hi guys, i'm a 3rd year eng. student and currently preparing for CAT 2010-2011.As i started my preparation 2-3 months back i also started gathering information about GMAT and b-schools in india and abroad.all i've learnt so far is that 2-3 years experience is necessary to get into a good college be it india or outside.i've good academic scores (cgpa >8.5)so i hope atleast i'll get some job or other... lets jump to my query...in june 2010 i'll be entering my last year on eng. and hence i'll be applicable for CFA programs.i'm deeply interested in finance specially various investment options and portfolio management.I'm planning to pursue a CFA course from some good college,may be some foreign institute which would not only help me in my MBA but will bolster my CV for campus recruitment.Plz suggest me some good institutes in and outside india.secondly,as i mentioned i'm preparing for CAT i would like to know how much time to i have to devote for a CFA program...reading previous post i learnt tht thr r some 'levels' in ths program..plz inform abt tht...
shall be really thankfull
Just to clarify CFA is not a course like MBA which you pursue by joining any college. It is a charter which helps you gain knowledge after clearing 3 levels of examination. To be specific you need to clear 3 levels of examination to be a CFA. however you may join a sort of coaching to clear the same if you wish.
Regarding no. of hours alloted, I know of people who clear it in 10-12 days of preparation. I know people who could not clear it in 5 months(Level 1) so it all depends on how well you grasp the concepts. So no. of hours varies from individual to individual.
There are 3 levels in CFA, level 1 can be taken in june or december of any calender year. Level 2 and level 3 can be taken in june. For obvious reasons you can take level 3 only after you clear level 2 and level 2 after you clear level 1.
level 1 is more of concept based, level 2 comprises of intense investment mathematics. Level 3 tests your decision making abilities of investment and portfolio management.
Guys have a look at this ..the stats speak for themselves !
The lowest percentage of candidates in four years passed the first level of the Chartered Financial Analyst exam , a designation that may offer an edge in hiring after the industry's worst shakeout in at least three decades.
Thirty-four percent passed Level 1 in December, matching the rate in 2005, compared with 46 percent in June and 35 percent in December 2008, the CFA Institute said today in a statement. The pass rate for all first-phase exams taken since the program began in 1963 was 44 percent, less than Level 2 at 49 percent and Level 3 at 64 percent.
The pass rate may have declined because the test-takers were less serious than previous groups, said Tom Robinson, the institute's managing director of education, citing 28 percent of applicants who didn't show up to take the test, an increase from 25 percent in June. "It's an indicator to me of the seriousness of the candidate group," he said. "There wasn't a change in the curriculum."
The pass rate for all three regions -- Americas; Europe, Middle East and Africa; and Asia -- was 34 percent. The institute offered the exam in 31 countries. Asia had the most test takers with 20,035, or 45 percent, of the 44,209 total.
suyash_rix,frstly a big thnx for ur reply well,i was surfing net,and somewhere i read that CFA is a 3 years course... but say if i give level 1 in june 2010,then level 2 in dec.2010,i'll be done with 2 levels in a matter of 6 months and probably by 2011 i'll be done with all of 3...plz clarify .... secondly what degree will i get on completion of all 3 levels..is it a diploma grade degree,a certificate course type stuff etc. etc.
thirdly,i'm only aware of ICFAI,NM in india and CFAinstitute abroab...plz advice me a institute and the expenses...
fourthly,in order to give the tests how should i prepare,i mean r thr any standard books/material...
lastly,if i'm pursuing CFA then can i admit into a MBA course as well?i mean is there anythng like if 1 is pursuing CFA course he;s not eligible for MBA..(i know its obvious,just in case!!!)
suyash_rix,frstly a big thnx for ur reply well,i was surfing net,and somewhere i read that CFA is a 3 years course... but say if i give level 1 in june 2010,then level 2 in dec.2010,i'll be done with 2 levels in a matter of 6 months and probably by 2011 i'll be done with all of 3...plz clarify .... secondly what degree will i get on completion of all 3 levels..is it a diploma grade degree,a certificate course type stuff etc. etc.
thirdly,i'm only aware of ICFAI,NM in india and CFAinstitute abroab...plz advice me a institute and the expenses...
fourthly,in order to give the tests how should i prepare,i mean r thr any standard books/material...
lastly,if i'm pursuing CFA then can i admit into a MBA course as well?i mean is there anythng like if 1 is pursuing CFA course he;s not eligible for MBA..(i know its obvious,just in case!!!)
i guess u need to know what is cfa all about !
i am jus restricting ma discussion to abroad cfa in ur lang
CFA gives core materials and u can learn notes from Schweser notes .. u can get that notes from few shops in mumbai ..
level 1 is held in june/dec ..other levels are held only in june.. well according to u , its possible wrap up CFA by 2012 june ... thats 2.5 years from now .. but its kinda herculean task if u r less familiar to finance ..
u would be offered charter if u complete 3 level provide u have 4 years of relevant work ex ...
MBA is different and cfa is different .. so dont confuse both ...
to sumup , based on ur post , i can clearly say u r really unaware of cfa .. jus think what cfa will offer u with respect to ur long term goal ... do not go jus for sake of getting charter ..if u r really interested in finance , go for it or else u really scrutinize ur decision..
Can anyone tell me about the opputunities in monetary figures(approximately) that one can expect after L1 , L2 and L3 ??
thanks in advance Akash
monetory figures ???? ur query seems very ridiculous .. but still replying for it
This is something that has been discussed over and over again ..
There is no such thing as a salary range for L1 because no one will make a hiring decision just because you are doing the CFA program. It depends on your background . To make it more simple from a recruiters point of view the salary they are prepared to offer will depend on :
1. Your Work experience ( if not 1 then 2) 2. Your Educational background 3. Your progress in the CFA course
In the above list 1>2 >>>>3 .With nothing to show in points 1 &2 you will not get any decent job till you complete all 3 levels .
For ppl with no workex /relevant workex point 2 becomes important ,then a L1 may land you a decent job -for ex I Banks taking IIT/IIM grads in profiles like Structuring/Equity Research so the hiring decision is based on your educational background and a L1 sets you apart from the pool of IIT/IIM ppl applying nothing more . The L1 in itself will do no wonders.
The L2 may land you with a KPO and L3 in a Front end position with a bank,but by the time you complete L3 you would most probably be in the finance field so point 1 becomes more important.
As regards someone with software exp passing L1 you sal will depend on the kind of role you are looking at .If you go in as a Analyst who needs to program a lot but also needs a little bit of fin knowledge then you command a good salary but if you move into a pure fin role then be prepared to start at the bottom in terms of salary and work profile unless point 2 is very strong.
The bottom line is CFA is not that useful for career changers but more useful for career enhancement . For a career change the oldest and most trusted tool is still the MBA.
CFA gives core materials and u can learn notes from Schweser notes .. u can get that notes from few shops in mumbai ..
level 1 is held in june/dec ..other levels are held only in june.. well according to u , its possible wrap up CFA by 2012 june ... thats 2.5 years from now .. but its kinda herculean task if u r less familiar to finance ..
u would be offered charter if u complete 3 level provide u have 4 years of relevant work ex ...
MBA is different and cfa is different .. so dont confuse both ...
to sumup , based on ur post , i can clearly say u r really unaware of cfa .. jus think what cfa will offer u with respect to ur long term goal ... do not go jus for sake of getting charter ..if u r really interested in finance , go for it or else u really scrutinize ur decision..
You also need to understand that CFA is not a degree it is a charter certificate of great value. CFA of ICFAI is quite different and very often its credibility has been questioned. CFA by AIMR is the one people give a shot for getting niche roles in investment sector. To read more follow the link of CFA institute provided.
suyash_rix thnx again... well,tht was a helpful link and i found almost my queries there...just a few more... 1.CFA institute doesn't have there test center in india may be due to ongoing tussle with ICFAI...is there any other prestigious indian institute which i can opt for (except ICFAI)? 2.will CFA institute(or any other institute) itself provide any material?aren't there any books available in market which i can go through just to get an idea of how difficult it gonna be...
monetory figures ???? ur query seems very ridiculous .. but still replying for it
This is something that has been discussed over and over again ..
There is no such thing as a salary range for L1 because no one will make a hiring decision just because you are doing the CFA program. It depends on your background . To make it more simple from a recruiters point of view the salary they are prepared to offer will depend on :
1. Your Work experience ( if not 1 then 2) 2. Your Educational background 3. Your progress in the CFA course
In the above list 1>2 >>>>3 .With nothing to show in points 1 &2 you will not get any decent job till you complete all 3 levels .
For ppl with no workex /relevant workex point 2 becomes important ,then a L1 may land you a decent job -for ex I Banks taking IIT/IIM grads in profiles like Structuring/Equity Research so the hiring decision is based on your educational background and a L1 sets you apart from the pool of IIT/IIM ppl applying nothing more . The L1 in itself will do no wonders.
The L2 may land you with a KPO and L3 in a Front end position with a bank,but by the time you complete L3 you would most probably be in the finance field so point 1 becomes more important.
As regards someone with software exp passing L1 you sal will depend on the kind of role you are looking at .If you go in as a Analyst who needs to program a lot but also needs a little bit of fin knowledge then you command a good salary but if you move into a pure fin role then be prepared to start at the bottom in terms of salary and work profile unless point 2 is very strong.
The bottom line is CFA is not that useful for career changers but more useful for career enhancement . For a career change the oldest and most trusted tool is still the MBA.
courtesy : rajatb
Thanks a lot Rajat for helping me out with the querry(a ridiculous one as u said ) ...
I didnot find posts which could clear my query...so i am troubling you again...
I want to tell you abt my educational background...
By the time i will appear for CFA L3, i would have cleared my CA as i am pursuing CA (passed the CPT being All India 7th) in dec 2008 and gave CA inter this november.The results are pending. Am hoping to clear this time around too.
And since I am from a commerce background, so I have no software experience at all from a professional point of view..
So being a CA,having basic NCFM modules certicfications like Capital,derivatives,commodities and currency and clearing CFA L3 with nil work experince....what kind of incentives can i expect at the point i have just cleared CFA L3 ?
And do the companies directly recruit after passing CFA or we will have to do the search job ?
hey......................................... i went thru the posts bt couldnt find the ans to the following qns. 1.time n again it has been mentioned 4yrs of work exp is required to becom a charterholder, so wat about the people who do not have that kind of exp?do they get a job after l3 even if they are not charterholders and if yes then what kind of jobs?
2.i know this is a very reputed degree but what kind of money does a fresher who has cleared l3 draws in india(i kno dats relative but still approx) and how does 1 get a job,is dere any kind of placement service?
SORRY IF YOU FIND THE AFORE MENTIONED QUESTIONS REDUNTANT BUT PLZ ANSWER THANX
i am considering the idea of pursuing a CFA course, and i`m looking for some inputs and opinions from ppl who are already CFAs or are currently pursuing CFA or have some knowledge of CFA. i want to pursue MBA in finance in fall (august) 2007 from US..and i wish to do some finance course in the meantime to get a hang of finance.
i`m an engineer and i have no workex or education in finance. so basically i`m looking for the following things from any course that i do:
1. Since i dont have a degree in finance or wokex in finance, i might face difficulty finding jobs in US after MBA. So i`m looking for a course should help me get good internships and jobs in the US during summers or after mba.
2. The course should have some international respect and recognition. while courses from IGDIR, ICFAI, NMIMS are quite good, they are unknown in US. i need an international course which companies in the US will recognize.
3. Lot of my classmates (from engineering) who`ve done MBA finance complain that finance is a completely different field and they find it hard to cope up with so many new concepts. So i`m looking for a course that would give me enough knowledge in advnace to cope up with the complex financial concepts during MBA.
4. In a US mba, most classmates generally have several years of related work ex. so the course should also make me strong enough to be compete with them academically and bring me at par with them in terms of financial knowledge.
after a little research, i have found that the course that best fits the above four requirements is CFA. What do u guys think? Does anyone have any opinions or suggestions in this regard? should i go ahead with CFA? or should i look for something else? is there any better option than CFA in my situation? is CFA managable for someone with a degree i engineering and work ex in IT? i have good knowledge of stock markets and have studied some NCFM modules. i understand derivatives and bonds, and a little bit of mutual funds and investment products. in this situation..can i manage a CFA or will it all be bouncers over my head?
i have heard that CFA is a pretty tough course and requires a lot of effort in terms of studies and preparation. i dont mind putting in any amount of effort or number of hours of study. i just wanna know how feasible it is for a person like me. thanks for any help!
Hello mate(s). I am furthering this discussion regarding CFA Level 1 am intended to appear for L1 examination in the June this year. Situation is I am a engineer by qualification and working with Dell International site, Gurgaon as a senior technical support consultant. Not happy with the Job and life of course. In life time is the scarcest commodity I will be turning 27 this summer. I was a good student I missed IIT only slightly.
Time is terrible short and in my life in the toughest situation I had believed in one thing which is omnipotent and omnipresent: Will power.
My question is I can take break from the job in the month of May and study for around 35 days at least 10 hours a day consistently and with determined pursuit and thus cracking the examination level 1 please comment on my approach which according to few seems to be impractical but I believe turning impossible by sheer determination great and indefatigable courageI am waiting for your comment on it.
Secondly stand alone how much success can L1 give me in fetching a job in the field of financial market in terms of maximum package
hey CTD i am pursuing CFA from AIMR USA . You can take up the course from India. Its the world's most recognised course in finance leading to CFA charter. Level 1 exams are conducted in december and June. The course is tough by any standards. For the first two levels you are tesetd on the basis of multiple choice question. The question paper is very tricky. For more details you could check out www.cfainstitute.org If you have cleared this course you don need to to do an MBA in finance. As its the mother of all fin courses. Later maybe after 5 years of good industry work ex you cud consider the options of an MBA in finance but i don think you would really need it. A qualified CFA can expect anywhere between $100000-$140000 p.a in USA. (Mind you thats the starting salary). The ROI is pretty high. Sitting in India you could finish the course for about 2 Lacs considering assumptions that you clear the exams at the first shot. Once you have cleared level 2 exams you could think of going to the states and take a job which would pay you between 50000-75000$ p.a Many people with IT background are taking the course up in India because its fairly challenging. I am not discounting the fact that life's gonna be tough for u being an engg but nothing's impossible . Hope i have managed to get a clearer picture. all the best btw : I am a CA and currently doung MBA from symbi, pune Take care
Hello mate(s). I am furthering this discussion regarding CFA Level 1 am intended to appear for L1 examination in the June this year. Situation is I am a engineer by qualification and working with Dell International site, Gurgaon as a senior technical support consultant. Not happy with the Job and life of course. In life time is the scarcest commodity I will be turning 27 this summer. I was a good student I missed IIT only slightly.
Time is terrible short and in my life in the toughest situation I had believed in one thing which is omnipotent and omnipresent: Will power.
My question is I can take break from the job in the month of May and study for around 35 days at least 10 hours a day consistently and with determined pursuit and thus cracking the examination level 1 please comment on my approach which according to few seems to be impractical but I believe turning impossible by sheer determination great and indefatigable courageI am waiting for your comment on it.
Secondly stand alone how much success can L1 give me in fetching a job in the field of financial market in terms of maximum package
Hi Akshat!! This is Santosh. Many Many Congratulations!!! I am CFA Level 1 June 2010, Candidate and need some guidance about studies. Hope you give me some guidelines from your experience.
Dear CFA candidate, As you may know, the Delhi High Court has given us provisional permission to register candidates for the CFA exam in India on Sunday, 06 June 2010. This means that you may request a change to a test center in India. However, the court could reverse this provisional decision and require us to cancel the exams in India. In the event of a cancellation, candidates registered for an India test center will have three options: 1) Receive a refund of applicable CFA Program fees. 2) Defer registration to a future exam date outside of India. 3) Request a test center outside of India for the June 2010 CFA exam. If you are considering a request to change to an India test center, we urge you to be aware of the risks, and to carefully consider the uncertainty of the situation. All test centers have limited seats, and test center change requests are granted on a first-come, first-served basis. This means that if you request a test center change, your requested test center may not be available if it is already at capacity. If you would like to request a test center change, please visit our website. We will post any updates to www.cfainstitute.org/india. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at www.cfainstitute.org/contactus. Sincerely, CFA Institute
The pass rate for all first-phase exams taken since the program began in 1963 was 44 percent, less than Level 2 at 49 percent and Level 3 at 64 percent.
"It's an indicator to me of the seriousness of the candidate group," he said. "There wasn't a change in the curriculum."
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