No, I passed in 2020 and we did not get any details.
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Hi guys,
For those who have passed the CBT May exams, I read elsewhere that for AM session, there aren’t any marks allocated for the individual sub-questions. My question is how do we know how many pointers we need to answer in order to get full marks?
Any advice is appreciated. Thanks
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Hi Antonio,
I also did not pass for a very tight margin. This statement is something that they had mentioned prior to the exam. Some of the questions are not meant to be graded and are in the exam purely for the purpose of gathering statistical information. I guess its just a way for them to assess candidate quality
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Is it normal for the people who failed to feel depressed? when i reopened the books yesterday, I had a feeling that i was going to cry (like seriously weep) 
Congrats to everyone who passed on the first attempt but I ease myself by saying that passing on the first attempt is not the normal thing
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You should not weep. You could take it chin up and give it shot in November. We had to wait a full 12 months after we received “We regret to inform you….”.
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Yea it is normal. When I failed L2 I felt incredibly down and wished it was a mistake. In two weeks or so you will get back to normal and start studying again. Remember next session isn’t far away! One of the reasons that brought me down was that I had to wait an entire year to reattempt, but you don’t have to do that. So chin up.
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Totally understandable, pretty sure I’d be reenacting some Anchorman if in the same boat - Ron Burgundy - Glass Case Of Emotion - YouTube
Give yourself a couple of days to clear the head then chin up and crack on. Remember why you are in pursuit of becoming a Charterholder and you’ll be able to pick yourself up pretty quickly.
Mock till you drop, practice then review weak areas identified. I think it’s the best way to really understand and get yourself over the finish line. I believe that the content doesn’t change for the November exam so your odds of passing it are at their strongest. Very best of luck with round 2 (or 4…)
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Ethics on its own is not enough to fail you, since I have a friend who scored below 50 in ethics but nailed most other sections and passed (not in this exam though). But the theory is that if you are borderline fail and you nail ethics, it may tip the scale in your favor. That being said; ethics is important regardless of its weight on the exam.
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To all who just missed the mark this time, you can surely get it next time!
As others have pointed out, at least there isn’t a 12 month mandatory waiting period anynore for us. So at least there’s that.
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If you used Kaplan and only Kaplan to study for L3, perhaps this is also part of the issue if you came close but just came up short somehow. On my 2020 Quicksheet there were formula issues on questions I definitely would not have wanted to get wrong if I wanted to pass the exam.
I haven’t used Bill’s mocks but I can imagine they are quite great just due to his posts here. I also haven’t used Meldrum but he’s got a large following and his videos that I’ve seen on YouTube seem quite good. My only personal experience is with Chalk & Board since I used them this year, and I really highly recommend them. I operated strictly off their videos and mock exams plus the official CFA mocks and Schweser mocks, and I completely relearned topics I “thought” I learned under Schweser. To my mind, it was the key reason I passed. So I would definitely put them as a prep provider right up there with Campbell and Meldrum. Particularly if you don’t want to crack the books hard again and want primarily videos. Cheers and good luck everyone!
I have failed this time again but i don’t understand why ? i scored above 70% in ~50% of the exam specifically in heavy weight topics and between 50-70% for ~40% of exam and just in derivative below 50%. My score line very very close to MPS.
I failed back in 2019 because of ethics (see my history and you will see my post). Even back them my score was very close to MPS. I face deferral in May and Dec 2020.
I will also say that i have lost trust in CFA institute and designation itself. In the past, I have passed a couple of more tough exams out there like CA and CPA but never never lost trust and respect of those respective institute.
I am counting close to 10 years in CFA program. I am also CPA working in Accounting Advisory practice in a national consulting firm specializing in financial instruments.
I am planning to give up because for following reasons 1) There is not trust that i will pass even next time because my score were pretty decent for pass line like i am above 70% in 50% of exam. Not sure i can even get better in next exam despite putting more efforts. 2) At this point in time of career now sure how CFA designation will help me (there is no motivation to achieve anymore) 3) I have become old/wise enough not to take these crappy tests anymore where you prep well and get good enough mark to justify pass but you still fail. 4) Other dimensions of my life have taken lot of hits because of commitment to prep for CFA exam. I have two little kids. I am not able to focus on bold decisions that require time and effort and can affect wealth accumulation and real life that matters most these days and at my age.
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Well, I also failed Equities lol (below 50%). But I scored pretty good on other Mastadontes like Fixed Income (above 80%) and PMs (70%). Looks like ethics bump still exiSts, but not exiTs 
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To me it feels like they went from 56 percent pass rate to 42 percent simply to recoup lost revenue in 2020. Playing the percentages that the 14 percent that didn’t pass will shell out another 1K to take in November. Just my opinion.
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I’ll be honest, I think the Institute may still be trying to figure out the new format. There are fewer questions, the method of answering the AM session is slightly different on computer versus paper, etc. The lesser number of questions is affecting pass rates maybe. And the computer method may make it more challenging to get partial credit on the AM part. Who knows. Hard to say based off one exam but it wouldn’t surprise me if the computerized L3 is a work in progress being refined over time. Just my 2 cents.
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Passed ;), still consider it wasn’t worth all of the time and effort as i could spent it on something more relevant to my interest (data science).
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300 hours estimate was 59%, the low was Dec20 at 56%. 10-year level 3 average 58.9%.
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I used Chalk and Board as well and passed L3 in May. The videos were great - but I’ll tell you, I think taking both of the “essay-writing workshops” was a huge part of my pass. The instructor spends literally all day with candidates just doing timed essay questions, going over the answers, and then grades all of your responses personally. Given that the essay section is a huge part of achieving the pass on L3, I’d highly recommend
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Congratulations, Milk!
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Yeah agree, the essay workshops at Chalk & Board were clutch for me too.
Does Nathan write the exams for those, or does he use, for example, CFA Institute’s mock exams?
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Greetings Bill! For the essay sections Nathan has his own mocks insofar as I can tell. Cheers!