I wish the Kaplan qbank was a bit more challenging. After reading a topic (ie: 7.5 in the hedge fund topic with the structural models, etc.), I feel overwhelmed like there’s no way I’ll memorize all this and I feel like I need to re-read it again two more times. But Then I do the qbank for that topic and score like in the mid 80’s. Not bad! But the questions are fairly easy and probably not realistic for the real test. I’m pondering if it’s worth it to buy the Uppermark qbank as another supplement. Thoughts?
Also, is anyone doing the Kaplan online class? I got the email today about session 2 of the class. Is it worth it?
This may be a dumb question, but is there a way to just get the UpperMark QBank? On their website, I see I can exclude some items such as the final review, note cards, etc. But I can’t figure out how to just get the TestBank. It seems like I must get the study handbooks - printed and / or ebooks. I’d ideally like to continue to use Schweser’s books and not get the UpperMark books, but get just the UpperMark TetsBank. Is that possible? Thanks in advance!
Hey Holden - I think you will see the caliber of CAIA candidates is much different than the caliber of CFA candidates.
Very cool that you were able to back into how many people completed the Qbank questions. I’m one of them. Well, I did all Qbank for the sections I read - not done reading yet. I like to read the section in the book, do the QBank, and as I move forward reading more sections, periodically go back to re-do Qbank to make sure things stay somewhat fresh. So my scores are quite high, but I’ve seen the Qbank questions several times now.
I just finished the curriculum in 7 weeks, reading all Kaplan and taking very good notes (like I did a few years ago on CFA). I think I made the mistake of finishing too early but have travel plans in August where I want to just be reviewing. I have to admit I didn’t think the CAIA curriculum was as interesting as some people state. The only area I found hard was a few readings in the Hedge Fund section. Much of the material seems like so many lists of memorization!
I work in real estate finance and have a masters of Real Estate. The real estate/real assets curriculum is mostly based on indices and then a strange chapter on timberland and farmland. it’s like the alts of the alts!!! why not just focus on basic real estate, like office/multifamily/retail/industrial???
I finished reading the entire material and did all Kaplan’s Qbank questions (I took the QBank questions after i read each chapter). I felt good then I scored in the low to mid 70. However, I can not remember anything from what I read 2-3 months ago and I am almost in a panic mood. There is no way that I will re-read the books again. I know that this is somehow normal but I feel a lot worst for L II than L I. I just went back to review 3.1 and 3.2 and almost couldn’t remember a thing.
Has anyone felt/feeling this way or it is just me? Also, can you suggest how do you plan to wrap things up for your final review given that we are only 5 weeks away?
Just like all of you, I want to take this exam once. I have invested a lot of time away from my family reading for this and do not think I can do it again.
Hi Gogo - the hedge fund sections are crushing me right now. I read everything from Schweser once (except CIT) and now am going through them again. Almost done with my second read of hedge funds, just leaving me to get through structured products again. 7.4, 7.5, and the like are really challenging for me and taking a lot of my time. I also did not read the CIT section yet and I’d like to give ethics another read. So I have a lot to get through with five weeks to go! And that doesn’t count mock exams. I actually did half of an AM exam yesterday though (multiple choice) and did fairly well (78%). But we’ll see how the second half goes and how the essays go.
I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed too. I did pretty well on the QBank, but I know it’s not a good representation of the real exam. So that’s why I’m trying to do some mocks now. But, again, I still have a good amount of reading to do (ethics, CIT, structured products). I wish I had a few more weeks to work with.
Hopefully what you read will come back to you. Keep pounding the Qbank is my advice and re-read the LOS of the questions you got wrong or simply forgot. And then hammer the mocks. You got this!
Don’t panic! Reading only once is not enough for a kind of volume of material, but you don’t have to go back and re-read everything. Trust me, those material is in back of your brain somewhere. Focus on the questions and mock exam now, those will help you to remember what you read, or, at least, expose all your weakness. I went through that feeling at each level of CFA and doing the questions and exam helps. Also, don’t waste your lunch time, by merely flipping through the pages as you chew on your burger wil help you too. CONSTANT EXPOSURE to the material is the key.
Neil202 - Thanks for the words of encouragement. I thin kwe are all feeling overwhelmed by the curriculum and specially with the exam approaching. I am sure you and all of us will do fine. I will start to redo some Schweser Qbank questions in each Topic and will jump to the practice and Mock exams and pound these too until exam day. You got this too!
My apologies for any negative energy I have caused to anyone.
ws - It is comforting to know that that this is normal. i seriously can ot remember having to go through this in Level 1. Maybe because Level 2 materials are a bit more difficult and the CR section adds to the anxiety. Trust me, I am not wasting anytime. I am mainlining my exposure to the materials.
Do you think re-doing the entire Schwser Qbank is worth it, along with their practice/mocks? Or just do the practice and mocks are sufficient?
On a different note - For those who use Kaplan Schweser, what are your thoughts on the L II instructor? What do you think of his style and delivery of the materials in comparison to L I instructor?
The mocks are a lot more challenging than the Qbank and more representative of what the real exam will be like. But I think that you’d want to make sure you have a good handle on the Qbank before jumping into the mocks. The Qbank can help build your confidence up and get you ready for the tougher questions. It’s certainly not enough just to use the Qbank (although I have heard of people who used just the Qbank and passed!!!). But if you’re having trouble with it, you’re likely going to have a lot of trouble with the mocks. My advice would be to do them both. The more questions you see, the better!
Just curious, changing topics. How many hours is everyone at so far? I know the number of hours isn’t the best indicator of anything. Quality over quantity. But just curious since CAIA recommends 200. I’m just above 150 right now.
I won’t necessary allocate time to re-do all the Qbank; I rather allocate time to take practice exams; that way, it can expose your weakness, go back to the area of your weakness, re-read the material and take some qbank question as needed.
I honestly do not count the hours since it is relative to the each person’s background. But I would say I have put more than the 200 hours that CAIA claims to be benchmark.
Are you referring to the 3 full practice exams in Kaplan Schweser or you meant to create a mixed practice exams over all 8 topics from the Qbank? Are there any other practice test i am not aware of?
Yes, I believe there are total of 3 practice exam and 1 mock exam from Schweser, and there is also a mock exam from CAIA.org you can use. That makes a total of 5.
Has anyone gone back and read the Level 1 Schweser notes? I am sure most would agree there is a lot of overlap and curious If this is something others have done. Scheduled to take Level 2 in late Sept and being cautious with how I spend my time. Was debating on reading and would appreciate and thoughts. Thanks and good luck to all!
I find that the answers to QBank are better than taking it. I printed them out at my office and plan to review some concepts I’m weak on or overlooked in details
I finished all the material three weeks ago. Took the CAIA mock right after and thought it was hard and fairly detailed in some topics. However, now I’m reviewing the material and reviewing the CAIA mock and thinking it was easier than I first thought taking it
We’ll see. You only had to know the basics in CFA exams that I found fairly easy if you got through all the material with a review. I’m much less motivated on CAIA to CFA but hopefully I’ll muster the energy to power through like all of us.