Have heard some say that starting for example now for L1 in June could actually be detrimental–long lead in time meaning you forget what you’ve learned in the beginning. Some individual variation here I’m sure but anyone feel they didn’t do as well by starting too early?
I started studying in February 2016 and took level 1 in June. The first book I started with was FRA. Around May I realized that I started forgetting things (specially those many differences between US GAAP and IFRS). As you can imagine, if you start now you’ll forget a lot of things by the time you start revising the material next year. BUT, you’ll recall everything after a little bit of time spent in the weeks before the exam. So ultimately the decision comes down to how much time you think you’ll need and be able to commit. If you have no background in finance/Econ, start now. You’ll need the hours to grind through the basics. Otherwise, starting in 2017 might work fine, specially if you have school/work that needs your full effort now. Hope that helps.
Helpful reply–thank you. Specifics to my situation as well as my learning style would indicate the earlier the better!! Appreciate your advice
Yes, the burn out is real.
When everyone is hitting their peak a few week from exam day, you’ll be mentally exhausted.
Also, it will make studying level 2 & 3 harder. You need time off between exams to enjoy life.
I would suggest you to drink beers and enjoy life during the rest of the summer and fall and start study hard in January.
If you start early you will allocate less hours per day. If you start too late you will probably burst out as well while catching up fellow candidates who had started too early. Simple as that.
IMO, 5-6m before exam should be fine period. Also you should calculate the possibilities of unforeseen events that may affect the time allocated for studying during preparation period.
Now is too early, it is better to spend more time closer to the exam than to start now and spend less time.
agree on burn out. it sounds dumb. but it can get so severe that just looking at the books makes you feel sick
I am listening to people saying that if they start too early then they tend to forget what they studied in previous months. I believe this is the case with most of us. However, what I don’t get is, what stops you from reading it second time, and third time (if required). It will only help in retention and make you more confident. Put less time in the beginning and then gradually increase it. However, starting early can always help. Just my 2 cents 
Agree with above post. You could cruise through them and get an idea for what’s going on in a month or two. Then take a couple months off or just skim some interesting topics and then hit it hard starting mid-January or February. Depends what kind of time you have available for studying and the type of life you live.
My boss let me study at work so I could basically study all day March, April, and May. If I had to work and study outside of work I would have wanted to start in January without a doubt.
I started in February on all three levels, and accelerated studying in April. Worked well I think, good balance between having enough time for the material and then mocks while not burning out.