CFA Level 2 Tips
Level 2 Curriculum breakdown
The 2010 Level II CFA examination consists of 20 item sets— 10 on the morning session of the examination and 10 on the afternoon session. The 2009 Level III examination uses the essay format in the morning, and the item set format, with 10 item sets, in the afternoon.
Item sets are sometimes called “mini-cases.”
Each item set on the CFA examination consists of a vignette (or case statement) and six multiple choice items (questions).
The length of a vignette ranges from about 1 page to 2.5 pages. The longer vignettes are those that include several tables of information, such as for a financial statement analysis, statistics, or fixed income item set. The average length of the vignettes on the examination is about 1.5 pages.
The six items in each item set can only be answered based on the information in the vignette. Hence, the items are not free-standing (as in Level I), but are drawn from the vignette. You will need to read the vignette before answering the items, and you will need to refer back to the vignette for information. The six items can be answered independent of each other, but they do require information in the vignette.
On the Level II examination, you will have a total of 120 items (20 vignettes with 6 items each) compared to 240 multiple choice items on the Level I examination. The examination formats (including the essays at Level III) adapt to the changing topic focus and learning focus at each level. The topic focus on Level I is on investment tools, the topic focus on Level II is on asset valuation, and the topic focus on Level III is on portfolio management. The learning focus also changes, from knowledge and comprehension (Level I), to application and analysis (Level II), and to synthesis and evaluation (Level III)
The Level II and III examinations are graded for 360 points, corresponding to the number of minutes on the examination. The 120 Level II items are equally weighted, 3 points each, with no penalty for guessing. At Level III, the morning essay examination is 180 points and the afternoon item set examination is 180 points.
• Read the formatting conventions (above in section 2) that are followed for writing multiplechoice questions at Level I. These same “best practices” are followed for item sets questions at Levels II and III.
• Expect to go slower on the Level II examination than on Level I. You are answering 50% fewer questions, but spending twice as much time thinking about each one (including time for reading and analyzing the vignettes).
• You may mark up your examination book. Circle or underline important information in the vignette and write down your equations or logic. However, only your final answers recorded on the answer sheets are graded.
Item sets are sometimes called “mini-cases.”
Each item set on the CFA examination consists of a vignette (or case statement) and six multiple choice items (questions).
The length of a vignette ranges from about 1 page to 2.5 pages. The longer vignettes are those that include several tables of information, such as for a financial statement analysis, statistics, or fixed income item set. The average length of the vignettes on the examination is about 1.5 pages.
The six items in each item set can only be answered based on the information in the vignette. Hence, the items are not free-standing (as in Level I), but are drawn from the vignette. You will need to read the vignette before answering the items, and you will need to refer back to the vignette for information. The six items can be answered independent of each other, but they do require information in the vignette.
On the Level II examination, you will have a total of 120 items (20 vignettes with 6 items each) compared to 240 multiple choice items on the Level I examination. The examination formats (including the essays at Level III) adapt to the changing topic focus and learning focus at each level. The topic focus on Level I is on investment tools, the topic focus on Level II is on asset valuation, and the topic focus on Level III is on portfolio management. The learning focus also changes, from knowledge and comprehension (Level I), to application and analysis (Level II), and to synthesis and evaluation (Level III)
The Level II and III examinations are graded for 360 points, corresponding to the number of minutes on the examination. The 120 Level II items are equally weighted, 3 points each, with no penalty for guessing. At Level III, the morning essay examination is 180 points and the afternoon item set examination is 180 points.
• Read the formatting conventions (above in section 2) that are followed for writing multiplechoice questions at Level I. These same “best practices” are followed for item sets questions at Levels II and III.
• Expect to go slower on the Level II examination than on Level I. You are answering 50% fewer questions, but spending twice as much time thinking about each one (including time for reading and analyzing the vignettes).
• You may mark up your examination book. Circle or underline important information in the vignette and write down your equations or logic. However, only your final answers recorded on the answer sheets are graded.
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