Me too. My mock was 72%, and their exams asked a lot on details that required memorization. Not similar to the level of depth in their mocks or EOC’s at all. It was not hard, rather “surfaced”.
I'll give my opinion here, and as you said, it's just an opinion amongst many: I don't know that this theory makes sense for the simple reason that, what with the pandemic for the past one and half year and the forced acceleration to shift to CBT, I don't think they'd have the time or gall for such a drastic move at the same time as all that. We also know they have been vastly understaffed since the pandemic, worrying about which centers to book and who might cancel on them. Although unpopular, I do believe the "stop-start" explanation they provided had at least some factor to play here. I know because I experienced that lull myself while studying for level 2 since 2019 and having the exam deferred twice before finally taking it. It makes you become somewhat complacent and lazy. Excessive time becomes an enemy instead of an ally. The information you studied decays and also your willingness to refresh it again.
My exam of level 1 is in November this result have given me a wake up call to study more hard and now I am planning to study atleast for 600 hours before my exam
Do you think for someone who has passed level one in 2019 and has been deferred constantly it make sense to continue this program and give an attempt to level 2? PS : this is my situation and I m confused wether to continue my journey or not.
Likely a mix of things. Most likely the biggest factor is the CBT, which I very much doubt was rigorously validated before implementation. I say this having taken both the paper-based exam (Level I) and the CBT (Level II).
If it was truly a "start/stop" study nature that caused the low pass rate, why also increase the MPS? ZERO logic in increasing the minimum passing score, when the general pass rate is so low.
So are you saying that if the pass rate is concentrated in level 1 that level 2 and 3 should actually see inflated pass rates going forward? I know this is theoretically speaking, but if 25% pass level 1, then the pool of candidates should be better off in level 2/3 therefore the pass rate should be increased, reflective of the decrease in level 1. I can't see pass rates of 70%+ in the later exams to compensate for level 1.
I was thinking the same thing. For that theory to be true, higher pass rates have to show in the other two exams. If not, then it’s not about displaying minimum knowledge at a set standard but picking pre-set percentile to be progress and become members each year. So in the end they are saying that there are only a set amount of charters to be awarded every year instead of educating and certifying a set professional standards/knowledge.
I'd agree that's assuming that CFAI will allow passing score at L2 be 60%. If only the cream rise to the top and go through the hoop then that same cream should continue to smash through
It seems to imply you're ok, that there was a considerable bottleneck in newly passed L1's arriving for the L2 exam, and they're just thinning the herd at L1 end.
CFA institute's comment on reddit actually makes a lot of sense. A lot of people had already fully studied the material by May last year. It will naturally make people overconfident in their ability to retain the knowledge over such a long timespan. You need full revision of all the material to pass, as if you never studied it before. You don't remember 300+ hours of studying material for so long. Highly doubt most people studied closer to 600 hours, meaning passing rates will be a lot lower.
I think it's because of switching to a computer based exam. If the exam can be repeated alot like every 4 months, then it's will be very easy for candidates to just fail in May and take it again in November. Unlike in the past where we have to wait a whole year to have another attempt. So it's makes more sense to increase the minimum passing score, otherwise the certificate will have no value if everybody can pass by repeating every 4 months.
@@akashtodkar5188 the bar exam is the exam folks take to become lawyers, Jake is stating the pass rate of the CFA L1 is lower than the BAR, meaning the L1 is more likely to be failed.
Sir MARK . How much time on average would you possibly spend in prep for CFA Level 1 for average person ?. And how much hours can I spent in a day if I have a 6 month writing in Feb 2022. Plz help!
Got a 70%+ on all sections except 2 (none 50% or below) for Feb. exam and failed with the highest MPS ever. Highest MPS and now lowest passing rate ever. I’m not going to register again for awhile. Gotta see some level of consistency again before I put in the time and money
@@thaiken9102 FRA was one. I did great on ethics. I was super close to the MPS line. I knew going in that FRA was going to be a challenge for me but felt since I didn’t get below 50% I would’ve been alright with my performance in other sections but it is what it is. Life goes on. Best of luck to your CFA journey if you have begun and yet to fully complete.
@@charlesdodd4983 I'm a May L1 candidate also, and luckily I did pass, however, my friend had the approximately same grade as you and failed the exam. All the best for your next exam!!
Hi Dr Mark, thanks for the video Pass rate is calculated with people who register ? Or with people who sit for exam only? I mean if 1000 register for exam. 500 sit for exam , the other 500 didn't show exam day 250 pass the exam Does it mean 50% pass rate or 25% pass rate?
I just found out that for candidates attending the exam in India's test centres, there's an applicable goods and services tax (GST) of 18% on top of the examination fee paid to CFAI. I don't believe I have paid the GST before but if I have to pay an additional 18%, the total examination fee may be upto USD 200 higher ..... that's super expensive :( I started out the CFA programme to cure my curiosity of investment analysis but now, in my opinion, the cost-benefit and risk-reward is WAY too high. If I register during the early registration phase, I now have to shell out additional money [USD 900 (approx. INR 80,000)] and time [lower pass rates, higher MPS etc.] for a benefit of, say, a minimum bump in current salary/future prospects. In a country that worships Chartered Accountants (CA) and MBAs, I believe the CFA designation is blown out of the water.
regarding your theory around CFAI possibly looking to make L1 more of a "gate" going forward - if so, it would also make sense that we'd probably see a gradual rise in L2/L3 rates. in other words, even if the May L2 pass rate is the same as historical L2 pass rates, it doesn't necessarily invalidate this theory. thanks for the video!
@@timiakano agree! also, it feels like CFAI's rationale (i.e., start/stop nature of study) has already been invalidated given Feb L1 had a similar MPS as May L1 and had a pass rate was over 40%.
Personally I think that a person that scores between 70%-80% in a CFA L1 exam is a person more than qualified for finance professional jobs. More of the formulas and calculations that we learn to do are already given to us and we are more tested on the interpretation. I think your financial improve with day to day office job too. Are they trying to punish new candidates that have more chances in less time for their own decision??
Hey Mark, so if someone decides to retake in November, does it make more sense rereading the syllabus or just dive straight into practice questions and mocks? Love from Barbados
I was planning to go for level 2 but now I just think I should go for a Masters. If level 2 has less than a 40% pass rate, at this point studying and passing would be tougher than a Masters.
But sir if you remember that the mps was higher for February(1st CBT) than the December 2020.....and this time the mps has increased even higher.....so I think finding a pass rate that's acceptable to keep the credibility of the CFA.
The plan for me was to apply to "access sholarship", the institute didn't even say whether it will open or not, and set my exam for may 2022. Should I stick to this plan?
Well lot of people sporting CFA I badge without putting the rigor dilutes the charter . Lot of companies just use the CFA I as a filter for their junior level employees. This does not help the charter in the long run.
Haha, just passed Level 2, with only 40% passing rate? My guess is, CFAI needs to cut a MPS to make the passing rate around 40%, but it turns out its test structure makes scoring distribution hard to make the cut, basically the (MPS + 1) includes too large of the percentile, and so they just cut it at 72, making the passing rate only 25%. Another guess is, lower passing scores to make these candidates to register the November exams, so CFAI can maximize their revenue lol. I did very poorly in Level 1, barely passed it, and I realized I had to work hard to pass Level 2. So got Mark Meldrum's videos as well as Schweser all together. If I sat at this Level 1 exam, I would never be able to pass it, then I wouldn't have passed Level 2
Just took level 1. Thought it went as well as it realistically could have. I really enjoyed emmersing myself in the content but if the pass rates are going to continue to be this high, I don't know if my paper will count as a pass. At the same time, I no longer care that much it was a good way to spend the lockdowns.
I just don't understand one thing : if pass rate is 25% , so all candidates we scored above 25% are definitely passed in May L1 exam ... right ? Means this time sooo many candidates have cleared L1 right ?
Why are people now doubting on July Level 1 results and doubting on themselves whether they will pass or fail in Exam!? There are high chances that they will definitely clear the exam as Passing percentage is just 25% this tym...mane next time it is 35-40%
Last time: if u scored above 70% on mocks you are good to go. Exam results: 4 subjects above 70%, 5 subjects close to 70% line and 1 subject on 50% line. Nothing below 50%. Still fail. Last time you could still pass with 1-2 subjects below 50% (fail) and 1-2 subjects only above 70%. Time has totally changed.
this is a great result imo, would've been a definite pass last year. There is just too much information to process on the fucking exam day. And then we have this "20 experimental questions" bullshit which reduces our opportunities for scoring even more...
25% including candidates who took for the 2nd and more time, considering that English natives makes the rate higher, wonder what's the score within first timers outside english speaking countries, 10%?
How do people not see how the money is what drives the program. No discounts for retests, continuous annual fees and the list goes on. Education is power but it doesn't have to be segregated. MM champion a new way for students to educate themselves and transcend the shackles of the system. Those that really want to learn financial literacy can go beyond programs like this
I didn't pass, but I know it's because I started late and didn't devote quality time to study and practice. I registered for Feb and plan to utilize the learning ecosystem to its fullest with MM videos this time
![[UNCUT] ลูกหมี-ลิลลี่ เหงียน เปิดใจฟาด ปู มัณฑนา I คนดังนั่งเคลียร์ I 15 ก.ค.67](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/FKQ60Y7bJ6s/mqdefault.jpg)
Please do not let a little construction ever stop you from posting! We would listen to your thoughts with a band playing behind ya.
May not if it’s Nickelback though.
Rush!
@@dojimaryotaro6563 Look at this EXAM RESULT, every time I do it makes me CRY, How did our eyes get so red? And what the hell does the CAPM do. And this is where I grew up. In the headquarters of UBS. I never knew we'd ever go without, the BLOOMBERG terminal..................................
My personal experience was that after an entire year of exam deferrals, it became mentally exhausting to keep reviewing the same material and then going on brakes since exams were deferred and you tend to forget a lot of details. Plus life doesn't stay still and wait for the exam date to come. Things happen and you deviate sometimes from your studying. I felt like after each deferral my studying was back to square 1. I guess consistency was much harder to keep for an entire year than for a disciplined 6 months with 2-3 hours per day.
This is everything that I am feeling right now!! My original exam date was in Dec'20 and now after getting postponed twice, it is in Nov'21. And every time it felt like I am starting again and it gets harder to explain what you are going through to others, who feel that this is just an exam. :/
I think I'm done wasting my time with CFA, not looking forward to Level 2 passing rates...
i was waiting for this video much more than my CFA result
PS: I think your theory Mark is 99% true...
just wanna confirm regarding one more thing- This time there is no sectional cut off ( subject wise) and only overall cutoff will be considered. Is this true ? Like can I focus more on the subjects which I'm good at , rather than learning all 10 subjects completely! ? Is this True? Pls reply
@@vishrutikhandelwal467 there has never been a sectional cut off in CFA exams
@@albano2910 so It will be better if I focus more on subjects whuch I have studied well , rather tahn studying all the subjects and touching new topics as my CFA L1 exam is approaching near !
If they were planning for a change in strictness, how about setting that expectation before the candidates enrol as they could make an informed decision to sign up. Talking about 'transparency' lol
Was waiting for this video and it's here !
Great insight Mark. The timing of this dramatic increase in the MPS on the heels of the change to computer based testing and also the addition of annual L1 testing dates seems purposeful on the part of the CFAI rather than coincidental. As you say, only time will tell as we see more L1 and also L2 scores come in, but I wonder if this is a real paradigm shift we are seeing before our eyes.
At this point I feel like we’re all just test dummies for the CFAI to figure out where they want to set the MPS.
Haha agree.
Just dummies.
One hit wonder in the 90’s. Hmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm
No offence, but the majority of ppl who sit the CFA (especially those who fail, which includes me) are dummies for agreeing to be extorted for this ridiculous qualification.
There are other ways to show your initiative to potential employers.
@@ak205 most employers are not out of box thinker. They tread the beaten path.
Give me an example of how would you do it.
It really is about discipline and pushing your limits. I moved out to live on my own for 1.5 months to work and study for the May exam without distractions. Possibly a bit extreme but I left my revision a bit late. My approach was to continually review the topics and mix in QBank questions however, really focus on continually reviewing each topic. I would finish the 10 modules and start again. Each time adding in 30 mins of QBank Q's.
So I agree with what Mark says. It is not about banging out 1000's of questions aimlessly, it is about ensuring that you understand the concepts to the extent that if unseen questions come up, you are able to intuitively apply your understanding to them.
Same here. I heavily underestimated the revision period and thought I could revise in less then a week. If I pass or fail, I know for next time how long I need to review.
I think that if their intention was just to raise the value of the charter, weed out candidates early, etc. Then at the very least, we should have been forewarned, the complete and utter lack of transparency means that candidates were passively misled about their chances of passing at level 1.
You could be a kind of guy who was aiming for anything above 70 to secure a pass, who committed not only a lot of cash, but hundreds of hours of study to sit the exam, only to have the bar raised massively without you knowing it, after the fact. It just feels like we're being cheated. Even if there are good reasons for doing something like this, it should have been done in a more considered way, it feels like the CFAi is treating candidates like garbage.
Agree
I'm not a finance guy (different background), also I'm not a CFA candidate yet, but Interested in.
I know it's a lot of hours, and I'm pretty sure I've never in my life studied that hard for an exam. But honestly every time I had a test/exam in any education level I was in I've never pointed to get 70%, I always went for the 100%, and I did it because I wanted to learn it really well.
In my opinion, People who goes for 70% doesn't care about the knowledge, they only care about a paper that tells they're capable (but are they?). It's a matter of Attitude, if you get 70% but you went the for 100% and were genuinely interested in learning, I feel bad for you, and encourage you to try another time. Otherwise, the opposite.
@@ernestomorales6091 You can't compare exams which are built differently. It is by design not possible for the vast majority of candidates to get anywhere a 90%. If the CFA did allow that to happen, the mean passing score would go up to compensate, and we'd be back to square one with how many people passed.
I'll give you an example from my university years. I was at a British university, the system here is that >70% is considered the top bracket (First Class). It does not matter if you get 71% or 99%, on your degree it will say First Class. Only around 25-30% of students are allowed to achieve that top bracket. A university that allows large chunks of students to achieve top marks has its reputation thrown into question, if they allow large numbers of students to get 80-100%, they'd not be taken seriously.
We had a number of international and exchange students from countries where getting 90% or above was considered achievable. They'd be distraught when despite their effort, they'd only manage 70% or less. I remember listening to a veteran lecturer having to explain the system to those students in one of my classes. He said that they as professors are told to keep the average around 62-63% for the whole class, with standard deviations of about 6-8% being acceptable. Students are simply not meant to get much higher. I graduated top of my class of about 50 MSc students, what was my average? 78%...
It's a similar deal here, we are told year after year that 70% is a very likely pass, anything above is almost a done deal. Even if you're a bit shy of that, a pass is possible. We have also seen a fairly consistent pattern of 42% of people passing every exam. This current pass rate really doesn't say much about the candidates, it's mostly some decision taken by the CFA which they failed to warn anyone about, and are now utterly failing to disclose properly in a transparent way.
Agree with you Ernesto. I have taken level 1 and just took level 2 waiting for results. For both, I was just learning finance and my goal is always to get in the 90th percentile. Not for the sake of it, just to assure myself that I know my stuff
@@federalfreemoneylackofrese9937 yo, so how's it?
Their stop Start theory would also apply to Feb 2021 then and that passing rate was 44%
I have been saying this a lot recently (worrying about my level 3 results) and this comment is the first I have seen someone else reiterate this sentiment….really surprised other people haven’t made the same connection on this
Your ending words hit hard, Mark: "Look at it the other way: you got 72% but missed 28%, and probably more, because you might have gotten lucky on the 72% and got the right answers for the wrong reason. Slow down. You need quality, not quantity. Do each question and truly know why the answer is the answer before moving on". Thank you for showing me this mindset. Guess I'll be more prepared next time with this approach.
I was so much frustrated right after I’d received my result was not passed, but I m so happy that u spoke out what I feel. Initially I was decided to give it up , but yes your suggestion is quite true and I will give a trial again on Nov.
Anyone adjusting the playback speed here just like in his videos?
Do you have any idea like if one purchases marks course and got any doubt while watching a lec how he can get it cleared?
Every video has a forum for questions and a second tab to ask me directly.
@@MarkMeldrum thanks for the reply. Feeling for confident now to start my journey.
@@MarkMeldrum sir how to pay you in CAD??
Im from India!
Any credit card will automatically make the conversion to INR.
Being waiting for this since this morning
“Thought I’d something more to say”
David Gilmour 🤝 Mark Meldrum
The time has come, the song is over.
They are honestly making me want to stop if I don’t pass LIII. I have a career and a life. Starting to become ridiculous.
You 75% there don’t stop
@@chiccho6344 understood but if pass rate goes down dramatically, I don’t want to waste another who knows how long. If I fail, sure I will do it again, but only if I failed given the old standard. If the new standard is a much higher score on LIII, I will return later. Too tired now.
Seriously. I feel the same. It is so time consuming anyway because of the volume of the syllabus and with all these deferrals we stay behind in our career and personal life. I am tired.
Passed above the 90th percentile thanks to Dr Mark's videos !!!
Congrats and welcome to Level 2!
@@MarkMeldrum Hi Dr Mark. Is there a formula sheet for Level 2?? Can't find it in PDF download
Being updated - a few more weeks.
Congrats, how were you doing on the mock exams out of interest?
@@Audience-Perspective scored around 85 with the mocks from Mark's site, 88 with the one provided by CFAI. I felt both were more challenging with longer questions than the actual exam
Just took level 1 4 days ago. Off to a great start to the 2 month wait for my score with this news...
Same here. I felt fairly confident and was enjoying the beautiful summer before heading over to another imprisonment. Till this new blew away all thr good spirits
If its not for money then they should at least reduce the fees for the second attempt
Because they are willingfully reducing the pass rate
i don't get that its not for the money argument. you can't simply ignore the fact that 75% of the people will have to retake the exam. one can't just be oblivious to that, saying otherwise it's a bit bs, with all respect. I'm not saying it's all about money, but certainly money plays a part
They will likely increase them due to higher inflation.
Miguel, you sure all of the 75% will retake the exam?
Seems like institute is trying to cover the losses of 2020 by sending candidates to additional cycles of exams. This certification is now less about actualy practical knowledge, more about investing enormous unjustified amount of time into memorizing entire curriculum
@@MiguelOliveira-wz4ju I think Mark’s argument holds here. If you pass level one with 80% you are more likely to pass level 2 than if you passed level 1 with 65%. It doesn’t make a difference whether you repeat level 1 or level 2.
looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the recent pass rates for Level 2 that came out today...
Sitting for L1 in November. Just gonna try to use these results as inspiration to buckle down more and hope that it means earning the charter will hold more weight because of its rigor than it already does.
Mark , Did you also take into account the fact the this year had the exam window for level 1 for almost all months - Feb , March , May , July ,Aug , Nov maybe i missed one more month here .
What would you say about that . I feel the MPS might actually has gone down . Pls comment
I spent 60mn for 6 practice questions, from Mon-Fri. Full time study on weekend. That seems a waste of time but I'm happy as it's my learning process. Slowly but surely even it's not more efficient. It's okay. It's my learning style. As long as you can pass the exam it's fine and I did it.
That's brutal, not enough transparency with these exams.
That's too much transparency from their POV.
Please do another applied series video - thank you.
I didn't even show up for my exam after being deferred twice. Just got too busy with work stuff. The first time I wrote level 1 in 2017 I failed miserably... just didn't know what I was doing or getting into. I just missed the pass mark in 2018 for my second attempt. Given I was so close I decided to try once more. I was surprised with my own decision to just not show up for the third exam attempt but I run my own business. While I felt more prepared in 2020 by the time I was to write in May 2021 I just felt like I lost momentum decided to focus on my busy season with work. Thinking of registering for another attempt... but not sure if I will.
Will be interesting to see the level 2 results next week, fingers crossed!
Maybe with more tests taking place throughout the year instead of only in June (and December for level 1) the sample size is smaller for each test?
I guess they just made the point, only the top does it. Done swallow pill, accepted i have not well prep and going May 2022 ( this time allowing 1yr to get foundation right). Realised the modules changes.
So demoralizing ... how are you supposed to want to write it again when the bar is set to 75% of failures...
Plus... full price to register in november
Well I'm now terrified for my November Exam! Well I'll just do the best I can I guess, aim for that higher percentile
Wondering how many level 1 candidates also sat for this May exam compared to other sessions. With covid happening, I suspect people had more time on their hands and decided to pursue the charter on a whim. So you have a larger population of individuals who aren't fully committed, coupled with a higher MPS. Recipe for disaster.
This was my original thought. A perfect storm
That was my thought as well; suppressed candidates from prior years, lots of amateur finance people, and don't forget the whole meme stonks thing that probably added a few additional "finance fans" to the mix.
Mark... all this start stop completely killed my focus and motivation. What do you recommend for Candidates to stay on track?
I'm going through the same thing here
I agree. I am from India and I had failed the l3 exam in 2019. It's July 2021 and the exam has been deferred thrice. I can totally relate to the rationale put forth by the cfai on Reddit. Reading the same content for so long has made my brain numb, and it's difficult to retain concepts.
Patience is the key .. stay motivated and work hard
I personally feel that they're trying to discourage the lot who register and aren't that serious about it.
I Know a ton of people who didn't take the course seriously and expected to magically pass the level 1 exam.
The 25% batch unfortunately might have just been collateral damage.
Of those people you mentioned, how many did passed?
Have you heard any reports that the actual questions were more difficult - possibly people saying your/CFAI mocks were not on the same level as the exam? Studying for L2 in September (curious to know if I should be taking a few extra marks off any mocks to get a closer gauge)
Having written the paper-based and computer-based L2 exam I can confirm the exam questions are different. Idt they are more difficult but they flow differently than the learning ecosystem questions and mock exam. It kinda takes you out of your comfort zone and makes the exam questions seem more difficult than they are. From my experience, I felt like the exam questions focused on different details than the questions from learning material. Like if the learning material tried to drill some concepts or calculations with different versions of the same questions, in the exam it would probably only show up indirectly for some different type of question.
I took level 1 a week ago. I think November is out of the question for me. I think the deadline to sign up for Nov was 7/21. Not sure if there is an exemption for people who have failed a previous exam. I think I did well, thought I did at least 70%, but I am not sure about 80%. We will see in September.
Shit...I just took the Level 1 in July. I hope my score isn't this bad. Now I'm more worried. I had great scores on all the practice problems and several mock exams, and I thought the actual exam was significantly harder than any practice problem I did.
same feeling! i found the july exam more difficult than any of the 11 mocks I completed .
what was your practise problem score? :P
just wanna confirm regarding one thing- This time there is no sectional cut off ( subject wise) and only overall cutoff will be considered. Is this true ? Like can I focus more on the subjects which I'm good at , rather than learning all 10 subjects completely! ? Is this True? Pls reply
@@vishrutikhandelwal467 there has never been a sectional cutoff
@@mugwanja yeah I got it now, o don't know who once told me there is sectional cut off !
You are reasoning on the basis of what is helpful to candidates. They are an institution: that are reasoning on the basis of money and prestige.
Wouldn’t making L1 questions more difficult help more in weeding out candidates instead of lowering the pass rates?
I wonder if they’re including people who chose not to sit. I was a L2 candidate but when the test was deferred I moved on to the GMAT instead and am now in an MBA program. I ended up not even sitting for L2.
Just given the exams in July. . Hoping for some good news...
Waitin on my lvl3 result and scared as hell..
I was due to do the exam just when COVID hit. Exam was first delayed by a few months, I just burned out and would have failed for sure had the exam not been delayed again. So there is something about burning out due to delayed exams. Other thing is more people bored at home, so more people signing up without taking the exam seriously?
Who else sat for L1 last week and is now shook af?
Right here. My highest mock was 75% so im pretty sure i failed
I was rather confident. Not anymore...
Me too. My mock was 72%, and their exams asked a lot on details that required memorization. Not similar to the level of depth in their mocks or EOC’s at all. It was not hard, rather “surfaced”.
@@elpf7064 same…
@@peaceatlast8768 My mock was like 65%, but I felt like the actual exam wasn’t that difficult
I'll give my opinion here, and as you said, it's just an opinion amongst many:
I don't know that this theory makes sense for the simple reason that, what with the pandemic for the past one and half year and the forced acceleration to shift to CBT, I don't think they'd have the time or gall for such a drastic move at the same time as all that. We also know they have been vastly understaffed since the pandemic, worrying about which centers to book and who might cancel on them. Although unpopular, I do believe the "stop-start" explanation they provided had at least some factor to play here. I know because I experienced that lull myself while studying for level 2 since 2019 and having the exam deferred twice before finally taking it. It makes you become somewhat complacent and lazy. Excessive time becomes an enemy instead of an ally. The information you studied decays and also your willingness to refresh it again.
My exam of level 1 is in November this result have given me a wake up call to study more hard and now I am planning to study atleast for 600 hours before my exam
where can I get MM merch??
What was the passing rate of people who took your course?
Do you think for someone who has passed level one in 2019 and has been deferred constantly it make sense to continue this program and give an attempt to level 2? PS : this is my situation and I m confused wether to continue my journey or not.
Likely a mix of things. Most likely the biggest factor is the CBT, which I very much doubt was rigorously validated before implementation. I say this having taken both the paper-based exam (Level I) and the CBT (Level II).
@@jamessteinler5576 far fewer questions from the same curriculum increases the noise-to-signal ratio
Glad to have cleared this L1 years ago when you could have three or four courses below 50 and still pass
I didn't score a single subject below 50 and just two around 50 and still failed In feb... and almost all above 70 except fra being near low end 70
If it was truly a "start/stop" study nature that caused the low pass rate, why also increase the MPS? ZERO logic in increasing the minimum passing score, when the general pass rate is so low.
I think they took advantage of it to raise the standard of the exam
Hello Dr. Mark, is there a way to purchase only review videos from your website for Level 1 - August 2021? A help would be great.
So are you saying that if the pass rate is concentrated in level 1 that level 2 and 3 should actually see inflated pass rates going forward? I know this is theoretically speaking, but if 25% pass level 1, then the pool of candidates should be better off in level 2/3 therefore the pass rate should be increased, reflective of the decrease in level 1. I can't see pass rates of 70%+ in the later exams to compensate for level 1.
I was thinking the same thing. For that theory to be true, higher pass rates have to show in the other two exams. If not, then it’s not about displaying minimum knowledge at a set standard but picking pre-set percentile to be progress and become members each year. So in the end they are saying that there are only a set amount of charters to be awarded every year instead of educating and certifying a set professional standards/knowledge.
I'd agree that's assuming that CFAI will allow passing score at L2 be 60%. If only the cream rise to the top and go through the hoop then that same cream should continue to smash through
If we buy nov l2 package but decide to defer to feb 2022, will we be able to switch to 2022 MM content.
Hi Professor Mark, what do you think this means for upcoming L2 Candidates for August?
Better study harder
It seems to imply you're ok, that there was a considerable bottleneck in newly passed L1's arriving for the L2 exam, and they're just thinning the herd at L1 end.
“Unchartered territory” 😂
Unbelievable.
Love the caption LOL
CFA institute's comment on reddit actually makes a lot of sense. A lot of people had already fully studied the material by May last year. It will naturally make people overconfident in their ability to retain the knowledge over such a long timespan. You need full revision of all the material to pass, as if you never studied it before. You don't remember 300+ hours of studying material for so long. Highly doubt most people studied closer to 600 hours, meaning passing rates will be a lot lower.
Is February expected to have 65% MPS again with pass rate above 40% for level 1??
No one knows that except cfa man use your brain -_- no one can answer that
should we wait same low rates for level 2 and 3?
I think it's because of switching to a computer based exam.
If the exam can be repeated alot like every 4 months, then it's will be very easy for candidates to just fail in May and take it again in November.
Unlike in the past where we have to wait a whole year to have another attempt.
So it's makes more sense to increase the minimum passing score, otherwise the certificate will have no value if everybody can pass by repeating every 4 months.
This fail rate is like 15% lower then the U.S hardest BAR exam..
What do u mean?
@@akashtodkar5188 the bar exam is the exam folks take to become lawyers, Jake is stating the pass rate of the CFA L1 is lower than the BAR, meaning the L1 is more likely to be failed.
@@justinskirda8270 a lower fail rate would mean 'easier'. what am I missing?
@@PerryCuda he certainly meant pass rate can we all not be picky assholes
@@krisdang 🤣🤣🤣
MM secures the bag
Sir MARK . How much time on average would you possibly spend in prep for CFA Level 1 for average person ?. And how much hours can I spent in a day if I have a 6 month writing in Feb 2022. Plz help!
Got a 70%+ on all sections except 2 (none 50% or below) for Feb. exam and failed with the highest MPS ever. Highest MPS and now lowest passing rate ever. I’m not going to register again for awhile. Gotta see some level of consistency again before I put in the time and money
Sorry to hear that and hope you can pass next time. May I ask the 2 lower subjects, any of them is Ethics or FRA?
@@thaiken9102 FRA was one. I did great on ethics. I was super close to the MPS line. I knew going in that FRA was going to be a challenge for me but felt since I didn’t get below 50% I would’ve been alright with my performance in other sections but it is what it is. Life goes on. Best of luck to your CFA journey if you have begun and yet to fully complete.
@@charlesdodd4983 I'm a May L1 candidate also, and luckily I did pass, however, my friend had the approximately same grade as you and failed the exam. All the best for your next exam!!
@@thaiken9102 You mean you're an ... L2 candidate ;) ;) ;)
@@thaiken9102 Did you get 70%+ in all subjects? should i aim for that in November?
I am going to write this exam for the first time in November.
Hi Dr Mark, thanks for the video
Pass rate is calculated with people who register ? Or with people who sit for exam only?
I mean if 1000 register for exam.
500 sit for exam , the other 500 didn't show exam day
250 pass the exam
Does it mean 50% pass rate or 25% pass rate?
Only those who actually show up.
I just found out that for candidates attending the exam in India's test centres, there's an applicable goods and services tax (GST) of 18% on top of the examination fee paid to CFAI. I don't believe I have paid the GST before but if I have to pay an additional 18%, the total examination fee may be upto USD 200 higher ..... that's super expensive :(
I started out the CFA programme to cure my curiosity of investment analysis but now, in my opinion, the cost-benefit and risk-reward is WAY too high. If I register during the early registration phase, I now have to shell out additional money [USD 900 (approx. INR 80,000)] and time [lower pass rates, higher MPS etc.] for a benefit of, say, a minimum bump in current salary/future prospects.
In a country that worships Chartered Accountants (CA) and MBAs, I believe the CFA designation is blown out of the water.
regarding your theory around CFAI possibly looking to make L1 more of a "gate" going forward - if so, it would also make sense that we'd probably see a gradual rise in L2/L3 rates.
in other words, even if the May L2 pass rate is the same as historical L2 pass rates, it doesn't necessarily invalidate this theory.
thanks for the video!
It doesn't, however, it does invalidate CFAI's comment (start/stop nature of study) on Reddit
@@timiakano agree! also, it feels like CFAI's rationale (i.e., start/stop nature of study) has already been invalidated given Feb L1 had a similar MPS as May L1 and had a pass rate was over 40%.
Sir when u think Artificial Intelligence, will take all finance jobs?!
Personally I think that a person that scores between 70%-80% in a CFA L1 exam is a person more than qualified for finance professional jobs. More of the formulas and calculations that we learn to do are already given to us and we are more tested on the interpretation. I think your financial improve with day to day office job too. Are they trying to punish new candidates that have more chances in less time for their own decision??
Hey Mark, so if someone decides to retake in November, does it make more sense rereading the syllabus or just dive straight into practice questions and mocks?
Love from Barbados
I was planning to go for level 2 but now I just think I should go for a Masters. If level 2 has less than a 40% pass rate, at this point studying and passing would be tougher than a Masters.
Why doesn't the institute just come out and mention the MPS ?? Why the secrecy?? that is the only thing that is mind-boggling.
The real question is how many attendees on this exam compared to the rest of exams
Unchartered territory... hahaha damn right it is 😂😂😂
Mark....Level 2! I need anxiety meds.
Yep me too bud! Good luck with your results though!
I am only not confident with ethics and derivatives, now I’m scared
World's population empect is direct empect to exam,jobs and getting a job.
I felt great coming out of Lvl 2 last May. Not too sure now. Either way, no time for a break.
I’m waiting for L2 results from May as well. Massively nervous now!! Good luck with your result though bud!
But sir if you remember that the mps was higher for February(1st CBT) than the December 2020.....and this time the mps has increased even higher.....so I think finding a pass rate that's acceptable to keep the credibility of the CFA.
What about L2 May exam?
The plan for me was to apply to "access sholarship", the institute didn't even say whether it will open or not, and set my exam for may 2022. Should I stick to this plan?
they say it’s gonna rain
Not everyone taking the CFA exams want to get the full charter. I'm not sure why they made it much more harshly graded.
Well lot of people sporting CFA I badge without putting the rigor dilutes the charter . Lot of companies just use the CFA I as a filter for their junior level employees. This does not help the charter in the long run.
Haha, just passed Level 2, with only 40% passing rate? My guess is, CFAI needs to cut a MPS to make the passing rate around 40%, but it turns out its test structure makes scoring distribution hard to make the cut, basically the (MPS + 1) includes too large of the percentile, and so they just cut it at 72, making the passing rate only 25%. Another guess is, lower passing scores to make these candidates to register the November exams, so CFAI can maximize their revenue lol. I did very poorly in Level 1, barely passed it, and I realized I had to work hard to pass Level 2. So got Mark Meldrum's videos as well as Schweser all together. If I sat at this Level 1 exam, I would never be able to pass it, then I wouldn't have passed Level 2
Now, I'm worried. I have my exam in August. If I fail, I have to wait until next year!
You won't fail. Just kill it everyday.
Easier said than done!
Just took level 1. Thought it went as well as it realistically could have. I really enjoyed emmersing myself in the content but if the pass rates are going to continue to be this high, I don't know if my paper will count as a pass. At the same time, I no longer care that much it was a good way to spend the lockdowns.
Very interested about your result. Hope you pass. Please comment here whatever the result you get. L1 aspirant here :)
I just don't understand one thing : if pass rate is 25% , so all candidates we scored above 25% are definitely passed in May L1 exam ... right ?
Means this time sooo many candidates have cleared L1 right ?
No, it means only 25% passed, 75% did not pass.
Why are people now doubting on July Level 1 results and doubting on themselves whether they will pass or fail in Exam!? There are high chances that they will definitely clear the exam as Passing percentage is just 25% this tym...mane next time it is 35-40%
@@MarkMeldrum oh my God...that is scaring me now !
What renovations are you having done, Mark? Cigar bar?
New patio doors - existing one have some rotting in the framing.
adding a room that will be a mini-library exclusively containing books on technical analysis
ouch my exam is in 5 weeks. guess i better study harder
Same here. I'm prepping for L2. Good luck!
Last time: if u scored above 70% on mocks you are good to go. Exam results: 4 subjects above 70%, 5 subjects close to 70% line and 1 subject on 50% line. Nothing below 50%. Still fail. Last time you could still pass with 1-2 subjects below 50% (fail) and 1-2 subjects only above 70%. Time has totally changed.
this is a great result imo, would've been a definite pass last year. There is just too much information to process on the fucking exam day. And then we have this "20 experimental questions" bullshit which reduces our opportunities for scoring even more...
But the curriculum of level 2 differs from level 1.
25% including candidates who took for the 2nd and more time, considering that English natives makes the rate higher, wonder what's the score within first timers outside english speaking countries, 10%?
How do people not see how the money is what drives the program. No discounts for retests, continuous annual fees and the list goes on. Education is power but it doesn't have to be segregated. MM champion a new way for students to educate themselves and transcend the shackles of the system. Those that really want to learn financial literacy can go beyond programs like this
I didn't pass, but I know it's because I started late and didn't devote quality time to study and practice. I registered for Feb and plan to utilize the learning ecosystem to its fullest with MM videos this time
Winner attitude right here. Good luck!
Have I heard it correct that now there will be a 18% VAT applied on the fee as well?
Yes, GST for those in India
@@SiddharthS96 Jesus Christ 😂😂
Blame the computers
The infallible CFA Institute. Is it possible that they made a mistake? And would they adhere to the code and standards and admit it?
40% pass rate at L2 this morning, so that really calls into question the 25% from level 1.